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Investing abroad from Colombia: Colombian direct investment abroad, financial investments and assets abroad, registration with Banco de la República and returns

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

Colombian residents and companies may invest abroad without authorization (save the financial sector), but direct investment abroad, meaning shares, quotas or other participations in foreign companies or branches, is a compulsory FX market operation and must be registered with Banco de la República, automatically with the FX declaration when paid in currency, or online when made in kind or by reorganization. Financial investments and assets abroad (foreign securities, real estate, funds) go through the FX market only when paid with currency that had to be channelled, and need no Banco de la República registration. Loans that fund investment abroad are exempt from the deposit, and advances to a foreign subsidiary before capitalization are reported as loans to a non resident.

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

Authorization for Colombian investment abroad	Not required, save special regimes textDecreto 1068 de 2015 art. 2.17.2.4.1.3, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Registration of Colombian direct investment abroad	Required; automatic with the FX declaration (numeral 4580) when paid in currency textResolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 59; DCIP-83 num. 7.3.1, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Registration of financial investments and assets abroad	Not required textDCIP-83 num. 7.4.1, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Deposit on foreign loans financing investment abroad	Exempt textResolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 49 num. 1, as of 2026-10-26 · in force

The rule

1. Colombian investment abroad means shares, quotas, rights or other participations in the capital of companies, branches or any enterprise located outside Colombia, in any proportion, acquired by a resident under a lawful act; holdings acquired through mergers, spin offs, share exchanges or reorganizations may also be registered. Save special regimes, initial and additional investment abroad needs no authorization. Entities supervised by the Superintendencia Financiera invest abroad under the financial statute; non supervised investors in foreign financial, securities or insurance entities follow the general regime.Decreto 1068 de 2015 as replaced by Decreto 119 de 2017, Art. 2.17.2.4.1.1, art. 2.17.2.4.1.2, art. 2.17.2.4.1.3 and art. 2.17.2.4.2.1, 2015-05-26 official text · verified 2026-10-26

2. Residents must channel through the FX market the currency for Colombian capital investment abroad and register it with Banco de la República. Registration of investment abroad, of changes and of cancellations may be filed at any time.Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 58 and art. 59; Decreto 1068 de 2015 art. 2.17.2.5.1.1 as amended by Decreto 1044 de 2026, Res. Ext. 1 art. 58 and 59; Decreto 1068 art. 2.17.2.5.1.1, 2026-08-05 official text · verified 2026-10-26 · changed: Decreto 1044 de 2026 of 5 August 2026 removed the six month deadline for registering changes and cancellations, which also applies to Colombian investment abroad.

3. Direct investment abroad paid in currency is registered with the FX declaration under numeral 4580, stating the number of shares or participations acquired; the value includes share premium. Investments paid in instalments are registered in full with the first declaration. If the foreign company is not yet incorporated it is declared as a company in formation and completed later. Payment with a Colombian credit card billed in pesos uses numeral 4581, and with a card billed in currency numeral 4582. Returns of direct investment abroad come back under numeral 4055.Circular Reglamentaria Externa DCIP-83 de 2023 (compiled), Num. 7.3.1 and Annex 1, 2023-09-12 official text · verified 2026-10-26

4. Advances by residents to foreign companies for future capitalization are foreign loans granted to non residents: they are reported with the Informe de Crédito Externo Otorgado a No Residentes (purpose 43) through a bank before disbursement, and if capitalized the investment abroad is then registered. Investment abroad made without currency (in kind, by reorganization or other lawful act) is registered at any time in the Sistema de Información Cambiaria without supporting documents.Circular Reglamentaria Externa DCIP-83, num. 7.3.1 lit. d as amended by Circular DCIP-83 of 23 November 2023, and num. 7.3.2, Num. 7.3.1 lit. d, 7.3.2 and 5.2.2, 2023-11-23 official text · verified 2026-10-26

5. Residents must channel through the FX market purchases of securities or assets abroad, purchases abroad of Colombian private or public external debt, and payments for foreign securities placed with residents with Superintendencia Financiera approval, except when made abroad with currency that need not be channelled. These financial investments, including special ones such as foreign securities listed through integrated exchanges or in the RNVE, do not need registration with Banco de la República; outflows use numerals 4585 or 4573 and returns 4058, 1595, 1598 or 4065. Secondary trades between residents may be in pesos or currency.Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 60; DCIP-83 num. 7.4 as amended by Circular DCIP-83 of 23 November 2023, Res. Ext. 1 art. 60; DCIP-83 num. 7.4.1, 7.4.2 and 7.4.4, 2023-11-23 official text · verified 2026-10-26

6. Foreign loans taken to finance Colombian investment abroad are exempt from the deposit, unless the borrower receives capital contributions from the foreign company that received the funds or repatriates its liquidation proceeds, in which case the deposit applies. These loans may be disbursed directly abroad after the loan report.Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 49 num. 1; DCIP-83 num. 5.1.5 lit. a, Res. Ext. 1 art. 49 num. 1; DCIP-83 num. 5.1.5, 2018-05-25 official text · verified 2026-10-26

7. The Superintendencia de Sociedades supervises the exchange rules on Colombian investment abroad by individuals and companies and may fine breaches up to 200 percent of the proven amount; Banco de la República informs DIAN and the competent supervisor of investment registrations arising from mergers and reorganizations.Decreto 1736 de 2020 art. 7 num. 12 as amended by Decreto 1380 de 2021; Decreto 1746 de 1991; Decreto 1068 de 2015 art. 2.17.2.4.1.1 par., Decreto 1746 de 1991 art. 3, 1991-07-04 official text · verified 2026-10-26

Investment	Through the FX market?	Banco de la República registration	Numeral (outflow)
Shares or quotas of a foreign company, capital of a foreign branch	Yes	Yes, by the FX declaration	4580
Same, paid by credit card billed in pesos / in currency	Yes	Yes	4581 / 4582
Contribution in kind or reorganization abroad	No currency	Yes, Declaración de Registro	Not applicable
Foreign listed securities, funds, bonds	Yes, unless paid with free market currency	No	4585
Real estate or other fixed assets abroad	Yes, unless paid with free market currency	No	4573
Advance for future capitalization of a foreign company	Yes, as a loan to a non resident	Loan report before disbursement (purpose 43)	Loan numerals

Outbound investment: channelling and registration (Resolución Externa 1 de 2018 art. 58 to 60; DCIP-83 num. 7.3 and 7.4)

Worked example

A Colombian SAS buys 100 percent of a Chilean company for US$1,000,000. It buys the dollars from its bank, about COP 3,158,430,000 at the TRM of COP 3,158.43, and gives the FX declaration under numeral 4580 with the number of shares acquired; that declaration registers the investment abroad (DCIP-83 num. 7.3.1).
To fund part of the price it borrows US$400,000 from a US bank. The loan is reported through a Colombian bank before disbursement and is exempt from the deposit because it finances investment abroad (Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 49 num. 1).
Its treasury separately buys US Treasury bills with dollars earned from consulting services abroad that never had to be channelled; no FX market or registration is required (Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 60 and art. 82).

Step by step

1. Classify the outbound flow as direct investment, financial investment or loan to a non resident.
2. For direct investment, buy the currency through a bank (or pay from a compensation account) with the FX declaration under numeral 4580; if the target is being formed, declare it as a company in formation.
3. For contributions in kind or reorganizations, transmit the registration declaration in the Sistema de Información Cambiaria.
4. For advances before capitalization, file the loan report to a non resident before disbursement.
5. Register later changes and cancellations at any time, and bring dividends and liquidation proceeds back through the FX market under the return numerals.

Common traps

Funding a foreign subsidiary with an informal advance. Advances are loans to a non resident and need the loan report before disbursement (DCIP-83 num. 7.3.1 lit. d).
Mixing free market currency with channelled currency. Financial investments abroad avoid the FX market only when paid with currency that never had to be channelled (Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 60).
Assuming the deposit exemption is permanent. It is lost if the foreign company sends capital back to the borrower or the borrower repatriates liquidation proceeds (Res. Ext. 1 de 2018 art. 49 num. 1).

Sources

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