The four numbers
5,252,715 pesos a month. About $1,640. The pension Colombia’s retirement visa asks for in 2026, set at three minimum wages.
23%. How much Colombia raised its minimum wage for 2026, from 1,423,500 to 1,750,905 pesos. Every visa floor tied to it rose by the same amount, in pesos.
Level 3. The State Department’s advisory for Colombia since 31 March 2026: reconsider travel. Four departments and the Venezuelan border area are Level 4.
3,194 pesos to the dollar. The official rate on 13 October 2026, used for every conversion on this page.
Low bar. Real risks.
Colombia retirement visa requirements
Colombia’s visas are priced in minimum wages, not dollars. So the bar moves. Every January. Here’s where things stand as of October 2026:
| Visa | Who it’s for | Money test (2026) | Length | Can you work? | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M Pensionado | Anyone with a lifetime pension | 3 minimum wages: 5,252,715 pesos ($1,644) a month | Up to 3 years | No | $260 |
| V Nómada Digital | Remote workers for foreign companies | 3 minimum wages a month over the last 3 months | Up to 2 years | Only for foreign employers or clients | $194 |
| V Rentista | People living on rental or passive income | 10 minimum wages: 17,509,050 pesos ($5,481) a month | Up to 2 years | No | $194 |
Fees come from the Foreign Ministry’s Resolution 3969 of 2026 and include the study and issuance stages.
The pensionado route is the one most American retirees look at. Per the Cancillería’s Visa M Pensionado page, you’ll need:
- A certificate showing a lifetime pension of at least three minimum wages, apostilled and translated
- A criminal record certificate from every country you’ve lived in for the last three years
- A medical certificate
- Proof of health coverage that works in Colombia
The pension can be paid by a government or a private fund, so US Social Security can qualify. The visa also counts toward a resident visa: after five years as the main holder, you can apply to stay for good.
Once you land, register with Migración Colombia and get a cédula de extranjería, the foreigner ID card. You’ll need it for nearly everything, including healthcare.
Cost of living in Colombia for Americans
Numbeo’s October 2026 figures for a single person, converted at 3,194 pesos to the dollar:
| City | 1-bed, city center | Monthly costs without rent | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medellín | 3,346,314 pesos ($1,048) | 2,655,164 pesos ($831) | about $1,880 |
| Bogotá | 2,523,000 pesos ($790) | 2,267,923 pesos ($710) | about $1,500 |
Medellín costs more. At least on Numbeo’s numbers. Outside its center, a one-bedroom averaged 1,614,791 pesos ($505), which brings a single person’s total down to about $1,340.
Here’s what that means. The visa’s $1,640 floor covers a modest Medellín life outside the center. In the center, it doesn’t.
The exchange rate cuts both ways. A stronger peso means each Social Security dollar buys less.
Healthcare in Colombia: private cover on the pensioner visa
Medicare won’t follow you. In its 2026 booklet for people living abroad, Medicare says it generally doesn’t cover care outside the US.
Colombia’s public system runs through EPS insurers. The pensioner visa keeps you out of it: Resolution 5477 of 2022, article 77 says the M Pensionado visa “won’t allow its holder to join the Colombian social security system”, unless a bilateral or multilateral agreement provides otherwise. The EPS is part of that system.
The same article requires health coverage in Colombia or a policy that covers accident, illness, hospitalization, death and repatriation for the whole planned stay. On this visa, that means private insurance for as long as you hold it, and it belongs in your budget from the first month.
The rule is written into the pensioner visa. If you later move to another visa type, ask Migración Colombia or an EPS what applies to you then. For people who can join, independent contributors pay 12.5% of a base that can’t go below one minimum wage, according to the UGPP’s 2026 guide, about 218,900 pesos or $69 a month.
Taxes for Americans in Colombia
Colombia and the US have no income tax treaty. Colombia doesn’t appear on the IRS list of treaty countries, so there’s no treaty clause protecting Social Security the way there is in Mexico or Thailand.
You become a Colombian tax resident by spending more than 183 days in the country in any 365-day period, per DIAN, the tax authority. Residents report income from Colombia and abroad.
The good news is in the tax code. Since Law 2277 of 2022, pensions obtained abroad get the same treatment as Colombian ones: exempt up to 1,000 UVT a month. In 2026 one UVT is 52,374 pesos, so that’s about 52.4 million pesos, or $16,400 a month.
Most American pensions sit far below that. Good. Whether your Social Security, IRA withdrawals and investment income each count as a “pension” is the question for a Colombian contador. They don’t all.
And the IRS still wants a return from you every year.
Is Colombia safe for Americans?
This is the weakest part of the case. By far.
The State Department rates Colombia Level 3, reconsider travel, as of 31 March 2026. It cites crime, terrorism, civil unrest and kidnapping. These areas are Level 4, do not travel:
- Arauca
- Cauca, except Popayán
- Valle del Cauca, except Cali
- Norte de Santander
- The area within about 10 km (5 miles) of the Venezuelan border
Medellín and Bogotá aren’t on that list, but the national Level 3 still covers them. The advisory also notes that US government staff in Colombia can’t hail taxis on the street or use public transportation. That’s a useful hint for anyone planning daily life.
Protests can close roads without warning and sometimes turn violent.
The catch
The bar moves every year. The visa floor is set in minimum wages. In 2025 three wages were 4,270,500 pesos. In 2026 it’s 5,252,715. Your pension in dollars doesn’t rise 23%.
No treaty. None. Colombia’s pension exemption helps, but your other income has no treaty backstop.
Safety is a daily cost. Level 3 shapes where you live, how you get around, and what you spend on both.
Medellín’s center isn’t cheap. On Numbeo’s numbers it costs more than Bogotá’s.
Who Colombia works for
- Retirees with a pension of $1,700 or more who want residency on a low bar and a path to a resident visa in five years.
- Remote workers paid from abroad who earn at least three minimum wages a month.
- People who’ll live in Spanish and choose their neighborhood carefully.
Who it doesn’t
- Anyone whose pension sits right at the floor. One more 20% minimum-wage jump and you’re below it.
- People who’d rely on buses and street taxis in cities under a Level 3 advisory.
- Retirees living mainly on IRA withdrawals who haven’t asked a cross-border preparer about a no-treaty country.
Before you decide
- Convert the current minimum wage into dollars in January, not when you first read about the visa.
- Read the State Department advisory for the department, not just the country.
- Ask a Colombian contador how your Social Security and IRA will be classified.
- Price private health insurance for the whole stay: on the pensioner visa you can’t join an EPS.
For a comparison of where $2,000 a month works across 14 countries, see How to Retire Abroad on $2,000 a Month.
