Local Contracts Now Required for Work Visas

Foreign nationals in Colombia seeking to obtain or renew a TP-4 work visa must execute an employment contract or a valid services contract (contrato de prestación de servicios) with a Colombian entity, pursuant to a recent change in practice by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Foreign nationals with pending work visa applications and intracompany transferees applying for new TP-4 visas or renewing existing TP-4 visas must also execute a contract with a Colombian entity, and must indicate that this was done in the contract summary form of the visa application. 

Employers of intracompany transferees who remain on home payroll will be required to specify in the local contract that the salary will be paid from abroad. 

The Ministry has started to reject TP-4 applications that indicate a contract with a foreign company in the contract summary form of the visa application. 

What This Means for Employers and Foreign Nationals 

Colombian employers must now execute a local contract or services contract for foreign nationals who will remain on foreign payroll or those who maintain both local and foreign contracts. If a local contract or services contract cannot be signed, the foreign national will need to request another type of visa or permit to perform work activities in Colombia.

While a full contract does not have to be provided in the TP-4 visa application, employers should have the fully executed contract in their records in case of an audit. 

Fragomen worked closely with Godoy Cordoba Abogados (Bogotá) to prepare this alert. It is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email [email protected].


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