Colombia’s $2.7M Wealth Tax Hits Foreign Entities

Colombia’s temporary wealth tax is live and it’s aimed squarely at legal entities with serious balance sheets. The measure, set out in Decree 0173 of February 24, 2026, applies to corporations, branches, permanent establishments of foreign companies and de facto partnerships with net equity of about COP 10.47 billion or more, measured on March 1, 2026. Not cheap. And yes, it’s already a compliance issue.

The rate is 0.5% for most covered entities, then jumps to 1.6% for the financial, coal and oil sectors, which, surprisingly, makes sector choice matter a lot if your structure sits anywhere near the threshold. This is a corporate tax, not the permanent individual wealth tax, so individual expats are still taxed separately: residents on worldwide assets, non-residents only on Colombian assets. Weirdly, the biggest surprise is how fast the filing clock is moving.

It affects foreign-owned businesses, expat founders operating through a Colombian entity and digital nomads using a local company or permanent establishment. It also catches branches and foreign PEs that file income tax in Colombia, so if your setup is tied to a local operating footprint, this isn’t background noise. Honestly, the threshold is high, but once you’re in, you’re in.

What to do now

File and pay on time. That’s the move.

• First installment: April 1, 2026
• Second installment: May 4, 2026
• Return deadline for branches and PEs: April 30, 2026

Tax advisors are also warning about anti-avoidance rules, especially for asset spin-offs done between the decree date and March 1, 2026, because Colombia can consolidate equity across split entities to test the threshold. If you’re unsure whether your structure crosses the line, get it checked now, not after penalties start piling up. Read our full Colombia guide for the complete picture and keep an eye on visa updates for related policy changes.