Setup Colombian Company - Colombia Business Visa

On this page we are going to cover the topics of how to Setup Colombian Company as well as what is required to obtain a visa as a Colombia Business Visa. The visa is officially referred to as a Partner or Owner of a Commercial Establishment or Corporation, (AKA Colombia Business Visa or in Spanish Visa de Socio o Propietario de Establecimiento o Comercio).

To meet the requirement setup Colombian company you must purchase shares in a corporation or own a business outright that shows your investment to be equal to or greater than 100 minimum salaries so you can Setup Colombian Company. For the year 2012 that is 57 million pesos or more per person. This option has a lower requirement than an investor visa, but it is another form of investing in Colombia. Additional Services offered by our company can set up Sole Propietor, SAS, or SA business for foreigners and Colombians. The duration of this visa is one year to start off.

IMPORTANT NOTE TO SETUP COLOMBIAN COMPANY:

If you are creating a Sole Proprietor business (Persona Natural is a basic business entity similar to DBA in the United States) you can do this on a tourist visa, and you do not need a cedula (Colombian ID Card). However, if you are creating a SAS corporation you have to have a legal representative who is Colombian or a foreigner that has a CURRENT CEDULA EXTRANJERIA (current residency visa). This which should be someone of confidence that you know or trust. The legal representative can be anyone, this persons name will show up on the business license, while the foreigner holds a private notarized document that clearly shows the foreign investor maintains controls of shares in said corporation. Once the visa and foreign id card are obtained the business owner may put his or her name on the business license as the legal representative. With a SAS o SA corporation the legal representative is the one who has access to the corporate bank account, so it is best to be very careful with who you choose if you take this route.

Please note that a Sole Propietor business entity or Persona Natural can be upgraded to a SAS later on down the road if you wish to take that route starting off.

Colombia Business Visa Costs

Quick Summary of Visa Costs for Colombian Business Visa
Consular Visa Fee + Consular Doc Review Fee	$175 USD ( US CITIZENS $0) + 50 USD $175 USD (US CITIZENS $0) + 95.000 Pesos
Professional Immigration Services for Visa	$395,000 Pesos / $220 USD
Apostille(s), Translations(s), Legalization(s)	65 - 95 USD (Apostille seal for Foreign Business License (if applicable)) 117 - 171.000 COP (Ejemplo de Apostillar Licencia de Empresa Extranjero) Colombian
Messenger, Mail, and Notary Fees	$20 USD up to $100 USD $38.000 Pesos up to $180.000 Pesos
Business Licensing Fees and Optional Services We Offer
Setup Sole Proprietor Entity (Persona Natural ) preferred for small biz owners for tax reasons	$120,000 Pesos or $66 USD - Business License
	$395,000 Pesos $220 USD - Complete Services to setup Business and Obtain Tax ID (RUT), including verification razon social, identifying tax codes, and identification of economic activities codes (codigos de actividades economicas) and finally obtaining the business license.
Setup a Colombian Corporation (SAS or SA) - This necissary if you have associates but you will pay much higher taxes than with the Sole Proprietor license.	Depends on the Value of the Corporation (call for quote for license and attorney fees)
Colombian Accountant or Auditor Fees	$100,000 Pesos to $300,000 Pesos (56 Dollars to 168 dollars) Depending on Corporation Size and Documentation involved, and depending on if taxes need to be filed for renewals and type of corporation you have.
Setup Colombian Financial Investment Account (Business or Personal Account)	We charge $200 USD for this service, which by the way is valid for foreigners on tourist visas, so long as the financial institution knows that you are in process of applying for your residency visa with Visas Y Tramites Internacionales.

* Individual Cases of Business visa applications vary as each case is different, cost varies depending on the country and consulate in which you will be applying for your visa as well. Colombian documents do not need apostilles, translations or legalizations, but documents from the USA do need to pass through the document legalization process. This process varies depending on if you apply in Colombia or outside of Colombia.

Basic Requirements for the Visa

1. Passport with 3 available visa pages, and valid for at least three (3) months.

2. One (1) photocopy of passport pages containing information (pages with stamps and Bio / Photo Page)

3. One (1) original of the Visa Application Form completely filled out, and duly signed.

4. Three (3) recent color passport-type photographs, 3x4 centimeters with white background, plus 2 at 3x3 centimeters for the 2 application forms (for renewals in the country you just need 1 application form).

5. Original of the Certificate of Existence and Legal Representation issued by the Chamber of Commerce (camara de comercio) - of the city where the company was incorporated issued no more than 90 days beforehand which states that the foreigner is a partner or owner of the registered establishment, indicating a capital or registered fixed assets of the foreign applicant, for no less than 100 legal monthly salaries in effect in Colombia.

6. If it is a corporation the applicant must provide an original of the certificate of the operating composition subscribed by the auditor, indicating the value of the shares owned by the foreign applicant. which cannot be less than one-hundred (100) legal monthly salaries in effect in Colombia.

We will help you by writing letters and assisting in completing immigration forms necessary for the visa application, in addition to professional consultations regarding your particular situation. Every case is individual and has special circumstances.

Service	Description	Cost

General Consultation	Verify if you qualify for this or other types of visa (30 minutes) (more info)	$49.000 Pesos / $25 USD
Case Analysis	Get a list of all of the specific requirements for your own particular case (more info)	$99.000 Pesos / 49 USD
Complete Advisory	Professional Advisory whole visa process - meet all requirements, assistance with letters, forms, unlimited consultation. (more info)	$595.000 Pesos / $335 USD