Practice areas
Every case starts with a clear answer: whether your plan works under Colombian law, before you invest.
Marriage to a Colombian citizen or a registered unión marital de hecho opens a route to an M visa and, in time, to permanent residency.
Buying property above the legal investment threshold can qualify you for an investor M visa, but only if the purchase and the currency transfer are structured correctly from day one.
Whether you are buying an apartment in Medellín or putting capital into a local venture, the structure you choose decides your tax exposure and your visa eligibility.
The most valuable work is the deal Alfredo Jaramillo tells you to walk away from. Foreigners are targeted here because they cannot read the warning signs in a Colombian title certificate.
Investing in Medellín
Quality of life, connectivity and an active property market. With the right legal advice, your investment is secure from the very first document.
The legal route
Step 1 of 5
Home, rental or visa: each goal calls for a different structure from day one.
Step 2 of 5
The certificado de tradición y libertad shows the real owner and what weighs on the property.
Step 3 of 5
It comes through the foreign exchange market and is registered with Banco de la República.
Step 4 of 5
Property is transferred by public deed registered at the Registry Office.
Colombian Civil Code, articles 756 and 1857
Step 5 of 5
With the property in your name and the investment registered, you can apply for the Visa M.
Investor visa
Move the value and compare it with the minimum required by Cancillería.
Review my case in a consultationMove the value to see the result.
Minimums under Resolution 5477 of 2022 (property: at least 350 minimum wages; company: more than 650), using the 2026 minimum wage, COP 1,750,905. Dollar amounts are approximate, based on a reference rate of COP 3,100 per dollar (September 2026); the rate changes every day. This is a reference and does not replace a review of your case.
Fraud prevention
None of these are rare. Every one of them is visible in the paperwork, if you know where to look and if you look before you pay.
Properties sold under falsa tradición or with a broken chain of title look identical to clean ones in a listing. The certificate of tradition and freedom tells the truth. It is a public document, and I read it before you sign anything.
Mortgages, judicial embargoes, patrimonio de familia or afectación a vivienda familiar can make a sale unenforceable or leave you owning a debt. All of it appears in the registry, and sellers routinely fail to mention it.
A signed promesa de compraventa with clear conditions, penalties and a controlled payment structure is the difference between a deposit and a donation. Never transfer funds against a WhatsApp message.
In Colombia ownership transfers through a notarized escritura pública registered at the Oficina de Registro. A private contract, a receipt or possession alone does not make you the owner, whatever you were told.
Foreign funds must be channelled and registered through the exchange market with Banco de la República. Get this wrong and you may lose your investor visa eligibility, along with the legal right to take your capital back out.
Nobody can guarantee a visa. Anyone who does is either lying or planning to file documents that put your immigration record at risk. Ask for a professional card number, and verify it.
Buying, investing, or still just exploring? You do not need documents or a signed contract to talk to me. Many of my clients reach out while they are still deciding, which is the point where advice changes the outcome.
Request a consultationClient experiences
Reviews left for Legalmente, the Medellín firm where I practise. Translated from the original Spanish.
I am an accountant by profession. Through misplaced trust I was drawn into legal proceedings in which I was innocent. Fortunately I found this firm, and throughout the entire process I always felt well advised and well accompanied.
A team of lawyers with a great deal of experience, both nationally and internationally. They offer close support and very sound advice.
A thoroughly complete law firm. The service they provide is professional and clear. Don't think twice. If you need advice on anything legal, contact them. They are your best option.
How it works
Many clients hire me from another country, sometimes before setting foot in Colombia. The process is built to remove exactly that uncertainty.
Virtually if you are abroad (USD 60), in person at my office in Medellín if you are already here (USD 160), or as an urgent call within 1 hour, available 24/7 (USD 195). You explain your situation; I tell you what is legally possible, what it realistically costs and how long it takes. The fee is credited toward your case if you go on to instruct me.
You receive a written engagement letter setting out scope, documents required, timeline, professional fees, and the costs charged by others such as notary, registry and government filing fees, each listed separately.
Titles studied, counterparties verified, apostilles and translations organised, contracts drafted. Every finding is explained to you before the transaction moves forward.
Filing, closing, registration and the steps most people forget afterwards, including investment registration, cédula de extranjería and tax registration. You receive written confirmation of each.
About
I am a Colombian attorney and my practice is dedicated to foreign nationals who are moving to, buying in or investing in Colombia. That focus matters. The questions a foreigner faces, such as visa categories, currency registration, title risk and how you are taxed when you do not live here, are not the questions a local client brings.
I work from Medellín, in the Estación del Ferrocarril building. Some of my clients already live in the city and prefer to sit down with me at the office; others are still abroad the first time we speak. Behind both conversations are more than 35 years of experience in Colombian property matters, along with the work that surrounds a purchase for a foreign buyer: marriage and partnership visas, investor visas, and the registration of foreign investment.
Questions
No. If you are abroad, we can hold the consultation virtually, and where the law allows I can act under a power of attorney that you sign and apostille in your own country. If you are already in Medellín or elsewhere in Colombia, you are welcome at my office and we can meet in person. Some steps, such as a notary signature or the biometrics for your cédula, do require your presence, and I will tell you in advance exactly which ones and when.
Yes. Colombian law places foreign buyers on essentially the same footing as nationals for most real estate, with limited exceptions in certain border, coastal and protected zones. The risk is almost never your nationality. It is the condition of the title and the way the transaction and the money transfer are documented.
The threshold is set as a multiple of the Colombian legal monthly minimum wage, so it changes every year. I confirm the current figure for your specific visa category before you commit to a purchase, and I check that your intended structure and payment route will actually satisfy the requirement. That is where most applications filed without advice fail.
No. It gives you access to a visa category. You still have to apply, document the relationship and meet the requirements, and the visa is granted for a term before any path to permanent residency opens. A marriage or partnership that was registered incorrectly is one of the more common reasons an application is refused.
It depends on the matter. Every case has its own scope and its own fee, which I set out for you once I understand what is involved. Government, notary and registry costs are quoted separately from professional fees. The initial consultation has a fixed value: USD 60 for a virtual consultation, USD 160 in person and USD 195 for an urgent call. That amount is credited toward your case if you go on to instruct me.
Contact me immediately and do not send further funds. Bring everything you have: contracts, receipts, transfer confirmations, chat histories and the property registry number. Depending on what happened, the options may include civil action, a criminal complaint or a negotiated recovery. Speed matters a great deal here.
You deal with me on the substance of your matter. Administrative coordination may be handled by my team, but the legal analysis, the advice and the decisions are mine, and you will always know who is doing what.
Every practising Colombian lawyer is listed in the National Registry of Lawyers (SIRNA), maintained by the Superior Council of the Judiciary and open to public consultation. My registration is T.P. 93906, and you can look me up before sending me a single document. You should expect the same from anyone offering you legal or visa services in Colombia, and be cautious with anyone who hesitates to provide it.
Get started
Describe your situation in a few lines and I will reply personally, in English, with an honest read on whether it is workable, what it involves and what it costs. No obligation, and nothing you send is shared.
