Occasional or Transitory Work Contract Colombia (Contrato de Trabajo Accidental, Ocasional o Transitorio)

An Occasional or Transitory Work Contract Colombia (Contrato de Trabajo Accidental, Ocasional o Transitorio) is a short-term employment agreement governed by Article 6 of the Código Sustantivo del Trabajo (CST) — Decreto Ley 2663 de 1950 — designed for work of brief duration that does not exceed one month and that involves activities distinct from the employer's normal or habitual business operations. Article 6 of the CST defines trabajo ocasional, accidental o transitorio as work whose duration does not surpass one month and that relates to activities outside the employer's ordinary commercial or institutional purposes.

The dual requirement established by CST Article 6 distinguishes this contract from other employment modalities. Both conditions must be satisfied simultaneously: the work must last no more than one month, and the activities performed must fall outside the employer's regular business. A manufacturing company that hires a worker for two weeks to paint its offices satisfies both conditions because painting is not the company's ordinary activity and the duration is under one month. A construction company hiring a worker for two weeks of bricklaying would not qualify because construction constitutes the company's regular business — regardless of the short duration.

The Corte Constitucional transformed the legal treatment of occasional workers through Sentencia C-823 de 2006, which declared unconstitutional the exclusion of occasional workers from the Sistema General de Seguridad Social. Before this landmark ruling, CST Article 251 had excluded occasional workers from cesantías, and the social security framework under Ley 100 de 1993 did not mandate their coverage. After Sentencia C-823 de 2006, occasional workers became entitled to affiliation to the Sistema General de Seguridad Social Integral — EPS health insurance (employer 8.5%, worker 4%), pension through Colpensiones or an AFP (employer 12%, worker 4%), and ARL occupational risk insurance (employer-funded at rates between 0.348% and 8.7% under Decreto 1295 de 1994 and Ley 1562 de 2012).

The constitutional foundation rests in Articles 25 and 53 of the Constitución Política de 1991. Article 25 declares work a fundamental right and social obligation. Article 53 mandates minimum labour guarantees — employment stability, the primacy of reality over formal agreements (primacía de la realidad), and the irrenunciability of minimum benefits. The Corte Constitucional applied the equality principle of Article 13 to strike down differential treatment of occasional workers, recognizing that short-term employment carries the same occupational risks and dignity protections as longer-term arrangements.

Prestaciones sociales apply proportionally to occasional work contracts following Sentencia C-823 de 2006. Cesantías under Ley 50 de 1990 Article 14 accrue proportionally to the days worked. Intereses sobre cesantías at 12% annual under CST Article 249 apply proportionally. The prima de servicios under CST Article 306 is calculated proportionally. Vacaciones under CST Article 186 accrue proportionally at 15 business days per year. The employer must register the worker through the Planilla Integrada de Liquidación de Aportes (PILA) under Decreto 1406 de 1999.

The Ministerio del Trabajo (MinTrabajo) oversees enforcement of occasional work contract regulations through workplace inspections under CST Articles 485 through 487. The Decreto Único Reglamentario del Sector Trabajo — Decreto 1072 de 2015 — consolidates regulatory provisions governing all employment relationships including occasional work. The SMLMV for 2025 is COP$1.423.500 per Decreto 2292 de 2024, with an auxilio de transporte of COP$200.000 for workers earning up to two SMLMV. The Sala de Casación Laboral of the Corte Suprema de Justicia has held that occasional contracts exceeding one month or involving activities within the employer's ordinary business are automatically reclassified as indefinite contracts under CST Article 45.

The Unidad de Gestión Pensional y Parafiscales (UGPP) audits compliance with parafiscal contributions for all workers including occasional employees. Parafiscal contributions — 4% to Cajas de Compensación Familiar (CCF), 3% to Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar Familiar (ICBF), and 2% to SENA — are calculated on the monthly payroll and reported through the PILA system. Under Ley 1607 de 2012 Article 25, employers are exempt from SENA and ICBF contributions for workers earning less than ten SMLMV.

Colombian labour courts — Juzgados Laborales del Circuito — adjudicate disputes arising from occasional work contracts, with appeals to the Sala Laboral of the Tribunal Superior de Distrito Judicial and cassation review by the Sala de Casación Laboral of the Corte Suprema de Justicia. Pre-litigation conciliation before MinTrabajo or a centro de conciliación authorized under Ley 640 de 2001 is a mandatory prerequisite before filing judicial claims related to occasional employment relationships.

An Occasional or Transitory Work Contract Colombia is required whenever a Colombian employer needs to hire a worker for a short-term assignment lasting no more than one month that falls outside the employer's ordinary business activities. Article 6 of the Código Sustantivo del Trabajo establishes the dual requirement that both conditions — duration and activity type — must be met simultaneously for the occasional work classification to apply.

Commercial enterprises registered with the Cámara de Comercio use occasional work contracts when they need temporary labour for activities unrelated to their core business. A pharmaceutical company hiring painters for a two-week office renovation, a law firm engaging electricians for a one-week wiring repair, or a retail chain hiring movers for a weekend warehouse relocation all constitute legitimate grounds for occasional contracting — provided the activity does not exceed one month and falls outside the employer's regular business operations.

Event-related hiring represents a common use of this contract modality. Employers organizing a one-time corporate event, conference, trade show, or product launch may engage occasional workers for setup, logistics, catering support, or decoration work — activities that do not form part of the employer's habitual operations. The Ministerio del Trabajo has recognized event-specific engagements as valid grounds for occasional contracting when the event duration falls within the one-month limit.

Emergency repairs and maintenance also give rise to occasional work contracts. When an employer's physical premises require urgent repairs due to natural disasters, structural failures, or equipment breakdowns, workers hired for the repair work — plumbers, carpenters, roofers, or structural technicians — may be engaged under CST Article 6 provided the repair falls outside the employer's ordinary business and does not exceed one month.

The contract is needed for social security registration following the Corte Constitucional's Sentencia C-823 de 2006. The employer must register each occasional worker through the Planilla Integrada de Liquidación de Aportes (PILA) under Ley 100 de 1993 and Decreto 1406 de 1999, affiliating the worker to EPS, AFP or Colpensiones, and ARL before the first day of work.

Under the principio de primacía de la realidad (CST Article 23, Constitución Política Article 53), Colombian labour courts will reclassify an occasional work contract as indefinite when the work exceeds one month, when the activities fall within the employer's regular business operations, or when the employer repeatedly hires the same worker on successive occasional contracts. The Sala de Casación Laboral of the Corte Suprema de Justicia has consistently applied strict scrutiny to occasional work arrangements, placing the burden of proof on the employer to demonstrate both the brevity and the extraordinary nature of the work.

The occasional work contract is also required when an employer registered with the Cámara de Comercio — whether a SAS under Ley 1258 de 2008, a Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada (Ltda.), or a persona natural comerciante — engages workers for one-time inventory counts, year-end physical asset verification, or emergency cleaning after water damage or flooding. The written contract documenting the occasional nature and limited duration serves as the employer's primary evidence of compliance with CST Article 6 in the event of a MinTrabajo inspection or UGPP audit. Companies with more than ten employees must reference the occasional work arrangement in their Reglamento Interno de Trabajo under CST Articles 104 through 125.

A valid Occasional or Transitory Work Contract Colombia under Código Sustantivo del Trabajo Article 6 must contain the following elements to satisfy both the statutory requirements and the social security registration obligations established by the Corte Constitucional in Sentencia C-823 de 2006.

Dual Qualification Statement: The contract must expressly state that the work meets both conditions of CST Article 6: (1) the duration does not exceed one month, and (2) the activities fall outside the employer's normal or habitual business operations. The Sala de Casación Laboral of the Corte Suprema de Justicia has held that failure to demonstrate both conditions results in automatic reclassification as an indefinite contract under CST Article 45. The employer's ordinary business activities should be identified by reference to the objeto social registered in the Certificado de Existencia y Representación Legal from the Cámara de Comercio.

Identification of Parties: Full legal name, cédula de ciudadanía (for Colombian nationals) or cédula de extranjería (for foreign residents), and domicile of both employer and worker. Where the employer is a persona jurídica, the company's NIT (Número de Identificación Tributaria assigned by the DIAN), Cámara de Comercio matrícula mercantil, and representante legal identification must be included.

Description of Occasional Work: A precise description of the specific occasional activity to be performed, emphasizing its extraordinary character relative to the employer's regular operations. Acceptable descriptions include: painting of office premises for a technology company, electrical repair work for a retail chain, event setup and decoration for a manufacturing firm, or emergency plumbing for a law office. The description must demonstrate that the activity is genuinely outside the employer's objeto social.

Contract Duration: The specific start and end dates, with the total duration not exceeding one calendar month (30 calendar days). CST Article 6 establishes the one-month maximum — any extension beyond this period automatically converts the relationship into an indefinite contract. The Ministerio del Trabajo has clarified through administrative guidance that the one-month period runs from the actual start of work, not from the contract signing date.

Work Location: The address where the occasional work will be performed. For work across multiple locations (e.g., emergency repairs at various premises), all locations should be identified.

Salary and Payment Terms: The agreed remuneration in Colombian Pesos (COP), which must meet or exceed the daily equivalent of the SMLMV — COP$1.423.500 monthly / 30 = COP$47.450 daily for 2025 per Decreto 2292 de 2024. Payment may be structured as a daily rate, weekly rate, or lump sum for the entire engagement, per CST Article 134.

Work Schedule: The daily hours and days of work. The maximum ordinary working week under CST Article 158, as modified by Ley 2101 de 2021, applies equally to occasional workers. Overtime, night work, and Sunday/holiday work must be compensated with the recargos established in CST Articles 168, 169, and 179.

Social Security Affiliation: Following Sentencia C-823 de 2006, the employer must affiliate the occasional worker to the Sistema General de Seguridad Social Integral under Ley 100 de 1993: EPS health insurance (employer 8.5%, worker 4%), AFP or Colpensiones pension (employer 12%, worker 4%), and ARL occupational risk (employer-funded per Ley 1562 de 2012). Registration through the PILA system under Decreto 1406 de 1999 is mandatory.

Proportional Benefits: Reference to proportional prestaciones sociales: cesantías under Ley 50 de 1990 Article 14, intereses sobre cesantías under CST Article 249, prima de servicios under CST Article 306, and vacaciones under CST Article 186 — all calculated proportionally to the days worked.

Occupational Health and Safety: The employer must provide safety induction and personal protective equipment appropriate to the occasional work, under the SG-SST framework of Decreto 1072 de 2015 and Resolución 0312 de 2019.

Governing Law: The contract is governed by the CST, Ley 100 de 1993, and Decreto 1072 de 2015. Labour disputes are submitted to the Juzgado Laboral del Circuito, with pre-litigation conciliation under Ley 640 de 2001.

Termination and Liquidation: The occasional work contract terminates upon the earlier of: (a) completion of the defined occasional work, or (b) expiration of the agreed duration (maximum 30 calendar days). Either party may also terminate for just cause under CST Article 62, as modified by Decreto 2351 de 1965 Article 7. Upon termination, the employer must liquidate all proportional prestaciones sociales — cesantías, intereses sobre cesantías, prima de servicios, and compensated vacaciones — within the timeframes established by the CST. The employer must issue a certificación laboral upon the worker's request under CST Article 57 numeral 7.

Documentation and Record-Keeping: The employer must retain a copy of the occasional work contract, the PILA registration confirmation, ARL affiliation certificate, and the payment receipts for the support allowance and liquidated prestaciones sociales. MinTrabajo inspectors may request production of these documents during workplace inspections under CST Articles 485 through 487. The UGPP may audit parafiscal contribution compliance retroactively for up to five years under Ley 1607 de 2012.

Forms-legal.com provides this Occasional or Transitory Work Contract Colombia template as a practical starting point for documenting short-term, extraordinary employment arrangements. Every occasional work contract should be reviewed by a licensed abogado laboralista to confirm that the dual qualification requirement of CST Article 6 is genuinely satisfied, as misclassification exposes the employer to reclassification liability and retroactive benefit obligations.