Doing business in Colombia
Colombian law, explained in the terms of your jurisdiction
We work in Spanish and English, with offices in Bogotá and Miami, across our legal and accounting and tax practices. Documents are drafted in the language of whoever has to sign them — and where a Colombian figure has no exact equivalent in your system, we say so instead of forcing the translation.
Concepts with no equivalent
Four Colombian figures worth understanding before you sign anything
Calling an S.A.S. an LLC is the fastest way to give a foreign client the wrong expectation. These four come up most often.
- S.A.S. Simplified stock corporation
- Colombia's most used corporate vehicle. Often compared to a Delaware LLC, but it is not one: it is a stock company, a single shareholder is allowed, there is no minimum capital, and the bylaws can be drafted with unusual freedom.
- Habeas data Constitutional right over one's own data
- A constitutional right, not only a statutory one. It reaches further than a GDPR data-subject right and can be enforced directly against a company before a judge.
- Acción de tutela Expedited constitutional claim
- An expedited constitutional claim a judge must decide within a very short term. There is no exact common-law equivalent, and it can be filed against a private company, not only against the State.
- Superintendencias Regulator and court at the same time
- Colombian superintendencias supervise companies and also decide disputes. Part regulator, part court — which is why choice of forum in Colombia is not the same question it is elsewhere.
This is general information about how these figures work, not advice on your case. Which of them actually affects you depends on the facts.
Frequently asked
Before you write to us
Do you take on clients outside Colombia?
Yes. We advise companies and individuals, Colombian and foreign, that operate across domestic and international markets. The firm has offices in Bogotá and Miami and experience in more than 8 countries, and works in Spanish and English.
Can you register a trademark outside Colombia?
Yes. Beyond filing before the SIC in Colombia, we handle international registration through the Madrid System (WIPO) and filings before the USPTO in the United States, including clearance searches, oppositions and appeals.
Can you incorporate a company in Colombia for us?
Yes — we incorporate companies in Colombia and in the United States. What the process requires in your particular case depends on who the shareholders are, whether there is foreign investment involved and what activity the company will carry out. Tell us and we will answer in writing.
In which language will we receive documents?
In the language of whoever has to sign them. Where a document has to be filed with a Colombian authority it goes in Spanish, and we deliver a working version in English alongside it.
How long does it take to get an answer?
One of our lawyers replies within 24 hours of receiving your enquiry. That first reply carries no obligation and no cost.
Operating in Colombia from abroad?
Tell us what you are trying to do and we will tell you what Colombian law will and will not let you do it with.