What paperwork do you need after moving to Colombia in 2026?

If Cancillería has approved a visa, pay the issuance fee inside the short calendar window so you can download the electronic visa PDF, then travel or stay with that document: Apply for a residence permit. Visas valid for more than three months trigger Migración Colombia registration and the Cédula de Extranjería within fifteen calendar days of entry or of in-country issuance: Get a Cédula de Extranjería. File the FUT online, book a Centro Facilitador biometrics cita, and treat late registration as a fine risk, not a soft tip.

Employers on work-linked paths may have separate SIRE reporting clocks. Your personal file still fails if the plastic cédula never appears. Keep setup cash for visa fees, Migración card fees, apostilles, and first deposits outside the monthly living band: Monthly budget.

After the cédula, most movers register a DIAN RUT for tax identity, then open a Colombian bank account that needs the card, address proof, and a local mobile number: Get a RUT, Get a mobile phone, and Open a bank account. EPS contributory enrolment is the next health step when your category requires or allows it; pensionado-style visas often keep private or medicina prepagada cover instead: Enrol in public health, Choose health insurance, and Healthcare costs.

Leases and landlord KYC usually want the cédula before a long contract: How to rent a home. Many newcomers bridge with furnished short stays first: Short-term housing for newcomers. Tourists may drive on a foreign licence for up to six months; long-stay residents need a Colombian path through RUNT and either recognition or a first-time licence: Convert driving licence. Dogs and cats need ICA SISPAP inspection paperwork at entry: Bring pets.