Colombia digital nomad visa requirements: income, insurance and how to apply

Visa V digital nomad Processing: Up to 30 days after the study fee; often 1 to 4 weeks

Colombia's digital nomad visa requires COP 5,252,715 a month in foreign remote income in 2026 (three times the minimum wage), insurance covering Colombia and an online application to Cancillería. Here is how to qualify and apply.

The main Colombia digital nomad visa requirements are: monthly income of at least three times Colombia's legal minimum wage over the last three months, which is COP 5,252,715 a month in 2026; remote work for an employer, clients or your own business outside Colombia; and health insurance that covers you in Colombia for the whole stay. The visa (officially a Visa V for digital nomads) is issued online by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Cancillería) for up to two years. Ignore the flat dollar figures that circulate online: the rule is set in pesos.

Colombia digital nomad visa requirements at a glance

Requirement	What it means in 2026
Income	At least 3 x SMMLV per month for the last 3 months: COP 5,252,715
Work	Remote work for a foreign employer or foreign clients, a business you own abroad, or a qualifying digital start-up project
Not allowed	Paid work for people or companies domiciled in Colombia
Insurance	Health cover valid in Colombia for accidents, illness, maternity, disability, hospitalisation, death and repatriation
Nationality	Generally for nationals of countries that don't need a visa for short stays in Colombia
Length	Up to 2 years; family members can apply as beneficiaries
Fees	Study fee plus issuance fee; about USD 194 in total under the 2026 schedule as reported (see costs)

The 2026 income requirement: doing the 3x SMMLV calculation

Resolution 5477 of 2022, which created the visa, ties the income test to the salario mínimo mensual legal vigente (SMMLV), Colombia's legal monthly minimum wage. You need income equal to at least three minimum wages a month, shown on bank statements for the previous three months.

For 2026, the government set the minimum wage at COP 1,750,905, a rise of about 23%. The original decree (Decreto 1469 of December 2025) was provisionally suspended by the Consejo de Estado in February 2026, and the government issued a transitional decree (Decreto 159 of 2026) that kept the same amount while the court case continues. As of October 2026 the court had consolidated the challenges and closed the evidence stage, and the COP 1,750,905 figure remained in force. If the court rules before you apply, recheck the number.

Year	SMMLV	Visa threshold (3x)
2025	COP 1,423,500	COP 4,270,500
2026	COP 1,750,905	COP 5,252,715

That explains why guides disagree. Pages quoting about $1,000 a month date from the visa's early days, when the minimum wage was much lower. Figures based on a 2026 minimum wage of about COP 1.56 million don't match the decree. And any dollar figure depends on the exchange rate on the day it was written: one Colombian relocation site put COP 5,252,715 at about USD 1,640 at the end of July 2026. Work in pesos, and leave a margin if you are paid in dollars, euros or pounds, because a weaker currency month can push you under the line.

How to show the income

Bank statements in your name for each of the last three months, as full PDFs rather than cropped screenshots
Each month should clear the threshold on its own; don't rely on one large month to average out two weak ones
Deposits should be easy to match to your employer letter, client contracts or invoices
Savings are not income. If your money comes mainly from pensions, rent or investments, a different visa category fits better

Who qualifies and what work is allowed

The visa covers three main profiles: employees and contractors working remotely for a company abroad, freelancers serving clients abroad, and owners of a business abroad who run it remotely. The resolution also has a route for digital entrepreneurs with a start-up project. In every case the work must be for entities outside Colombia. You cannot take paid work from a Colombian employer or client on this visa.

If you only want a few months, you may not need the visa at all. Under Colombia's entry rules, visa-exempt visitors get an entry permit of up to 90 days, extendable to 180 days in a calendar year, and Cancillería says visa-exempt visitors may carry out activities that don't generate payments in Colombia. One Colombian relocation site reads the rules as allowing remote work for a foreign employer on that permit; confirm before relying on it. For anything longer, or if you want a cédula de extranjería, apply for the visa.

Health insurance rules

The resolution requires a policy that covers you in Colombia for accidents, illness, maternity, disability, hospitalisation, death and repatriation. Check that the certificate names Colombia (or worldwide cover that clearly includes it), lists those risks, and runs for the full period you are asking for.

The length of the policy matters more than many applicants expect. Cancillería can limit the visa's validity to the period your insurance covers, so a 12-month policy can produce a visa of 12 months or less even if you asked for two years. If you want the full two years, buy cover for two years or be ready to renew the visa sooner.

Documents checklist

Passport photo page, and your latest Colombian entry stamp or permit if you are applying from inside Colombia
Digital photo in JPG, white background, maximum 300 KB
Bank statements for the last three months showing at least COP 5,252,715 a month
Employees: a letter from the foreign employer describing the job, salary and permission to work remotely
Business owners: proof you own the foreign company, such as a certificate of incorporation or good standing
Freelancers: contracts or letters from foreign clients and supporting invoices
Health insurance certificate meeting the coverage rules above
Foreign documents apostilled (or legalised) and officially translated into Spanish where required

Cancillería can ask for extra documents or an interview, so keep originals and supporting paperwork to hand.

How to apply on the Cancillería portal

Apply online at the Cancillería visa portal (tramitesmre.cancilleria.gov.co). You can apply from abroad, or from inside Colombia if your current status is regular.
Upload your PDFs and photo and choose the digital nomad category of the Visa V.
Pay the study fee within 10 calendar days, or the application is archived. The study fee is not refunded if you are refused.
Wait for a decision. Cancillería has up to 30 calendar days after the study fee is paid, and longer if it consults other agencies or asks for more documents.
If approved, pay the issuance fee within 10 calendar days. The e-visa is then emailed to you.
Register with Migración Colombia within 15 days of the visa's issue or your entry, and apply for your cédula de extranjería, since the visa runs longer than three months.

Costs

Item	Amount	Notes
Visa study fee	About USD 56	Non-refundable; per Resolution 3969 of 2026 as reported
Visa issuance fee (Visa V)	About USD 138	Only if approved; some sources quote about USD 177 to 178, and reciprocity can change the amount for some nationalities
Cédula de extranjería	About USD 79	Paid to Migración Colombia
Apostilles and translations	Varies	One applicant reported a US business apostille costing about USD 250
Health insurance	Varies	Must meet the coverage rules for the full stay
Optional visa agency or lawyer	About USD 200 to 400 per visa	As reported by applicants and agencies

Colombia replaced its visa fee schedule in 2026, and fees paid inside Colombia are charged in pesos at the current rate, sometimes with stamp duty or bank charges on top. The amount shown on the Cancillería portal when you pay is the one that counts.

Taxes, residency and what the visa doesn't do

Tax residence: spending more than 183 days in Colombia within any 365-day period generally makes you a Colombian tax resident, taxed on worldwide income. The visa itself gives no tax exemption. Get advice before you pass that mark.
No residency path: the Visa V is a visitor-type visa. Resident (R) visas usually follow several years on a Migrant (M) visa, so time on a digital nomad visa doesn't build towards permanent residence.
No local work: invoicing a Colombian company, even remotely, falls outside this visa.

If you are weighing other Latin American or European options, compare with Mexico's temporary resident visa, which can lead to permanent residence, or the Spain digital nomad visa.

What people who've done it say

Community reports on this visa are thinner than for older programmes, and some predate the 2026 minimum wage rise. Treat them as individual experiences.

Four weeks, and you can't move once you start. An administrator of the Travel Off Path community forum reported getting a digital nomad visa approved after four weeks, in an undated post that refers to the much lower early income threshold. They say it can take a week if no extra paperwork is requested, that business owners face more scrutiny than employees, and that you should plan to stay put in your home country or in Colombia during processing. They also flag that apostilles for a Canadian business took about five weeks, and that supporting documents had to be less than 60 days old.
About 30 days once the file is complete. Answering a question on the Colombia Move community in 2026 from an applicant still waiting after 10 days, an experienced contributor said to expect roughly 30 days after all requirements are met.
Visa length can follow the insurance. A long-term resident on a rentista visa, another Visa V category, reported on Expat Exchange in a recent post that despite a letter asking for two years, Cancillería approved the visa only for the length of the emergency health policy, just under a year. The same poster said earlier attempts ran out of time over shifting insurance requirements.

Common mistakes

Using a dollar figure from a blog. The test is COP 5,252,715 a month in 2026. Convert your statements to pesos and keep a buffer.
One strong month, two weak ones. Show the threshold in each of the three months.
Insurance that's too short or too vague. It must cover Colombia and the listed risks, and its length can cap your visa.
Colombian clients. Paid work for people or companies in Colombia is not allowed on this visa.
Missing the payment deadlines. Both the study fee and the issuance fee have 10-day windows.
Forgetting Migración Colombia. Register and apply for the cédula within 15 days.
Using third-party "visa form" sites. Apply only through the official Cancillería portal.

Bottom line

In 2026 you need COP 5,252,715 a month in foreign remote income for three straight months, insurance that covers Colombia for the full period you want, and clean proof of who pays you. Apply on the Cancillería portal, pay each fee inside its 10-day window, expect a decision in about a month, then register with Migración Colombia. Because the minimum wage is still before the courts, check the figure again right before you file.

Sources

Part of our Colombia relocation series.

Last updated November 4, 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.