In this post we explain the steps to create a company in Colombia. In Delvy we have a team of lawyers specialized in startups and companies that help entrepreneurs or companies to achieve their expansion in Colombia, providing legal and financial advice throughout the process of creating a company in Colombia.
Below, we tell you how to create a company in Colombia, step by step.
Steps to create a company in Colombia
The creation and registration of a company in Colombia is a process that requires special attention and regulation, since it is what will define the approval of your economic activity in the different national entities. This is why it is important to leave the process in expert hands, such as Delvy.
These are the steps to incorporate a company in Colombia:
- Choosing the name of your business
The name of your company is the main way to identify yourself before the law and is a letter of introduction of your activity. To establish it, you will need to enter the RUES (Registro Único Empresarial) page and verify that the name you have chosen is available in the database. If the name is already registered, you must choose another name similar to what you need.
- Register as a legal or natural person
All the tax implications and legal responsibilities established by law depend entirely on the nature of your business, which can be:
– Natural person: this is the one in charge of making the part of the simplified regime and its accounting can be in a fiscal book. In case of being part of the common regime, that is to say, that invoices VAT, your accounting will be carried out by a professional accountant.
–Legal entity: They are all those classified in public benefit corporations.
- Classify your economic activity
It is essential to determine in the database the type of professional activity that your company performs. To do this, you can check your economic classification through the Chamber of Commerce website.
- Drawing up the company’s bylaws
After having established the corporate name of your company, the next step to register a company in Colombia is to draft the bylaws that will govern the relationship between the different representatives of the company. This document will be the backbone of the operation and roles of the company, so it must be analyzed by a professional lawyer, such as the ones we have at Delvy. Our lawyers will analyze the document in order to avoid future problems.
- Diligence of the Pre-RUT
The Pre-RUT is a certificate that allows companies to apply to receive the Tax Identification Number (NIT). This number is used to carry out the registration of taxpayers’ data in Colombia.
In order to obtain this certificate it is necessary that the company’s bylaws are prepared in order to be able to present them before the Chamber of Commerce.
- Registering in the registry
Once you have filled out the Pre-RUT for the incorporation of your company in Colombia, you must carry out the inscription in the registry. You must take into account that the Chamber of Commerce will study the company’s bylaws before approving its registration.
- Open a bank account
In this step to create a company in Colombia you must take into account that, the banking entities only allow new businesses that have the registered name and the Pre-RUT filled out, to open an account.
Once you have the bank certificate, you will have to go to the Special Administrative Unit of the National Tax and Customs Directorate (DIAN) to process the final RUT of your company
- File the RUT with the Chamber of Commerce.
This is one of the most important steps to create a company in Colombia since, with the presentation of the RUT before the Chamber of Commerce, the existence and legal representation of your company is confirmed. This will allow you to acquire official status.
- Registering your company’s books with the Chamber of Commerce
By carrying out the registration you will be able to receive all the tax benefits. You must remember that the books of your company also contain the books of the shareholders, so you must ensure the correctness of these data. For this, it is necessary to have the advice of a professional lawyer, such as the ones we have in Delvy.
- Registering in the Social Security system
Another step of how to create a company in Colombia is that you must affiliate the employees to the pension system, public or private. Register the workforce to the Mandatory Health Plan (POS) through an EPS. Register with a Caja de Compensación Familiar (Family Compensation Fund) and an Administradora de Registros Laborales (ARL).
Keys to create a startup in Colombia
We also believe it is necessary to add some key points if you want to create a startup in Colombia:
- Find the problem you want to solve.
- The team.
- Minimum viable product.
- Raise Capital.
Delvy: your legal advisors to take your company to Colombia.
Once you know how to create a company in Colombia, you will need the help of a legal and financial advisor in that country. At Delvy we are a team of lawyers specialized in companies, startups and SMEs and we also have an office in Colombia. You can contact us through our contact form or through our email address [email protected].
