Moving to Colombia from the US: which visa or residence route fits

Colombia sorts long-stay foreigners into three visa families: Visitor (V), Migrant (M) and Resident (R). Which one you need depends on why you are moving, how you earn money, and how long you plan to stay. US citizens start with one advantage: the United States is on Colombia's list of visa-exempt nationalities for short stays, which opens some routes that other nationalities cannot use. This guide walks through the main options an American usually weighs, what each one allows, and where you file.

First, the visitor stay you get at the border

A US passport holder lands in Colombia without a visa and receives a Permiso de Ingreso y Permanencia (PIP) from Migración Colombia. Migración Colombia describes the tourism version as valid for up to 90 days, and a stay can be extended with a Permiso Temporal de Permanencia, but the total cannot pass 180 calendar days in the same calendar year. That entry permit is for short stays "sin vocación de domicilio ni ánimo de lucro": no intention to settle and no paid local activity.

The Cancillería also notes that remote workers from visa-exempt countries may stay under the PIP as long as no Colombian company pays them and the stay stays within those 90 plus 90 days. That is useful for a scouting trip. It is not a way to live in the country. See entering Colombia on a US passport for the details of that permit.

How every visa application works

All Colombian visas are requested online through the Cancillería's visa platform. Resolution 5477 of 2022, the current visa rulebook, says that applicants outside Colombia file with the consular office covering their own country of residence, and applicants already inside Colombia with a regular status choose the Bogotá office in the same platform. That second option matters: you can enter as a visitor, gather documents and apply from inside the country, as long as your PIP is still valid.

The general requirements apply to every category:

• The online form with a recent color photo on a white background.
• A passport valid for at least six months, with a copy of the biographic page.
• If you are already in Colombia, the page with your latest entry stamp or the Migración Colombia entry record.
• Documents issued abroad apostilled or legalized, with an official Spanish translation. The Cancillería notes that bank certifications and statements written in an official language of the Organization of American States, which includes English, can be filed without apostille or translation.

Each visa has a study fee paid when you file and a separate issuance fee paid only if the visa is granted. The Cancillería publishes the current amounts per category on its fee pages; for example, the pensioner migrant visa lists a study fee of USD 56 and a visa fee of USD 279. Check the exact figure for your category before you pay, because amounts differ by type.

The V digital nomad visa

The V Nómadas digitales visa is built for people who work online for foreign employers or clients. According to the Cancillería, it covers remote work or telework done from Colombia "exclusivamente para empresas extranjeras," either as an employee or as an independent contractor, and also digital or tech entrepreneurs with a project of interest to the country.

What the Cancillería asks for:

1. A passport from a country exempt from short-stay visas. US citizens qualify.
2. A letter in Spanish or English from the foreign company or companies you work for, stating the type of relationship and pay. A contract, or proof that you own part of a foreign company and work for it remotely, also works.
3. For entrepreneurs, a motivation letter describing the project and the resources behind it.
4. Bank statements showing income equal to at least three monthly legal minimum wages (SMLMV) during the last three months.
5. Health insurance valid in Colombia covering accident, illness, maternity, disability, hospitalization, death and repatriation for the planned stay.

The visa lasts up to two years and allows beneficiaries. It does not permit work for any person or company domiciled in Colombia. The minimum wage changes every January, so recalculate the income test for the year you apply. The full breakdown is in our Colombia digital nomad visa guide.

Migrant (M) visas: pension, rentier and others

Migrant visas are for people who intend to settle. The Cancillería gives them a validity of up to three years. Two details from the official text deserve attention before you choose one:

• Absences end the visa. An M visa automatically loses validity if the holder is outside Colombia for more than 180 continuous days within each 365 days counted from issuance.
• Time on an M visa leads to residence. Most M categories count toward the R visa after a set period of continuous holding.

The M categories an American most often considers:

• M Pensionado. For people with a lifelong monthly pension from a state or a private pension fund. The Cancillería requires a certificate showing a pension of at least three monthly minimum wages, apostilled and translated, plus criminal record certificates from every country where you lived in the last three years, a medical fitness certificate and health coverage in Colombia. It does not allow work. Social Security retirement benefits are a state pension, so they are the usual basis for Americans. Details in our Colombia pension visa guide.
• M Rentista. For people with regular income that is not a pension, such as rental or investment income. Like the pension visa, it is income-based and does not create a work permit.
• M Cónyuge o compañero permanente. For the spouse or permanent partner of a Colombian national.
• M Trabajador. For people hired by a company or person in Colombia, with the employer's documents supporting the application.
• M Inversionista. For foreign direct investment registered with the central bank, with a minimum amount set in the regulations.
• M Profesional independiente. For self-employed professionals whose qualifications are recognized in Colombia.

Each category has its own document list on the Cancillería site. Read the specific page for your category; do not rely on another person's checklist from a different year, because the minimum wage based thresholds move every January.

The R resident visa

The R visa is Colombia's permanent residence. The Cancillería states that it gives an open work permit, so the holder may carry out any lawful activity, subject to rules for regulated professions. Holders request a transfer of the visa every five years, and the visa automatically ends if the holder is absent from Colombia for two consecutive years.

Most Americans reach the R visa by accumulating time on M visas. The Cancillería's table sets these minimums of continuous holding:

• 3 years as the spouse of a Colombian national.
• 2 years as the parent of a Colombian national.
• 5 years as a permanent partner, worker, business owner, independent professional, pensioner or investor.

Continuity means each new visa was granted before the previous one expired. A salvoconducto or other Migración Colombia permit does not keep the clock running, and the Cancillería says that meeting the time requirement does not guarantee approval. Because absences of more than 180 continuous days cancel an M visa, plan long trips home with that rule in mind.

Which route fits which situation

• You work remotely for a US employer or US clients and want a defined stay: the V digital nomad visa. Keep all paid work outside Colombia.
• You are retired and collect Social Security or a pension at or above the threshold: the M pension visa, which builds time toward residence.
• You live on investment or rental income: the M rentista visa.
• You are married to, or the partner of, a Colombian: the M spouse or partner visa, with the shortest path to R for spouses.
• You have a job offer from a Colombian employer: the M worker visa.
• You already have years of M visas: the R visa by accumulated time.

Whatever you choose, after the visa is granted you must register it with Migración Colombia and, for visas longer than three months, get a Cédula de Extranjería within 15 calendar days. That step is covered in your first weeks in Colombia.

Before you apply from the US

Gather the documents that take longest first. An FBI identity history summary for the criminal record requirement takes time to obtain and then needs an apostille from the US Department of State. Pension letters from the Social Security Administration also need an apostille if you use them for the pension visa. State-issued documents such as marriage and birth certificates are apostilled by the secretary of state of the state that issued them. Translation into Spanish must be an official translation; plan for it after the apostille, so the apostille page is translated too.

Register your trip with the State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, and keep your US passport valid well beyond your planned visa dates, since a passport expiring within six months will block the application.

Common questions

Do US citizens need a visa to move to Colombia? A US citizen can enter without a visa for a short stay of up to 90 days, extendable to 180 days in a calendar year. Living in Colombia beyond that, or working there, requires a visa from the Cancillería.

Can I apply for a Colombian visa while I am in Colombia? Yes. Resolution 5477 of 2022 lets applicants who are in Colombia with a regular migration status file online and choose the Bogotá office. You must keep your entry permit valid while the application is studied.

Which Colombian visa allows me to work for a Colombian company? The M worker visa covers employment with a Colombian employer, and the R resident visa gives an open work permit. The V digital nomad visa and the M pension visa do not allow work for Colombian employers.

How long until I can get Colombian permanent residence? For most M visa categories the Cancillería requires five years of continuous holding before the R visa. Spouses of Colombian nationals need three years and parents of Colombian nationals two.