Colombia's 183-Day Tax Residency Rule
More than 183 days in any rolling 365-day period makes you a Colombian tax resident. Here is exactly how the count works.
Last verified: July 2026
In short: you become a Colombian tax resident if you spend more than 183 days in Colombia during any period of 365 consecutive calendar days. The days can be continuous or discontinuous, and entry and exit days both count. The window is not the calendar year, and when the days straddle two years you are treated as resident from the second year.
- Threshold
- More than 183 days
- Counting window
- Any 365 consecutive days
- Continuous or discontinuous
- Either counts
- A day counts if
- You are present (entry and exit days included)
- If days straddle two years
- Resident from the second year
- Legal basis
- Estatuto Tributario, Article 10
The rule
Colombia treats you as a tax resident if you spend more than 183 calendar days there within any period of 365 consecutive calendar days. Three points decide most real cases:
- The window rolls. The 183 days are measured across any 365-day period, not 1 January to 31 December. Two stays in different calendar years can combine inside one window.
- Days can be discontinuous. You do not need one unbroken stay. Separate trips inside the same 365-day window are added together.
- Entry and exit days count. The rule counts calendar days of presence, including the day you arrive and the day you leave.
How to count it
- List every Colombia trip with arrival and departure dates.
- Count each calendar day of presence, including arrival and departure days.
- Total the days inside a single 365-day window, then slide that window across your whole travel history.
- If any 365-day window exceeds 183 days, you meet the residency test. If those days straddle two years, residency applies from the second year.
Example. 100 days in Colombia from October to December, then 100 more from February to May.
No single calendar year hits 183. But both stays sit in the same rolling 365-day window (October to the following October) and total 200 days, so the test is met, with residency applying from the second year.
Beyond the day count
The 183-day count is the main route in, but not the only one for Colombian nationals. Colombia can also treat citizens as resident based on where their spouse or dependent children live, where the bulk of their income or assets sits, or ties to a jurisdiction classified as a tax haven. And if another country also claims you, a double-tax treaty decides residency through tie-breaker rules such as permanent home and centre of vital interests.
Official source: Article 10 (Residencia para efectos tributarios) of Colombia's Tax Code (Estatuto Tributario), explained on the Dirección de Impuestos y Aduanas Nacionales (DIAN).
AtlasDays tracks Colombia's 183-day rule automatically
Log your trips once. AtlasDays counts every rolling 365-day window for you, privately on your iPhone, and warns you before you cross 183 days.
Get AtlasDays on the App StoreFAQ
How many days can you stay in Colombia without becoming a tax resident?
Up to 183 calendar days in any 365-day period. Cross more than 183 in any window and you meet the residency test.
Is the 183-day rule based on the calendar year?
No. It uses any period of 365 consecutive calendar days, so a stay split across two years can still cross the line, with residency applying from the second year.
Do the 183 days have to be consecutive?
No. Continuous or discontinuous days both count, so several shorter trips inside the same 365-day window are added together.