"Stop Bugging Me" Law (Law 2300 of 2023): how to register in the RNE and report improper contact

Short answer: the Registro de Números Excluidos (RNE, Excluded Numbers Registry) stops advertising and commercial calls, but not the collection efforts of a bank or a debt collection agency. These are two different problems, and Law 2300 of 2023, the famous "Dejen de Fregar" law ("Stop Bugging Me"), handles them with different tools.

If they call you at 8 at night to sell you a plan or to collect a installment, the anger is the same. But what you can do is different, and mixing the two paths is the fastest way to waste time. Here is the complete map, no nonsense.

Collections and advertising: two different things

• Advertising or telemarketing: they offer you products by SMS, app or web messaging, email, or calls. The RNE applies here.
• Collections: they are collecting a debt from you. The RNE does not apply here; what applies are the law's limits on channel, hours, and frequency.

The law was issued on July 10, 2023 and, under its Article 10, took effect three months later. The CRC sets the effective date as October 10, 2023. Note: the header of some legal search engines shows July 10 as the "validity" date, but that is the issue date, not the date it takes effect.

Hours and frequency that do protect you

For collections, contact is only valid Monday to Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Sundays and holidays, none. The same schedule applies to commercial or advertising messages and calls. It can only change if you request it expressly, in a document separate from the contract and signed after it.

As for frequency, many people repeat that "they can only call once a week." That is not what the rule says. Once direct contact has been established, the collector cannot use several channels within the same week or contact you more than once on the same day. There can be contacts on different days if they use only one channel.

References, visits, and the forbidden question

They cannot contact your personal references. Guarantors (avalistas), co-debtors (codeudores), or joint debtors (deudores solidarios) can be contacted, under the same hour and channel conditions. So your mom as a reference is off limits; your co-signer is not.

A collection visit to your home or workplace is prohibited, with two exceptions: microcredit, development or agricultural/rural credit with express authorization, or when there are no updated channels and the telephone or messaging operators record that they could not reach you or deliver the message.

They also cannot ask you why you did not pay. What they can do is suggest payment alternatives suited to your situation. And watch out for what the law does not prohibit: confirmations of monetary transactions, information about voluntary savings and severance pay, data you requested, and alerts about fraudulent, unusual, or suspicious transactions still get through. It is normal to receive a verification code even if you are registered.

Step by step to register in the RNE

1. Go to www.tramitescrcom.gov.co and choose the Registro de Números Excluidos option.
2. Create your username and password. You must be the holder of the landline, mobile line, or email.
3. Mark the channels you want to exclude: SMS, app or web messaging, email, and calls. Creating the account does not exclude anything until you mark the channels.
4. Wait. Registration takes effect the next business day; for SMS, operators and integrators have up to five business days.

Registration is free, both for you and for the company that must check it. Careful: no one needs to charge you for "registering in the RNE," "cleaning your number," or "downloading your report." If anyone asks you for money for that, be suspicious and do not pay. Since April 10, 2024 (CRC Resolution 7356), any producer or provider must check the list before sending advertising through the channels you excluded. That said, if you expressly authorized a specific company, that company can contact you.

An honest warning: the obligation to refrain falls on companies. The RNE is not a technical wall, and some will still write to you anyway. That is why it matters to keep a record.

How to keep a record and file a complaint

Save the date, time, channel, and screenshots of every improper contact. It is not a requirement copied from any official form, but it is the most useful thing when you make a claim. After that, there are two paths:

• Advertising that keeps arriving despite the RNE: the CRC indicates filing a complaint with the SIC. The online consumer complaint is free and is filed at denuncias.sic.gov.co. According to the SIC's electronic office (consulted in October 2026), they attend Monday to Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; their toll-free line is 01 8000 910165.
• Collections by an entity supervised by the Superfinanciera: first file a claim with the entity. The form "Report a complaint against an entity of the financial system" is handled by the entity itself and is not, on its own, a sanction. Out-of-court conciliation before the Superfinanciera lasts 3 months, extendable for another 3 if both parties agree (consulted in October 2026).

The law assigns sanctions to the Superfinanciera and the SIC according to the competencies of Law 1266 of 2008. Article 9 does not set a fine amount that I can cite, and SIC External Circular 1 of 2024 exists, but I am not going to invent a detailed breakdown of cases. Do not expect an automatic sanction or a refund either.

If yours involves threats, impersonation, or collection using fake receipts, that is a different front: see this guide on reporting online fraud.

Holiday weekend: Monday, November 2, 2026

November 1 is a paid rest day and, if it falls on a Sunday, the rest is moved to the following Monday (Law 51 of 1983). In 2026, November 1 is a Sunday, so the holiday is Monday, November 2. Neither that Monday nor Sunday the 1st are contact days under Law 2300. But Saturday, October 31 is not a holiday: the Saturday schedule applies, from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

What the law does not do

Registering, filing a complaint, or limiting hours does not erase a report in a credit bureau or declare the debt time-barred. For that, check your history in the guide to DataCrédito, review the deadlines in statute of limitations on bank debts and understand what happens with the paz y salvo(debt-free certificate). The obligation still exists; what changes is how they can collect it from you.

And if you have a business: before sending a commercial message or making sales calls, you must check the RNE. It applies to all producers and providers of goods and services. It is a compliance duty, not a detail.

Frequently asked questions

❓ Does the RNE stop the bank's collection calls?

No. The RNE restricts commercial or advertising content; collections are limited by authorized channels, hours, and frequency. Also, if you expressly authorized a specific company, that company can keep contacting you. (verify with the official source)

❓ What hours can they call or write?

Monday to Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.; not Sundays or holidays. Another schedule only applies if you request it expressly in a document separate from the contract. (verify with the official source)

❓ Can they call several times on the same day or use several channels?

No. After a direct contact, they cannot contact you more than once on the same day or use several channels in the same week. It is not "one call per week": on different days they can keep pushing through a single channel. (verify with the official source)

❓ Can they call my family or come to my house?

They cannot contact your personal references. Guarantors, co-debtors, and joint debtors can be contacted, under the same rules. Visits to your home or workplace are prohibited, except for the two exceptions in Article 6. (verify with the official source)

❓ How much does registering in the RNE cost and how long does it take?

It is free. It normally takes effect the next business day; for commercial SMS, operators and integrators have up to five business days. Creating the account does not exclude anything until you mark the channels. (verify with the official source)

❓ Who do I report to if they keep contacting me?

If it is advertising despite the RNE, to the SIC through the consumer complaint, which is free. If a supervised financial entity is collecting, first file a claim with the entity; there is no fine amount to cite. (verify with the official source)

❓ Does this erase the debt report?

No. Limiting calls does not remove the data from a credit bureau or declare the debt time-barred. For those issues, check the guides linked above and confirm your case with a lawyer or the entity. (verify with the official source)