Colombia’s Supreme Court Rules Paying for Sex with Minors is Exploitation, not a “Service”

Colombia’s top court says sexual activity involving minors constitutes sexual exploitation

Colombia’s Supreme Court established a legal precedent by ruling that sexual relations involving payment or any form of compensation with minors must be considered sexual exploitation rather than a transaction or “service,” even when the victims appear to have consented.

The ruling was issued May 6, 2026, by the Criminal Cassation Chamber of the Supreme Court through decision SP287-2026, in a case involving the sexual abuse of four minors by a foreign citizen. The court overturned a lower-court acquittal and convicted the defendant of abusive sexual acts with a minor under the age of 14.

“The Court held that any person under the age of 18 who is sexually used by an adult in exchange for money, goods or any type of benefit must be considered a victim of sexual exploitation,” the ruling states. It also clarified that those who pay for sexual access to minors should not be described as “clients” or “users,” but rather as “direct sexual exploiters, exploiters through prostitution, or demand-side perpetrators.”

The court argued that even when minors appear to consent, the relationship cannot be considered a valid commercial exchange but rather a form of violence whose criminal responsibility is unavoidable.

“Accordingly, any person under 18 years of age who is used for sexual purposes by an adult, in exchange for any kind of remuneration or benefit, must be considered a victim of sexual exploitation due to their status as a specially protected subject,” Article 52 of the ruling states.

A ruling with precedential implications

Although the decision applies to a specific case, legal experts say it establishes an important precedent for future judicial interpretations.

Colombian analyst María Cristina Hurtado told LA FM Radio that the ruling is “a historic decision that sets a clear precedent (…) the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents is not sex work but sexual crime (…) this is a third-instance criminal ruling, meaning it is final.”

The ruling does not amend Colombia’s criminal code or create new legislation, but it strengthens the interpretation of existing laws and could become a reference point for future judicial decisions and legislative debates.

The Supreme Court also challenged the language commonly used to describe such conduct. According to the ruling, referring to those who pay for sexual access to minors as “clients” normalizes exploitative relationships.

“A person who gains sexual access to a child or adolescent through compensation is not merely a user of a service, but the first link in the chain of exploitation,” the court said.

Debate over sexual exploitation and “sex work”

Legal specialists emphasized, however, that the ruling does not mean all prostitution is automatically considered sexual exploitation under criminal law.

Valentina Gómez, a legal analyst at Externado University of Colombia, said that “it would not be rigorous to claim that this latest ruling resolved, in a general and definitive way, the labor debate surrounding so-called ‘sex work.’” However, she said it does raise an important warning about legal categories that may normalize relationships shaped by inequality, discrimination or violence.

“The ruling does not hold that all prostitution automatically constitutes sexual exploitation in criminal terms; its decision concerns a specific case of commercial sexual exploitation involving children and adolescents,” Gómez said.

The Supreme Court was emphatic in stating that, when minors are involved, there is no room for interpreting valid consent.

“When it comes to children and adolescents, there is no space to speak of valid consent in cases of sexual exploitation. In such cases, the law is not dealing with an economic activity or an exchange relationship, but with a serious violation of fundamental rights,” the SP287-2026 ruling states.

Legal framework in Colombia

Colombian law imposes severe penalties for crimes related to sexual exploitation, particularly when minors are involved.

These include pimping involving minors, commercial sexual exploitation of minors, human trafficking, inducing prostitution and child pornography, with prison sentences ranging from eight to 25 years depending on the offense and the age of the victims.