Colombia

Colombia has severe penalties for possessing, using, or trafficking illegal drugs, with sophisticated detection at airports.

Long pre-trial detention and long prison sentences under harsh conditions.

Verified Jul 13, 2026

Criminals use scopolamine ('Burundanga') and other sedatives slipped into food and drinks to incapacitate and rob victims, often luring foreigners through online dating apps.

Can cause unconsciousness for 24+ hours, and in large doses respiratory failure and death; seek medical help immediately.

Verified Jul 13, 2026

Carrying up to 20 grams of cannabis for your own use is not a crime in Colombia - the Constitutional Court has held that the drug-trafficking statute cannot punish a personal dose - but cannabis is not legal to buy and there is no lawful shop or pharmacy route for a visitor. Smoking it in public is where travellers get caught: consuming in parks, at sports venues, around schools, or in any zone a mayor has designated carries a type 4 general fine plus seizure and destruction of the cannabis, and the designated zones differ from city to city. Anything above the personal-dose amount, or any sign that you intend to sell it or carry it across the border, falls under the criminal code, where the minimum is 64 months in prison.

Consuming cannabis in a restricted public place: a Multa General tipo 4 plus seizure and destruction of the item (Ley 1801 de 2016 arts. 34 and 140, as amended by Ley 2000 de 2019; the Constitutional Court held in C-127 de 2023 that the restriction on merely carrying does not apply to a personal dose or a medicated dose). Possession above the personal dose, trafficking, or bringing cannabis into, through or out of the country: 64 to 108 months imprisonment where the quantity does not exceed 1,000 grams of marijuana or 200 grams of hashish, and 128 to 360 months for the general offence, in each case with a fine (Codigo Penal art. 376).

Verified Sep 20, 2026

Carry prescription medication in original packaging with your prescription; Colombia does not allow the sale of certain psychiatric medications, so bring enough supply for your trip.

Confirm legality with the Embassy of Colombia before travel.

Verified Jul 13, 2026

It is illegal for tourists and business travelers to bring guns or bullets into Colombia.

Illegal importation; goods seized and possible detention.

Verified Jul 13, 2026

Cash over US$10,000 (or equivalent) must be declared on entry and exit, and you must prove the legal source of the funds.

Customs have seized undeclared valuables; undeclared cash is at risk.

Verified Jul 13, 2026

Do not vape indoors in Colombia. Ley 2354 de 2024 rewrote the smoke-free law so that "libre de humo" now legally means "libre de humo y aerosoles" - smoke AND aerosol free. That puts your vape under the same ban as a cigarette in the enclosed areas of bars, restaurants, cafes, shops, malls, hotels, discos, casinos and internet cafes, plus health facilities, schools, museums, libraries, sports and cultural venues, and public transport including taxis. The offence is USING it, not carrying it, so bringing your own device is not itself prohibited. Selling to under-18s is banned. Note the limit: the ban is written for ENCLOSED areas - it is not a blanket outdoor ban.

For the individual, this is not a money fine. Ley 1801 de 2016 (Codigo Nacional de Seguridad y Convivencia Ciudadana) art. 33 num. 2 lit. d - "Fumar en lugares prohibidos" - as replaced by art. 18 of Ley 2450 de 2025, carries the medida correctiva of Amonestacion only, defined at art. 174 as "un llamado de atencion en privado o en publico". For the venue, art. 94 num. 3 - permitting consumption of tobacco or its derivatives in unauthorised places - carries a Multa General tipo 1 plus temporary suspension of activity; art. 180 sets Multa tipo 1 at 2 SMDLV (salarios minimos diarios legales vigentes). For owners, employers, legal representatives and administrators, Ley 1335 art. 31 provides amonestacion, then "Multas sucesivas desde un (1) salario minimo legal mensual vigente y hasta por una suma equivalente a cien (100) salarios minimos legales mensuales vigentes" (SMLMV), plus suspension of the sanitary licence. Figures are given in Colombian statutory units and are deliberately not converted to dollars. Ley 1335 art. 24, the old individual fine for smoking in prohibited places, was DEROGATED by art. 242 of Ley 1801 de 2016 effective 29 January 2017 - do not cite it.

Verified Sep 9, 2026

Colombia bans smoking in the enclosed areas of workplaces and public places, which the law lists as including bars, restaurants, shopping centres, shops, fairs, festivals, parks, stadiums, cafés, nightclubs, internet cafés, hotels, pubs, casinos, communal areas and waiting areas, and in the places the law names: health facilities, schools and other educational institutions, museums and libraries, places that serve minors, all public, official, school and private transport, the customer areas and waiting rooms of public and private offices and businesses, places with a fire risk such as petrol stations, and sports and cultural venues. An enclosed area is any space with a roof and walls, whether permanent or temporary. Tobacco may not be sold to anyone under 18, and when in doubt sellers must ask for proof of age. Selling cigarettes singly is banned.

Smoking in a prohibited place is a breach of the National Police Code, and the corrective measure set for it is a warning (amonestación) (Ley 1801 de 2016, art. 33, numeral 2, literal d, as amended by Ley 2450 de 2025). A business that allows tobacco use where the law bans it faces a Type 1 general fine and temporary suspension of its activity (Ley 1801, art. 94, numeral 3).

Verified Sep 22, 2026

There are no legal restrictions on same-sex sexual relations or events; the law bars discrimination based on sexual orientation, though enforcement is uneven and violence remains a concern in rural areas.

Verified Jul 13, 2026