Countries › Colombia › Guide › 5. FX and capital controls › Getting paid for exports and paying for imports in Colombia: channelling through the FX market, the six month window for export proceeds, peso payments, trade finance and DIAN fines

Getting paid for exports and paying for imports in Colombia: channelling through the FX market, the six month window for export proceeds, peso payments, trade finance and DIAN fines

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Last verified: 2026-10-26 · Status: Stable

Payments for imported goods and the proceeds of exported goods are compulsory FX market operations: they must go through a Colombian bank or a registered compensation account, each with an FX declaration, and only the importer or exporter itself may channel them. Exporters must bring export proceeds into the FX market within six months of receiving them, may net freight and insurance paid abroad, and may be paid in pesos only through banks; importers may pay in pesos only through banks, and supplier or bank financing of imports needs no loan report. DIAN supervises this area: paying outside the FX market is fined at 100 percent of the amount, late channelling of export proceeds at 40 UVT per month, and services income is outside the compulsory channelling list.

USD figures use the TRM (tasa representativa del mercado) of COP 3,158.43 per US dollar, valid 24 to 26 October 2026, from the official TRM series certified by the Superintendencia Financiera and published on the national open data portal. Amounts in UVT use the 2026 UVT of COP 52,374 (DIAN Resolución 000238 de 2025). Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Maximum term to channel export of goods proceeds through the FX market	6 months from receiptResolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 74, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Import payments for goods	Must go through the FX market (bank or compensation account); pesos only through banks textResolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 69 and art. 70, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Duty to channel income from services exported by residents	Not required (voluntary channelling allowed) textResolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 41, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Loan report for post shipment import financing	Not required textDCIP-83 num. 3.2, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Fine for paying or receiving compulsorily channelled operations outside the FX market	100 % of amountDecreto Ley 2245 de 2011 art. 3 num. 2, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Fine for channelling export proceeds after the six month term	40 UVT per month (max 400 UVT)Decreto Ley 2245 de 2011 art. 3 num. 6, as of 2026-10-26 · in force

The rule

1. Residents must pay their imports of goods through the FX market. Imports may be financed by Colombian FX intermediaries, the supplier or other non residents. Refunds of channelled import payments (rejected goods, quality discounts) also go through the FX market. Residents may pay imports in pesos only through FX intermediaries, and non residents may buy currency in the FX market with pesos received for their exports to Colombia. Residents may buy currency in advance to pay future imports; financing of advance payments requires the deposit (currently 0 percent).Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 of the Board of Banco de la República, Art. 69, art. 70 and art. 73, 2018-05-25 official text · verified 2026-10-26

2. Import payments must be channelled by the importer itself, paid directly to the creditor, its assignee or an international collection or payment agent; residents may not channel payments for imports made by others and offsetting of obligations is not allowed in foreign trade. The FX declaration uses numeral 2015 when payment is made within one month of the transport document, 2022 or 2023 between one and twelve months, and 2024 or 2025 after twelve months, depending on whether the supplier or a bank financed it. Post shipment financing of imports is not reported to Banco de la República as a foreign loan.Circular Reglamentaria Externa DCIP-83 de 2023; num. 3.2 as amended by Circular DCIP-83 of 19 December 2024, Ch. 3 opening paragraphs, num. 3.1, 3.2, 3.2.1 and 3.2.2, 2024-12-19 official text · verified 2026-10-26

3. Residents must channel through the FX market the currency received for their exports of goods within at most six months from the date of receipt, including cash received directly from the buyer and advance payments for future exports. Exporters may grant payment terms to foreign buyers. Advance payments are not a financial obligation bearing interest; prefinancing of exports by banks or non residents is a foreign loan subject to the deposit. Exporters may use export proceeds to pay freight, insurance and other export costs abroad directly (net reintegration), may sell export payment instruments to banks, factoring companies or non residents, and may be paid in pesos only through FX intermediaries. Currency for export guarantees and refunds of export proceeds is also channelled.Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 of the Board of Banco de la República, Art. 74, art. 75, art. 77, art. 78, art. 79 and art. 80, 2018-05-25 official text · verified 2026-10-26

4. Export proceeds must be channelled by the exporter itself; if future export flows are securitized in Colombia the trust may channel them. When a foreign buyer pays in pesos from its peso account, the exporter gives the bank the FX declaration within five business days under numeral 1060, stating the dollar value deemed reintegrated for each export declaration. Amounts different from the customs value may be channelled for justified reasons (defects, prompt payment or volume discounts), keeping the supporting documents.Circular Reglamentaria Externa DCIP-83 de 2023 (compiled), Ch. 4 opening paragraphs and num. 4.1.1, 2023-09-12 official text · verified 2026-10-26

5. The operations that must be channelled through the FX market are imports and exports of goods, foreign borrowing and its financial costs, foreign investment in Colombia and Colombian investment abroad with their returns, financial investments abroad (unless made with currency that need not be channelled), foreign currency guarantees and derivatives. Services are not on the list, so residents may receive services income abroad and use it freely, or channel it voluntarily with an FX declaration under the services numerals.Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 of the Board of Banco de la República; DCIP-83, Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 41 and art. 81 to 82; DCIP-83 num. 10.2, 2018-05-25 official text · verified 2026-10-26

6. Free trade zone users follow the same exchange rules as residents: they must pay and receive their foreign operations through banks or compensation accounts, must channel proceeds of goods leaving the zone within six months, may not hold foreign currency deposits in Colombian banks, and must settle operations with other residents and other zone users in pesos, whatever their customs treatment. Invoices may be denominated in foreign currency, but obligations between residents are paid in pesos.Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 92 and art. 93; DCIP-83 ch. 9, Res. Ext. 1 art. 92 and 93; DCIP-83 ch. 9 lit. a, c, g, h and i, 2018-05-25 official text · verified 2026-10-26

7. DIAN supervises exchange compliance on imports and exports of goods and services and their financing. Its fines include: 100 percent of the amount paid or received outside the FX market for compulsorily channelled operations; 100 percent of the difference when less than the customs value is channelled without justification, or more than the real value; 100 percent of amounts channelled as trade that do not come from trade; 40 UVT per month or part of a month of delay in channelling export proceeds, capped at 400 UVT per late reintegration; and 25 UVT per FX declaration not filed or filed wrongly, capped at 1,000 UVT per investigation. For the 100 percent fines the minimum is 200 UVT, raised by one third for repeat offenders within five years. Bringing goods in through an unauthorized place, without declaring them, or undervalued is presumed to breach the exchange regime.
Cost to do it: Late export reintegration: 40 UVT (COP 2,094,960, about US$663) per month of delay, capped at 400 UVT (COP 20,949,600, about US$6,633).Decreto Ley 2245 de 2011 (DIAN exchange sanctions regime), Art. 1 and art. 3 (num. 1 to 9, parágrafos 4 and 7), 2011-06-28 official text · verified 2026-10-26

Payment timing	Financed by supplier or other non resident	Financed by a Colombian bank
Up to one month, or paid with own funds	2015	2015
More than one month up to twelve months	2022	2023
More than twelve months	2024	2025
Advance payment before shipment with own funds	2017	2017

Import payment numerals by timing (DCIP-83 num. 3.1 and 3.2, counted from the transport document date)

Breach	Fine	COP and approx. USD
FX declaration not filed, wrong or not kept	25 UVT each, max 1,000 UVT per investigation	25 UVT (COP 1,309,350, about US$415) each
Export proceeds channelled late	40 UVT per month, max 400 UVT	40 UVT (COP 2,094,960, about US$663) per month
Payment or receipt outside the FX market	100% of the amount, minimum 200 UVT	Minimum 200 UVT (COP 10,474,800, about US$3,316)
Channelling less than the customs value without justification	100% of the difference, minimum 200 UVT	Minimum 200 UVT (COP 10,474,800, about US$3,316)

Selected DIAN trade exchange fines in 2026 money (Decreto Ley 2245 de 2011 art. 3; UVT COP 52,374)

Worked example

A Medellín coffee machinery exporter receives US$300,000 (about COP 947,529,000) from a US buyer on 2 March into its bank account in Miami that is not a compensation account. It must channel the dollars into the Colombian FX market by 2 September, six months after receipt (Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 74).
It channels on 2 November, two months late. The DIAN fine is 40 UVT per month: 80 UVT, COP 4,189,920 (about US$1,327), above the 25 UVT floor and below the 400 UVT cap (Decreto Ley 2245 art. 3 num. 6). Admitting it before any DIAN visit cuts the fine to 40 percent (art. 23).
The same company pays a German supplier US$50,000 for parts from a group account abroad that is not registered. Paying an import outside the FX market is fined at 100 percent of the amount, about COP 157,921,500 (US$50,000) (art. 3 num. 2).
Its software support fees billed to foreign clients are services, not goods, and may stay abroad or be channelled voluntarily.

Step by step

1. Decide whether to use a Colombian bank or a registered compensation account for trade flows; register any foreign account used for imports or exports as a compensation account within the month after its first use.
2. For each import payment, give the bank the FX declaration with the import declaration data and the numeral that matches the payment timing; pay the supplier directly.
3. For each export, track the date the proceeds are received abroad and channel them within six months, net of freight and insurance paid abroad if applicable.
4. For peso payments to or from foreign parties, use the bank and the counterparty's non resident peso account and file the FX declaration within the stated term.
5. Keep customs declarations, invoices and FX declarations together for the limitation period of exchange sanctions; DIAN must notify charges within five years of the facts (Decreto Ley 2245 art. 5).

Common traps

Netting payables and receivables with a foreign group company. Compensation of obligations is not allowed in foreign trade; each import and export flow must be channelled (DCIP-83 ch. 3 and 4).
Paying another group company's import. Residents may not channel payments for imports made by others (DCIP-83 ch. 3).
Leaving export proceeds in a foreign account indefinitely. Goods exports must be channelled within six months of receipt; the services exemption does not cover goods (Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 74).
Billing a free trade zone user in dollars and collecting in dollars. Operations between residents and zone users are internal and paid in pesos, even if the invoice is in foreign currency (Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 93; DCIP-83 ch. 9).
Undervaluing imports at customs. Undervaluation is presumed to breach the exchange regime on top of customs consequences (Decreto Ley 2245 art. 3 par. 7).

Sources

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← Borrowing from abroad into Colombia: what counts as a foreign loan, the loan report before disbursement, peso loans, the 0 percent deposit, interest withholding and thin capitalizationCompensation accounts in Colombia: using a foreign bank account for regulated FX operations, registration with Banco de la República, monthly reporting and the fines for getting it wrong →