Citizenship via parent (Registro civil de nacimiento)Citizenship via parent (Registro civil de nacimiento)
Eligibility quiz
Is or was one of your parents a citizen of Colombia?
Benefits
Benefits for youBenefits for you
Colombian passport
An ordinary or executive Colombian passport is valid for 10 years.
Passports are issued in Colombia and at Colombian consulates abroad.
A valid passport is normally needed to leave Colombia, though some agreements provide exceptions.
Live in Colombia for life
Colombian citizens can live in Colombia indefinitely without a visa or residence permit.
Live and work in 9 countries
Study in Colombia
Colombian citizens can use education and public services on the terms of each programme.
For example, a public-university tuition programme has eligibility conditions; citizenship alone does not guarantee a tuition-free place.
Work in Colombia
Colombian citizens can work in Colombia without immigration permission.
Get help abroad
Colombian embassies and consulates can provide assistance and protection to Colombian citizens travelling or living abroad.
You must prove your Colombian citizenship.
Vote and run for office
Eligible Colombian citizens can vote, run for office, take part in referendums and form or join political parties.
Some public jobs have restrictions for naturalized citizens or people with another citizenship.
Eligible citizens registered to vote abroad can vote in national elections, but not Colombian local elections, from abroad.
Use public healthcare
Colombian citizens can join the health system on the same basis as other residents.
Work, ability to pay, household circumstances and residence determine how you join and whether you pay contributions.
How to apply
Applying at a local officeApplying at a local office
Find an office
Find an authorized notary or Registraduría office. If you were born outside Colombia and have not registered your birth at a consulate, choose a notary or Registraduría in Bogotá.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “Where can I register a Colombian birth near your city, or a birth abroad in Bogotá, for registro civil de nacimiento?”
Gather your documents
Prepare the required documents for the office.
See required documentsGo to the office
Bring your documents to the office with the person reporting the birth. If you are registering your child, bring your child too.
See how to registerSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I register a birth in Colombia at a notary or Registraduría for registro civil de nacimiento?”
Complete the registration
Complete and sign the birth registration with the official. If you use a notary, pay any fee the notary charges in the way it asks.
See how to registerSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I complete and sign a registro civil de nacimiento at a notary or Registraduría in Colombia?”
Receive your record
Get the completed birth record or a copy from the office. You can use it to show that your birth is recorded in Colombia and, when it meets the requirements, to prove Colombian nationality.
Get your birth recordSearches DuckDuckGo for “How do I get a copy of my Colombian registro civil de nacimiento from a notary or Registraduría?”
Documents needed
Family certificates and recordsFamily certificates and records
Birth records
If you were born outside Colombia, bring your original birth record from the office where your birth was recorded; it must show your birth and your parents. For a birth in Colombia, bring the live-birth certificate. If you cannot provide a birth record, ask the office whether it can accept another record or a sworn statement from two people who directly know about the birth; your parents cannot be those witnesses.
Parent's citizenship records
Bring your Colombian parent’s original citizenship card and a copy, or their Colombian birth registration if it proves their nationality. For a parent aged 14 to 17, a Colombian identity card can show nationality; for a child under 14, a Colombian birth registration is the usual proof.
Other parent's passport *
Bring your other parent’s valid original passport and a copy.
* Only if your other parent has another nationality and you apply at a consulate.
Considerations
Things to think aboutThings to think about
Colombian documents for travel
If you also have another citizenship, you must enter, stay in and leave Colombia as a Colombian citizen and use Colombian identity documents.
Military service for men
Colombian men may have to perform military service from adulthood.
Men living abroad must register and settle their military status through a consulate.
Exemptions and objections based on deeply held beliefs may apply.
Citizenship can be lost
You can give up Colombian citizenship, but it ends only when your request is accepted and recorded.
Naturalized citizens can lose it after a final conviction for certain offences against the state or its constitutional system; citizens by birth cannot be deprived of it.
A court can also suspend political rights in specified cases.
Discuss
Online communitiesOnline communities
Medellin Expats
English Facebook group for people living in Colombia interested in Colombian local life
Join on FacebookMedellin Gringo Info
English Facebook group for people living in Colombia interested in Colombian local life
Join on FacebookExpat in Santa Marta - Magdalena - Colombia
English Facebook group for people living in Colombia interested in Colombian local life
Join on FacebookConsultation
Talk to a professionalTalk to a professional
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