Black octagons and a 20 per cent tax on food imported into Colombia

Two Colombian measures hit imported food and drink, they were introduced by different ministries under different instruments, and almost every English-language source treats them separately. For a European exporter they are one decision, because the same product characteristics that earn you a warning seal are broadly the ones that put you in scope of the tax.

The labelling: Resolucion 810 de 2021

The Ministerio de Salud y Proteccion Social issued Resolucion 810 de 2021, later modified by Resolucion 2492 de 2022, establishing the technical regulation on nutritional labelling and front of pack warning labelling for packaged food for human consumption.

Products exceeding Colombian thresholds for added sugars, sodium and saturated fat must carry black octagonal warning seals on the front of the pack, in the specified size and position, with additional declarations where sweeteners are present. Nutritional information must appear in Spanish and in the prescribed format.

Three practical points for a European manufacturer.

Your EU label does not transfer. A European nutrition declaration, and any voluntary front of pack scheme you use at home, does not satisfy the Colombian regulation. The layout, the units and the required elements are prescribed.

Run your own data against the Colombian thresholds first. A product that carries nothing in Denmark can carry two or three seals in Colombia, because the criteria and the reference basis differ. This is a desk exercise before it is a print exercise.

Relabelling is possible and is a per unit cost. For a first shipment it can be the right answer. As a standing model it taxes every case you sell, and a Colombian artwork variant is usually cheaper by the second year.

The mechanics are close enough to Mexico's regime that companies entering both markets often try to run one Latin American artwork. They are close but not identical, and the thresholds differ. See NOM-051 and the labelling deadline for the Mexican version.

The tax: impuestos saludables

Separately, Ley 2277 de 2022 introduced two consumption taxes, at articles 513-1 onwards of the Estatuto Tributario: one on sugary drinks and one on ultra-processed edible products with added sugars, sodium or saturated fats. The rate on the ultra-processed food tax was phased in and reached 20 per cent ad valorem from 2025.

Two features matter to an exporter.

It applies on import as well as on domestic sale. This is not a domestic manufacturer's tax that you avoid by shipping in. It is administered by DIAN and it lands on the import.

Scope is defined by tariff heading. DIAN publishes the covered headings, and that list, not the product description or your own view of whether the product is ultra-processed, is what determines whether you are in scope. Check your own heading. Some products that feel obviously caught are outside the list and some that feel outside are in it.

Putting them together

A Danish biscuit exporter, a Swedish charcuterie producer or a Spanish confectioner looking at Colombia should run three numbers before anything else:

1. How many warning seals does the product carry against the Colombian thresholds?
2. Is its tariff heading in DIAN's list for the ultra-processed products tax?
3. What does the artwork variant cost, against the relabelling cost per case?

If the answers are three seals, in scope, and a full artwork redesign, the Colombian price point may not survive, and it is much better to know that before the distributor conversation than after it.

The other half of the picture is where the product then sells. Colombia's channel structure varies sharply by city, and formal retail reaches a different share of consumption in Bogota than on the coast: see Colombia is three markets. And for the rest of the landed cost, duty free does not mean cheap.

Who enforces, and where it bites

INVIMA is the authority for food safety and labelling compliance and can act at import and in the market. DIAN administers the consumption taxes and collects them at the border on imported goods. The Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio has a consumer protection role that can reach misleading claims on packaging.

The practical point is that clearing customs is not the end of your exposure. A product can enter, reach the shelf, and be challenged later on a labelling ground, at which point the cost lands on your Colombian importer. Since your importer is usually your distributor, and since in regulated categories they may also hold the sanitary registration, a labelling failure lands on precisely the relationship you least want to strain. We set out why that concentration of holds matters in your distributor holds the INVIMA registration.

One more sequencing point. The sanitary registration and the labelling compliance are separate exercises with separate timetables, and the registration generally has to reflect the label. Changing artwork after registration is not free. Settle the label design against the Colombian thresholds before you file, rather than filing on your European artwork and amending later.

Common questions

Does Colombia require warning labels on imported food?

Yes. Resolucion 810 de 2021, as modified by Resolucion 2492 de 2022, requires black octagonal front of pack warning seals where a product exceeds Colombian thresholds for added sugars, sodium or saturated fat, and it applies to imported products on the same terms as domestic ones.

What is Colombia's tax on ultra-processed food?

A consumption tax introduced by Ley 2277 de 2022 on ultra-processed edible products containing added sugars, sodium or saturated fats, phased to 20 per cent ad valorem from 2025. A separate tax applies to sugary drinks. Both are charged on import as well as on domestic sale.

How do I know if my product is covered by the Colombian health tax?

By its tariff heading. DIAN publishes the covered headings, and scope is determined by that list rather than by whether the product feels ultra-processed. Check your specific heading before assuming either way.

Can I relabel imported food in Colombia rather than change my artwork?

Yes, and it is a normal answer for a first shipment or a small volume. It carries a per unit cost on every case, so for a continuing programme a Colombian artwork variant is generally cheaper.