Countries › Colombia › Guide › 9. Trade and customs › Temporary imports and Plan Vallejo in Colombia: short and long term temporary imports, leasing, duty free inputs for exporters and industrial processing
Temporary imports and Plan Vallejo in Colombia: short and long term temporary imports, leasing, duty free inputs for exporters and industrial processing
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Last verified: 2026-10-26 · Status: Stable
Goods that will leave Colombia again can enter under temporary import with duties and VAT suspended: up to 6 months (plus 3) for short term needs, or up to 5 years for capital goods, which pay their duties and VAT in equal half yearly instalments backed by a guarantee of 150 percent. Exporters can import raw materials and inputs free of duty and VAT under Plan Vallejo programmes approved by the Ministry of Commerce, if the resulting goods are exported within 18 months, and capital goods under other programme types. Authorized economic operators and simplified customs users can also import inputs temporarily for industrial processing.
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 of a short term temporary import, extendable by 3 months | 6 monthsDecreto 1165 de 2019 art. 201 num. 1, as of 2026-10-26 · in force |
|---|---|
| Maximum term of a long term temporary import of capital goods | 5 yearsDecreto 1165 de 2019 art. 201 num. 2, as of 2026-10-26 · in force |
| Guarantee for long term temporary import, as a share of duties and VAT | 150 %Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 205, as of 2026-10-26 · in force |
| Term to export goods made with Plan Vallejo inputs | 18 monthsDecreto 285 de 2020 art. 6, as of 2026-10-26 · in force |
| Share of export commitment that avoids a breach declaration | 70 %Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 6, as of 2026-10-26 · in force |
| Export commitment for capital goods programmes under art. 174, multiple of FOB quota used | 1.5 timesDecreto 285 de 2020 art. 12, as of 2026-10-26 · in force |
| Minimum export share of goods processed by importer type users | 30 %Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 245, as of 2026-10-26 · in force |
The rule
1. Temporary import for re export in the same state lets goods enter with customs duties and VAT suspended, provided they leave without change other than normal wear. Short term temporary import, for a specific purpose, lasts up to 6 months from release, extendable by DIAN for 3 more months, and no taxes are paid. Long term temporary import covers capital goods with their parts and accessories in the same shipment for up to 5 years; the duties and VAT are calculated in US dollars at the rates in force on filing and paid in equal half yearly instalments in arrears, converted at the exchange rate on the day of payment. DIAN may grant longer terms in special cases.
Cost to do it: Short term: no taxes, but a guarantee for 100 percent of the duties and VAT that an ordinary import would pay. Long term: the full duties and VAT, spread over the half years of stay, plus a guarantee for 150 percent of them (art. 205).
Example: A drilling rig worth COP 3,158,430,000 imported long term for 5 years at a 10 percent duty generates COP 975,954,870 of duty and VAT, paid as ten half yearly instalments of COP 97,595,487. / On a US$1,000,000 machine: US$100,000 duty plus US$209,000 VAT is US$309,000, paid as ten instalments of US$30,900; the guarantee is US$463,500. If re exported after two years, the six future instalments are not due (art. 215).Decreto 1165 de 2019 (customs regime), Art. 200, art. 201, art. 202 and art. 203, 2019-07-02 official text · verified 2026-10-26
Cost to do it: Short term: no taxes, but a guarantee for 100 percent of the duties and VAT that an ordinary import would pay. Long term: the full duties and VAT, spread over the half years of stay, plus a guarantee for 150 percent of them (art. 205).
Example: A drilling rig worth COP 3,158,430,000 imported long term for 5 years at a 10 percent duty generates COP 975,954,870 of duty and VAT, paid as ten half yearly instalments of COP 97,595,487. / On a US$1,000,000 machine: US$100,000 duty plus US$209,000 VAT is US$309,000, paid as ten instalments of US$30,900; the guarantee is US$463,500. If re exported after two years, the six future instalments are not due (art. 215).Decreto 1165 de 2019 (customs regime), Art. 200, art. 201, art. 202 and art. 203, 2019-07-02 official text · verified 2026-10-26
2. Capital goods under a lease, with or without purchase option, may be imported temporarily for more than 6 months; the duties and VAT are paid in half yearly instalments over the term of the contract, and if the lease exceeds 5 years the remaining balance is paid with the last instalment of the fifth year. A financial leasing contract may be signed on goods already under long term temporary import without ending the regime. To keep the goods in Colombia, the importer must change the declaration to an ordinary import before the term expires and pay the outstanding instalments, interest and any fine; otherwise short term goods are seized and the guarantee is enforced.
Cost to do it: Outstanding instalments plus interest when converting to ordinary import; a short term import converted to ordinary pays at the rates in force on the date of the change.
Example: A mining company leasing trucks for 8 years pays its import duties and VAT in instalments over the first 5 years and the balance with the tenth half yearly instalment. / A US lessor's US$2,000,000 fleet leased for 3 years generates six half yearly payments of duties and VAT by the Colombian lessee as importer.Decreto 1165 de 2019; art. 208 as amended by Decreto 659 de 2024, Art. 205, art. 208, art. 211 and art. 215, 2024-05-22 official text · verified 2026-10-26 · changed: Decreto 659 de 2024 rewrote art. 208 on changing the modality; its text still refers to fines of Decreto Ley 920 de 2023, which Ley 2586 de 2026 repealed from 19 June 2026, so the fine now follows Ley 2586.
Cost to do it: Outstanding instalments plus interest when converting to ordinary import; a short term import converted to ordinary pays at the rates in force on the date of the change.
Example: A mining company leasing trucks for 8 years pays its import duties and VAT in instalments over the first 5 years and the balance with the tenth half yearly instalment. / A US lessor's US$2,000,000 fleet leased for 3 years generates six half yearly payments of duties and VAT by the Colombian lessee as importer.Decreto 1165 de 2019; art. 208 as amended by Decreto 659 de 2024, Art. 205, art. 208, art. 211 and art. 215, 2024-05-22 official text · verified 2026-10-26 · changed: Decreto 659 de 2024 rewrote art. 208 on changing the modality; its text still refers to fines of Decreto Ley 920 de 2023, which Ley 2586 de 2026 repealed from 19 June 2026, so the fine now follows Ley 2586.
3. Plan Vallejo (Sistemas Especiales de Importación Exportación, SEIEX) lets a holder import raw materials and inputs temporarily, without customs duties or VAT, to be used entirely in producing goods for export. The Ministerio de Comercio, Industria y Turismo approves a programme with a yearly US dollar import quota that renews automatically, and an input output table (Cuadro Insumo Producto). The exports must be made and proven within 18 months of the release of the first temporary import of the period (24 or 36 months for agriculture). If at least 70 percent of the export commitment is proven, no breach is declared and the balance carries into the next period. A variant allows partial export of at least 60 percent of output, never less in FOB value than the imported inputs.
Cost to do it: No duty or VAT on the inputs; if export commitments are missed, duties are paid in proportion to the shortfall plus interest (Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 17; Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 240). Programmes are approved through MinCIT's online system.
Example: A flower exporter with a COP 1,000,000,000 yearly quota imports fertilizer and boxes free of duty and VAT and proves the exports within 18 months, or up to 36 months for agricultural cycles. / A textile maker importing US$500,000 of fabric under Plan Vallejo avoids about US$50,000 of duty (at 10 percent) and US$104,500 of VAT up front, if all the garments are exported.Decreto Ley 444 de 1967 art. 172 and 173 lit. b; Decreto 285 de 2020 (SEIEX regulation), Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 5, art. 6, art. 8 and art. 10; Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 228 and art. 229, 2020-02-26 official text · verified 2026-10-26
Cost to do it: No duty or VAT on the inputs; if export commitments are missed, duties are paid in proportion to the shortfall plus interest (Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 17; Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 240). Programmes are approved through MinCIT's online system.
Example: A flower exporter with a COP 1,000,000,000 yearly quota imports fertilizer and boxes free of duty and VAT and proves the exports within 18 months, or up to 36 months for agricultural cycles. / A textile maker importing US$500,000 of fabric under Plan Vallejo avoids about US$50,000 of duty (at 10 percent) and US$104,500 of VAT up front, if all the garments are exported.Decreto Ley 444 de 1967 art. 172 and 173 lit. b; Decreto 285 de 2020 (SEIEX regulation), Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 5, art. 6, art. 8 and art. 10; Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 228 and art. 229, 2020-02-26 official text · verified 2026-10-26
4. Capital goods programmes allow temporary import of machinery, parts and spare parts used to produce export goods or provide services directly linked to them. Under Decreto Ley 444 art. 174 the importer pays customs duties but not VAT, and must export at least 1.5 times the FOB value of the quota used, over the time needed to depreciate 90 percent of the goods. Under art. 173 lit. c no duties or VAT are paid, but programmes are only approved when the final exports are agricultural products in Annex 1 of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture. Export commitments are proven in full within 6 months after the export period, and MinCIT certifies compliance within 4 months. Services exporters can run similar programmes (Ley 7 de 1991 art. 4).
Cost to do it: Art. 174 programmes save the 19 percent VAT on the machinery for the life of the programme; art. 173 lit. c saves both duty and VAT. Imports under these programmes need no import licence (art. 15).
Example: A packaging plant that imports a COP 3,158,430,000 line under art. 174 pays the duty but defers COP 660,111,870 of VAT (19 percent of value plus a 10 percent duty), committing to export at least COP 4,737,645,000. / A US$1,000,000 line under art. 174 carries a US$1,500,000 export commitment over its depreciation period.Decreto Ley 444 de 1967 art. 173 lit. c and art. 174; Decreto 285 de 2020, Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 11, art. 12 and art. 13, 2020-02-26 official text · verified 2026-10-26
Cost to do it: Art. 174 programmes save the 19 percent VAT on the machinery for the life of the programme; art. 173 lit. c saves both duty and VAT. Imports under these programmes need no import licence (art. 15).
Example: A packaging plant that imports a COP 3,158,430,000 line under art. 174 pays the duty but defers COP 660,111,870 of VAT (19 percent of value plus a 10 percent duty), committing to export at least COP 4,737,645,000. / A US$1,000,000 line under art. 174 carries a US$1,500,000 export commitment over its depreciation period.Decreto Ley 444 de 1967 art. 173 lit. c and art. 174; Decreto 285 de 2020, Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 11, art. 12 and art. 13, 2020-02-26 official text · verified 2026-10-26
5. Authorized economic operators (importer or exporter type) and users with simplified customs procedure status may import raw materials and inputs temporarily for transformation, processing or industrial manufacture with duties and VAT suspended. Exporters must export all of the resulting goods; importers at least 30 percent, within the term set by DIAN. If the export share is not met, the inputs or products must be declared as ordinary imports with duties and VAT plus a fine of 100 percent of those taxes.
Cost to do it: Covered by the global guarantee of the simplified customs user (2 percent of FOB imports and 0.1 percent of exports of the prior 12 months, art. 773-6).
Example: A chemicals importer with simplified customs status processes imported resins in a habilitated deposit and must export at least 30 percent of the output. / On US$200,000 of resins at a 5 percent duty, missing the export share means paying US$10,000 duty and US$39,900 VAT plus an equal fine of US$49,900.Decreto 1165 de 2019 as amended by Decreto 360 de 2021, Art. 244, art. 245, art. 246 and art. 249, 2021-04-07 official text · verified 2026-10-26
Cost to do it: Covered by the global guarantee of the simplified customs user (2 percent of FOB imports and 0.1 percent of exports of the prior 12 months, art. 773-6).
Example: A chemicals importer with simplified customs status processes imported resins in a habilitated deposit and must export at least 30 percent of the output. / On US$200,000 of resins at a 5 percent duty, missing the export share means paying US$10,000 duty and US$39,900 VAT plus an equal fine of US$49,900.Decreto 1165 de 2019 as amended by Decreto 360 de 2021, Art. 244, art. 245, art. 246 and art. 249, 2021-04-07 official text · verified 2026-10-26
| Regime | Maximum term | Duty | VAT | Condition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short term temporary import | 6 months plus 3 | Suspended | Suspended | Re export in the same state; guarantee 100% of taxes |
| Long term temporary import (capital goods) | 5 years | Paid in half yearly instalments | Paid in half yearly instalments | Guarantee 150% of taxes |
| Temporary import under a lease | Term of the contract | Half yearly instalments, balance due by year five | Same as duty | Lease of more than 6 months |
| Plan Vallejo inputs (art. 172) | Export within 18 months | None | None | 100% exported, breach only below 70% |
| Plan Vallejo capital goods (art. 174) | Programme term | Paid | None | Exports of 1.5 times FOB quota used |
| Industrial processing (OEA and simplified users) | Set by DIAN | Suspended | Suspended | Exporters 100%, importers 30% exported |
Temporary import options compared (Decreto 1165 de 2019; Decreto 285 de 2020).
| Item | COP | USD |
|---|---|---|
| Customs value | 3,158,430,000 | 1,000,000 |
| Duty 10% | 315,843,000 | 100,000 |
| VAT 19% on value plus duty | 660,111,870 | 209,000 |
| Total taxes | 975,954,870 | 309,000 |
| Each of 10 half yearly instalments | 97,595,487 | 30,900 |
| Guarantee (150% of taxes) | 1,463,932,305 | 463,500 |
Long term temporary import of a US$1,000,000 machine at a 10 percent duty for 5 years (Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 203 and 205), at COP 3,158.43 per US dollar.
Worked example
- A Canadian oilfield services firm brings a US$1,000,000 rig into Colombia for a 5 year contract under long term temporary import. It pays US$30,900 of duty and VAT every half year and posts a guarantee of US$463,500 (Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 203 and 205).
- After two years the contract ends early. It re exports the rig while current on its four instalments; the six remaining instalments are not due and the US$123,600 already paid is not refunded (art. 215).
- Its Colombian client, a manufacturer of steel tubing for export, holds a Plan Vallejo programme and imports US$500,000 of steel coil free of duty and VAT, proving exports within 18 months (Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 6).
Step by step
- 1. Decide whether the goods will leave Colombia (temporary import), be used to make exports (Plan Vallejo or industrial processing) or stay (ordinary import, see the importing page).
- 2. For temporary import, state the term in the import declaration, post the guarantee and set reminders for each half yearly instalment (Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 202 to 205).
- 3. For Plan Vallejo, file the programme request with MinCIT through its online system with financial statements and the input output table (Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 19, 20 and 10).
- 4. Import against the yearly quota, keep production records and export within the term.
- 5. File the demonstration study within the deadline and, once MinCIT certifies compliance, close the temporary imports with DIAN within 3 months (Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 11 and 12).
- 6. Before any term expires, re export, convert to ordinary import or request an extension; never let it lapse.
Common traps
- Letting a short term temporary import lapse. The goods are seized and the guarantee is enforced (Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 208; Ley 2586 de 2026 art. 26 num. 13).
- Missing a half yearly instalment on a long term import. DIAN may convert the declaration to an ordinary import and enforce the guarantee for unpaid instalments up to the midpoint of the term (Decreto 1165 de 2019 art. 205 par. 1 and art. 208 par. 2).
- Expecting a refund on early re export. Instalments already paid are not returned (art. 215).
- Using Plan Vallejo inputs for domestic sales beyond what the programme allows. Duties are charged in proportion to the shortfall and the programme can be cancelled (Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 17).
- Assuming art. 173 lit. c capital goods programmes are open to any exporter. They are only approved for final exports of WTO Agriculture Annex 1 products (Decreto 285 de 2020 art. 11).
- Relying on Decreto Ley 920 de 2023 fines cited in Decreto 1165 art. 208. That decree was repealed by Ley 2586 de 2026 from 19 June 2026.
Sources
- Decreto 1165 de 2019, customs regime, DIAN legal compilation
- Decreto 285 de 2020, Sistemas Especiales de Importación Exportación, DIAN legal compilation
- Ley 2586 de 2026, customs sanctions and seizure regime, DIAN legal compilation
- TRM official series, national open data portal
- DIAN Resolución 000238 de 2025, 2026 UVT
Related pages
- trade/importing-and-exporting
- trade/free-trade-zones
- trade/authorized-economic-operator
- taxes/customs-duties
- taxes/vat
- fx/export-proceeds-and-import-payments
- /country/colombia/
- /calendar/
- Live dashboard
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