INVIMA health registration, permit or notification for food: how to use Resolution 719
Not every food requires INVIMA registration. Check whether it is sold to the consumer, whether it fits under article 37, and whether you need an RSA (5 years), PSA (7) or NSA (10).
IDIOMA DEL ARTÍCULO
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Short answer: not every product requires INVIMA registration. First you check whether the food is sold directly to the consumer and whether it fits one of the exceptions in Article 37 of Resolution 2674 of 2013. If it is not exempt, Resolution 719 of 2015 tells you whether the procedure is a registration, a permit, or a notification. Watch out: paying for the wrong procedure is the easiest money to lose in this business.
What the regulation requires when you sell to the consumer
Every food sold directly to the consumer must obtain a sanitary notification (NSA), sanitary permit (PSA), or sanitary registration (RSA) from INVIMA, depending on its risk to public health. This is set by Article 37 of 2674, as amended by Resolution 3168 of 2015.
They do not require an NSA, PSA, or RSA:
- Natural foods without processing, such as grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, honey, and other bee products.
- Raw animal-origin foods, refrigerated or frozen, without processing.
- Foods and raw materials, domestic or imported, for exclusive use by industry and the gastronomy sector to make food and prepare meals.
- Foods produced or imported into the Free Port of San Andrés and Providencia for sale and consumption within that department, under Law 915 of 2004.
Note: the word «artesanal» (artisanal) does not appear in that list. The legal test is whether it is sold to the consumer and whether it fits one of those four numerals. And the exemption overrides the annex: unprocessed fresh fruit does not need an RSA even if a row in the annex marks it as A.
How to read the annex: A, M and B
The Resolution 719 of 2015 (Official Gazette 49.452 of March 13, 2015) classifies foods by group, category, and subcategory. In the annex, A is higher risk, M is medium risk, and B is lower risk. You check by subcategory, not by the whole group.
| Letter | Procedure | Validity |
|---|---|---|
| A (higher risk) | Sanitary registration (RSA) | 5 years |
| M (medium risk) | Sanitary permit (PSA) | 7 years |
| B (lower risk) | Sanitary notification (NSA) | 10 years |
All are renewed for equal periods, and renewal must be requested three months before expiry, according to Articles 38 to 52 of Resolution 2674 of 2013.
Closed examples we can cite from the annex:
- Liquid milk (1.1.1): A.
- Coffee, tea, or maté ready to drink (3.4.1): M.
- Treated, instant, or concentrated coffee to prepare, without sucrose-based products (3.4.2): B.
- Arepas and stuffed arepas (6.7.1), provided the animal-origin filling is less than 20%: M.
- Products in category 7.1 that are enriched, fortified, or with added nutrients (7.1.4): A.
For any other product, open the PDF and look up your subcategory. Don't trust social media summaries with loose letters.
Coffee, bakery, and prepared food: each with its own test
Coffee. Coffee to prepare (3.4.2, B) is not the same as ready-to-drink coffee (3.4.1, M). The step-by-step for roasted and ground coffee is in our guide to sanitary notification for roasted and ground coffee; I won't repeat it here. If you want to see the offer, there is the coffee.
category. Bakery. Being neighborhood or made-to-order does not exempt you. If you sell it to the public and it is not an exclusive input for industry or gastronomy, you need to classify it. Enriched or fortified bread in category 7.1 moves to A; for ordinary bread and cookies, confirm the column in the PDF before assuming anything. For packaging, pricing, and made-to-order sales, see how to sell artisanal baked goods and bakery and the.
bakery category. Prepared food.
sanitary concept for restaurants and cafés
Premises versus product: two different procedures Establishments register with the competent health authority, and the premises are inspected. But that registration does not replace the product's NSA, PSA, or RSA when the food is sold to the consumer and is not exempt. A favorable sanitary concept covers the premises; a packaged product needs its own authorization. For matters about the establishment, read the.
sanitary concept for restaurants and cafés
How to file and what happens after "approved"According to INVIMA, new food applications are handled in InvimÁgil (official step-by-step guide
). For domestic food, the application includes the INVIMA form and the technical sheet; if there are additives with a maximum use dose, the sheet indicates those concentrations.
Since INVIMA Resolution 2025029546 of July 18, 2025, issuance, renewal, and modification are automatic, with selective subsequent review: not every procedure is reviewed. If yours is not selected, the system notifies you and the review is considered closed. But automatic does not mean "approved in substance forever": you are responsible for the truthfulness of what you declared. If you are selected and a requirement is issued, you have one calendar month to respond in InvimÁgil and may request an automatic extension for the same term. If you do not respond or do not correct, INVIMA may cancel, and afterward you will not be able to manufacture, import, package, or market that food, according to the.
subsequent review ABC
A single act can cover several products only in the cases of Article 42 of 2674: the same food and same brand with different manufacturers, different presentations, or plant-based foods with the same name in different varieties, among others.
How much it costs, roughlyI won't give you a figure because it wouldn't be honest. INVIMA has a fee manual for 2026 with update resolutions (fee page
). The amount depends on the code, the number of varieties, and whether a differentiated fee applies based on your company's size. Verify the current figure inside InvimÁgil before paying, and be wary of agents who charge "fees" outside the official system.
Once you know your procedure, publish with confidence With clear classification, your listing gains credibility: indicate whether you have an NSA, PSA, or RSA or whether you are exempt and under which numeral, add real photos of the product and the delivery area. According to active listings on Colombia Move (November 7, 2026), the food section had 3 active listings, with coffee and bakery at zero and prepared food at one. There is room. For presentation ideas, see how to publish local food, desserts, and coffee or the.
Designed to sell in Colombia with more clarity.
Frequently asked questions
❓ Does every food I sell to the public need an INVIMA sanitary registration?
No. If it is sold to the consumer, it requires an NSA, PSA, or RSA, except for four exceptions: natural foods without processing, raw animal-origin foods without processing, exclusive inputs for industry and gastronomy, and products from the Free Port of San Andrés and Providencia. Check your case against Article 37 (verify at the official source).
❓ How long are the registration, permit, and notification valid?
The registration lasts five years, the permit seven, and the notification ten, all renewable for equal periods. Renewal must be requested three months before expiry, so note the date from the day it is issued to you (verify at the official source).
❓ Do roasted and ground coffee and ready-to-drink coffee require the same paperwork?
No. Treated coffee to prepare (3.4.2) is in column B, lower risk; ready-to-drink coffee (3.4.1) is in M, medium risk. Details on roasted and ground coffee are in the coffee guide already published (verify at the official source).
❓ Are made-to-order bakery or the daily meal exempt for being artisanal?
No, the word artisanal does not exempt you. Numeral 3 exempts only if the food is an exclusive input for industry or gastronomy. Also, the premises register with the health authority, and that does not replace the product authorization (verify at the official source).
❓ How much does the INVIMA procedure for food cost?
The amount is calculated by the fee manual in force within the procedure, and this guide does not set a figure in pesos. It varies by code, varieties, and company size; confirm the cost in InvimÁgil before paying (verify at the official source).
❓ If InvimÁgil issues it right away, is it reviewed forever?
No. It is issued automatically and the subsequent review is selective. If you are selected and a requirement is issued, you have one calendar month to respond and may request an extension for the same term; if you do not correct, they may cancel the authorization (verify at the official source).
❓ Where do I publish food, coffee, or bread once I know whether I have authorization or am exempt, and how do I avoid a scam?
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