Colombia Forum

fecherklyn
Joined 2015
Posts: 1400

3 years ago

The Colombian radar has been improved

3 years ago

Some forum members will be aware I am selling my house in Colombia and it has been a long, difficult trawl. However, I it seems the finishing line is near as my buyers’ bank (Bancolombia) have just asked me to confirm the bank details of where the sale proceeds are to be sent.

Firstly I thought it would be great if they paid the funds directly to one of my bank accounts in Europe (The ultimate destination), thereby avoiding an expensive ) 0.4% per mille GMF tax transit via my Colombia bank account. This request was refused by Bancolombia, so the sale proceeds HAVE TO BE paid into a Colombian bank account.

OK, too bad I thought, so I filled out the form they provided thus giving them my local Colombian bank account details. But that was still not enough; Bancombia insisted I also provide them with my NIT (Numero de Identificacion Tributaria), without which they could not make the payment. OK, again, I have supplied Bancolombia with my NIT and apparently they will now make the transfer IN DUE COURSE.

Apart from all the red tape and bureaucracy involved (The entire process is about to enter its 5th month now), this latest disclosure (Need to associate property sale process with the Colombian Tax System (DIAN and NIT details), suggests to me yet another link in the Colombian chain to better control /counter tax evasion.

Let’s look more closely. The banking payment requires disclosure of the ACTUAL price being paid to the Seller. In other words, you can put whatever value you want into the registration of property ownership documentation, but if the payment between Buyer and Seller is to be executed by a bank transfer, or even a bankers’ cheque, then the amount of money finally paid to the Seller is disclosed to the paying bank – and thus available to the DIAN.

I know many forum members dismiss the ability of the DIAN to control tax evasion, but it is clear the Colombian banking and tax services are now working closely together.

Of course, keeping under the radar is still an option, but take care, the radar machinery is getting more sophisticated if you are tempted to make investments in this country.

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