Unión Marital de Hecho in Colombia: Legal Guide for Foreign Partners and Visa M

Quick answer: if you are not married to your Colombian partner, the route is a declared unión marital de hecho followed by Visa M Compañero(a) Permanente. That visa lasts up to one year, and the supporting document must already be more than one year old when you file.

Foreigners search for "common-law marriage in Colombia." Colombia has no such label. It has a statutory de facto union under Ley 54 de 1990, as amended, and a separate visa category for it. If you already married abroad, you are on a different path: see our guide to registering a foreign marriage in Colombia.

The decision most couples face is simple: declare the union and later request a one-year partner visa, or marry and use the spouse visa. The clocks differ a lot, so look at them before you look at paperwork.

What the union is after Ley 2447 de 2025

Since 13 February 2025, an unión marital de hecho is a permanent and singular community of life between two people aged 18 or older who are not married to each other. The people in it are compañeros permanentes. Older guides that say "un hombre y una mujer" are quoting the 1990 wording.

It is not a marriage. It does not produce a registro civil de matrimonio, and it does not unlock the spouse visa. Signing a declaration also does not, by itself, give you a visa or a cédula de extranjería.

Existence of the union versus the property regime

These are two separate steps, and mixing them is the most common mistake I see.

Declaring the union

The existence of the union is declared in one of three ways:

• a mutual-consent escritura pública before a notary;
• an acta de conciliación at a legally established conciliation center;
• a family-court judgment.

Whether a given notary will sign an existence deed on day one is a local-practice question. Ask that notary what evidence it requires, and ask for a written liquidación of its charges before you commit. I will not quote notary fees here; they depend on the deed and on the notary's own liquidation.

The sociedad patrimonial

A shared property regime, the sociedad patrimonial, is presumed, and can be declared, when the union has lasted at least two years. If one or both partners had a legal impediment to marry, the earlier marital society must have been dissolved and liquidated at least one year before the union began.

Property produced by work and mutual support is split in equal shares. Gifts, inheritances, legacies and assets acquired before the union stay outside, but the rents, fruits and increase in value those assets produce during the union come in. The society ends by notarial deed, conciliation act, judgment, or death. The action to dissolve and liquidate it prescribes one year after physical and definitive separation, marriage to a third person, or death.

Honest downside: this is where couples get hurt. Declaring a union has property consequences you may not want, so read the rules before signing, not after.

If either of you is still legally married to someone else, get professional advice before any declaration. That is a high-risk impediment situation, not a routine visa file.

The one-year formalization trap

For the partner visa, the formalization date of the document that supports the union must be more than one year before your application. Separately, the authentic copy you attach (or a certificado de vigencia) must be issued no more than three months before filing.

In practice: sign the existence document, wait until that date is more than a year old, order a fresh copy only when you are ready to file, then apply. A couple who signs this month cannot use that deed to file this month. Living together for years beforehand does not shorten the wait, and a backdated escritura is not a lawful shortcut. Walk away from anyone who offers one, or who promises a guaranteed visa.

Do not confuse this with the two-year figure. Two years belongs to the property presumption, not to the visa test.

The visa file

Visa M Compañero(a) Permanente is for a foreigner in a de facto union with a Colombian citizen. The file includes:

• the authentic copy described above;
• a letter from the Colombian partner requesting the visa, stating that cohabitation is unique, constant, persevering and stable, promising to report any change, with a simple copy of the cédula plus address, email and phone;
• a special power for the foreign partner, with recognition of content and signature before a notary or a Colombian consul;
• Migración Colombia movement certificates for both of you.

A consular application may instead use a document proving the union under the law of the place where it was declared, with the formalities required for foreign documents.

Movement certificates come from Migración Colombia, not from consulates. Recent history (last 10 years or from 2012) is requested through the e-FUT; foreigners collect the printed certificate in person, while movements before 2012 need an appointment. The official page shows two different peso amounts, so pay what the e-FUT checkout shows; Ecuadorian citizens are exempt. Officers may not take cash.

Visa fees come in two stages, study and issuance. Resolución 3969 de 2026 publishes USD 56 plus USD 204 for the migrant class, with stamp tax extra, but the live category screen shows a different pair. Pay the amount the portal liquidates and check Cancillería for the current figure.

Work, interviews and refusals

The visa lasts up to one year and gives open permission for lawful work, though Colombian labor law, professional licensing and employer reporting duties still apply. The ministry can ask for more proof or interview you, and it can refuse. If you get a request for more information, read our explainer on requerimiento, inadmitida and rechazada decisions. After issuance, register with Migración Colombia for the cédula de extranjería.

A dependent partner or children up to 25 can receive beneficiary visas, but those do not allow work.

Spouse visa, in one tight block

A married spouse uses a different file: a Colombian marriage registration issued within the prior three months, a spouse letter, a recognized power and movement certificates, for a visa of up to three years. Do not copy that checklist into a partner file. Our spouse visa guide (in Spanish) covers it.

Visa R later, and its limits

Residence by accumulated time lists 5 years as holder of the partner visa (3 for the spouse category). Time counts as continuous only if the next visa is granted before the previous one expires. A salvoconducto does not create continuity. Completing five years does not by itself grant Visa R, and at that stage your Colombian partner must again confirm that the union and cohabitation continue.

Same-sex couples

Sentencia C-075 de 2007 extends the patrimonial regime to same-sex couples who keep a permanent and singular community of life for at least two years. Article 2(a) of the compiled statute still contains the words "entre un hombre y una mujer," so the court ruling matters. The visa article adds no sex restriction, but approval still depends on the formal document and the ministry's review.

If the relationship ends

Your Colombian partner promised to report changes, so tell the visa authority. Property liquidation has its own one-year clock from separation. I will not invent an immigration cancellation timeline; ask Cancillería or a lawyer for your case.

One practical note: interviewers may ask for household evidence, such as a shared lease. If you are still looking for a long-term home, browse rentals in the housing section. A landlord's guest-reporting duty is separate from your visa file; see the SIRE reporting guide.

Preguntas frecuentes

❓ Is an unión marital de hecho the same as marriage?

No. It is a statutory de facto union between two unmarried adults, and the partner visa is a different category from the spouse visa. If you already have a civil marriage, follow the marriage route instead (verifica en la fuente oficial).

❓ How old must the notary document be before the partner visa?

The formalization date must be more than one year before the application, and the copy you attach must be no more than three months old. A brand-new escritura therefore does not unlock the visa that month (verifica en la fuente oficial).

❓ How long is Visa M Compañero Permanente, and can it lead to residence?

The visa lasts up to one year, and the published accumulated-time figure is five years, which does not by itself grant Visa R. The spouse visa runs up to three years with a three-year clock (verifica en la fuente oficial).

❓ What does the Colombian partner have to sign?

A request letter describing unique, constant, persevering and stable cohabitation, plus the foreign partner's special power recognized by a notary or Colombian consul. Add a cédula copy and contact details, and expect a possible interview (verifica en la fuente oficial).

❓ Do both people need a Migración Colombia movement certificate?

Yes, the rule asks for certificates for the foreigner and the Colombian partner, and a consulate does not issue them. Foreigners collect the recent-history certificate in person and pay the e-FUT amount (verifica en la fuente oficial).

❓ Can the visa holder work?

The visa gives open permission for lawful work, but a regulated profession still needs its Colombian license or registration. A beneficiary visa does not allow work (verifica en la fuente oficial).

❓ Does the declaration change who owns property?

Assets produced by work during the union are shared equally, while property owned before the union, gifts and inheritances stay outside. Fruits and increased value during the union enter the society, and liquidation actions prescribe after one year (verifica en la fuente oficial).