Adventure tourism service providers must comply with 100% of the requirements of the applicable technical standard to prevent accidents and protect the integrity of tourists, the community in the area, and guides.

This resolution, which regulated Article 12 of Law 2068 of 2020, defined the levels of tourism quality to ensure that service providers, destinations, and tourist attractions comply with quality, sustainability, and safety standards, to prevent accidents and protect the integrity of tourists, the community of the area, and guides.

During this period, the MinCIT has socialized the content of the resolution in 26 specific conferences in municipalities such as Mesetas, Guaduas, Santa Marta, Apía, Pereira, Buenaventura, Cali, Puerto Carreño and Guadalajara de Buga, among others, with more than 2,000 participants; and in scenarios such as technical assistance days on tourism quality, safety committees, National Tourism Quality Week, among other events, held since August 2024, reaching another 1,667 people.

Service providers should be aware that:

•  They must comply with technical safety standards at an outstanding level, which means meeting 100% of the requirements of the applicable technical standard.
• The certification must be granted by a Conformity Assessment Body (OEC), accredited by the National Accreditation Body of Colombia (ONAC). The OECs can be consulted in https://onac.org.co/directorio-de-acreditados/
• The mayors’ offices and territorial entities will supervise compliance and apply the sanctions established in Article 72 of Law 300 of 1996, which even contemplates the possibility of cancellation of the National Tourism Registry (RNT) for up to 5 years, depending on the seriousness of the offense.
• They must consult with the territorial entities on the mechanisms for notifying them of compliance with this requirement.
• They must include in their advertising that their activities are certified.
• This certification is not just a formality; it is a commitment to life so that adventure tourism is synonymous with excellence and prevention, and we continue to consolidate Colombia as The Country of Beauty.

Photo credit: MINCIT.

COTELCO executive director Angela Patricia Lastra (Photo: COTELCO)

“From the hotel and tourism association of Colombia, COTELCO, we celebrate the RNT requirement and obligation for lodging service providers. It is a point that we have been requesting for some time and we consider that it is a stimulus for formalization, which in turn will generate greater competitiveness in the sector,” said the trade association’s executive director Angela Patricia Lastra.

Registering with Colombia’s RNT is free, but is done through local Chambers of Commerce, which may mean additional registrations and business licenses would be required. Registering with the Chamber of Commerce requires business or individual contractor tax registration with the DIAN, Colombia’s tax authority. In Colombia, Chambers of Commerce are not trade groups, but government-affiliated institutions responsible for business registration.

New tax on digital platforms

The digital platforms such as AirBnB & Booking.com operating in Colombia are also subject to a new excise tax of 2.5 pesos per 1,000 pesos of revenue. The ministry says that the funds raised will be earmarked for the Fontur Tourism development fund, and that the platforms will benefit from the increased investment in tourism development.

The ministry says that an international dollar-denominated account will be created in Fontur’s name, and taxed entities must deposit the tax in dollars, converted to Colombian pesos with the TRM (official exchange rate) at the time of payment of the tax.

“This contribution allows us to strengthen the promotion, competitiveness and tourism infrastructure,” said the Fontur President, Irvin Pérez, who pointed out that the expectation of parafiscal collection for this year is $64 billion Colombian pesos, or approximately $16 million USD.

Image by InstagramFOTOGRAFIN from Pixabay 

The Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, Maria Ximena Lombana Villalba (above), stated that this joint exercise “is a very important step in the advancement of the safe economic reactivation of the country, since the formalization in the hotel sector allows to give tranquility and support to the guests and that the productive chain of the sector works for the benefit of Colombians.”

During the day, an awareness campaign was carried out aimed at tourism service providers about the importance of being formalized and registered in the National Tourism Registry. Joint actions were carried out by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism and the Group for the Protection of Tourism and National Heritage of the Metropolitan Police of Cúcuta, along with the Police for Children and Adolescents, the Environmental and Ecological Police, Migration Colombia, Secretaries of Health, fire departments, and other authorities of Cúcuta and Villa del Rosario.

During the operation, a suspect was captured with two species of wild birds and turned over to Colombia’s attorney general for prosecution. Trafficking in wild species is a major criminal activity in Colombia, which is one of them most biodiverse countries in the world, home to many rare and endangered species.