Wealth and Assets Declaration Colombia

A Wealth and Assets Declaration (Declaración de Activos y Patrimonio en Renta) in Colombia is the formal process through which individual and corporate taxpayers required to file an income tax return (declaración del impuesto sobre la renta y complementarios) before the DIAN (Dirección de Impuestos y Aduanas Nacionales) must list, value, and report all assets and rights held as of December 31 of the taxable year — both in Colombia and abroad — together with their liabilities, in order to determine the gross patrimony (patrimonio bruto) and net patrimony (patrimonio líquido) that serves as the basis for certain tax presumptions and, when applicable, the wealth tax (impuesto al patrimonio).

Articles 261 to 290 of the Estatuto Tributario regulate in detail the basis for determining patrimony for tax purposes in Colombia. Article 261 ET defines gross patrimony as the total assets and rights with monetary value held by the taxpayer on the last day of the taxable year. Article 262 ET establishes that net patrimony results from deducting from gross patrimony the value of debts owed by the taxpayer outstanding as of December 31. Article 267 ET regulates the valuation of assets denominated in foreign currency using the representative market exchange rate (Tasa Representativa del Mercado, TRM) certified by the Banco de la República as of December 31 of the taxable year.

Ley 1819 de 2016 (the structural tax reform) introduced important changes to the patrimony regime: it established the wealth tax for taxpayers with net patrimony exceeding 5,000 million pesos, extended transfer pricing rules to transactions with foreign related parties, and strengthened the obligations to report foreign assets pursuant to FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) and the OECD's CRS (Common Reporting Standard) framework. Ley 2277 de 2022 (the tax reform of the Petro administration) reintroduced the wealth tax on a permanent basis for net patrimonies equal to or exceeding 72,000 UVT (approximately COP 3,534,000,000 in 2025).

The correct declaration of assets in the income tax return has direct consequences for determining income tax through the patrimonial comparison mechanism of Article 236 ET, which presumes as taxable income any increase in net patrimony between the prior year and the current year that is not explained by the income, costs, and expenses reported in the same period. The DIAN cross-references asset declarations with third-party information submitted through the exogenous information (medios magnéticos) regime, with international automatic exchange of information under CRS (implemented in Colombia through Decreto 2095 de 2016), and with FATCA data received from the United States Treasury. Taxpayers who hold accounts, investments, or real estate outside Colombia must additionally comply with Article 265 ET on territorial allocation of assets and must report them in the foreign assets section of Formulario 210 (individuals) or Formulario 110 (corporations and large taxpayers), as instructed in Resolución DIAN 112 de 2021.

A Wealth and Assets Declaration in Colombia becomes mandatory or especially relevant in the following taxpayer scenarios:

Taxpayers required to file income tax returns: Every taxpayer required to file an income tax return — individual residents who exceed the thresholds of Article 594-1 ET and all corporate entities without exception — must declare all their assets in Formulario 110 (corporations and large taxpayers) or Formulario 210 (individuals), pursuant to the instructions of Resolución DIAN 112 de 2021. The asset section is not optional; incomplete or inconsistent asset declarations expose the taxpayer to audit adjustments and penalties.

Holders of foreign assets: Taxpayers who hold bank accounts, investments, real estate, interests in foreign companies, or any assets located outside Colombia must report them under Article 265 ET and under the rules for automatic exchange of tax information (CRS, adopted in Colombia through Decreto 2095 de 2016). Non-compliance triggers penalties of up to 5% of the value of the omitted asset under Article 651 ET, and three or more years of consecutive non-disclosure of foreign assets can result in criminal prosecution for tax evasion under Article 434-A of the Código Penal (added by Ley 1819 de 2016).

Taxpayers subject to the wealth tax: Ley 2277 de 2022 established the permanent wealth tax with a rate of 0.5% for net patrimonies between 72,000 and 122,000 UVT, 1% between 122,000 and 239,000 UVT, and 1.5% plus a 0.5% surcharge for patrimonies above 239,000 UVT. All taxpayers in these ranges must file a special wealth tax declaration (Formulario 420) based on the asset inventory declared in the income tax return.

Audit processes for unexplained patrimonial increase: When the DIAN detects unexplained differences between the patrimony declared in successive years in its consistency analysis, it issues ordinary information requests (requerimientos ordinarios) under Article 703 ET. A correctly prepared and documented asset declaration is the taxpayer's primary defense in these proceedings.

Bank financing and patrimonial certifications: Colombian financial institutions and trust companies frequently require credit applicants to substantiate their patrimony through a copy of their income tax return with assets, making the correct valuation and presentation of the asset inventory especially relevant for anyone seeking mortgage loans, business financing, or fiduciary services.

A Wealth and Assets Declaration in the Colombian income tax return must contain the following essential elements for tax validity and consistency:

**Real estate inventory:** Tax value of real estate held as of December 31, determined by the higher value between the tax cost (Article 277 ET: acquisition cost plus improvements plus inflation adjustments where applicable) and the current cadastral appraisal certified by the IGAC (Instituto Geográfico Agustín Codazzi) or the municipal cadastral authority. For properties acquired with mortgage financing, the corresponding debt must be identified as a liability.

**Domestic financial assets:** Balances in checking and savings accounts, CDTs (term deposits), investment funds, stocks, partnership interests, and bonds, valued pursuant to Article 271 ET (acquisition cost or proportional equity value for shares and partnership interests). Voluntary pension fund assets receive special treatment under Article 126-1 ET.

**Foreign assets:** All assets and rights located outside Colombia, converted to Colombian pesos at the TRM as of December 31 (Article 267 ET). This includes foreign bank accounts, real estate abroad, shares in foreign companies, cryptocurrencies held on foreign exchanges, and any other foreign investments. Article 265 ET establishes the territorial allocation criteria for assets for Colombian tax purposes, and Decreto 2095 de 2016 governs the automatic exchange of information with foreign tax authorities under CRS.

**Depreciable fixed assets:** Machinery, equipment, vehicles, and other fixed assets, valued at historical cost less fiscally permitted accumulated depreciation pursuant to Articles 128-141 ET. Decreto 1625 de 2016 establishes the fiscal useful lives for different asset groups.

**Deductible liabilities:** Debts outstanding as of December 31 that meet the requirements of Article 283 ET: they must be evidenced by a document of certain date, contracted with supervised entities or real suppliers, and have documentary support. Fictitious or simulated liabilities constitute sanctionable inaccuracy under Article 647 ET, and the DIAN cross-references liabilities with the creditor's own income tax declaration.

**Patrimonial comparison:** Difference between the net patrimony of the current taxable year and the prior year, explained pursuant to Article 236 ET. Any unexplained difference is presumed to be taxable income. Cryptocurrency assets must be declared as intangible assets at market value per the TRM, following DIAN Concepto 20436 de 2017 and Concepto 3852 de 2018. The UGPP (Unidad de Gestión Pensional y Parafiscales) and Colpensiones data may also be cross-referenced for pension fund assets declared in the patrimony section. Forms-legal.com provides this declaration template with an updated valuation guide for 2025, covering all asset categories from domestic real estate to foreign cryptocurrency holdings.