Colombia

Colombia labour laws for two types of salaries.

1. Integral Pay: where pay is paid separately to other benefits and entitlements

2. Ordinary Pay: where benefits and entitlements are included in the monthly pay payments for the employee

The type of pay must be agreed to by both the employee and employer. This pay type must be outlined in the relevant Employment Agreement.

The CST (Código Sustantivo del Trabajo) specifies that an integral pay cannot be less than 10 monthly minimum wage payments, plus 30% of the benefit factor.

Effective January 2024, the new minimum wages are as follows:

• Integral Pay: 16,900,000.00 COP

• Ordinary Pay: 1,300,000 COP

Colombia labour laws for two types of salaries.

1. Integral Salary: where salary is paid separately to other benefits and entitlements

2. Ordinary Salary: where benefits and entitlements are included in the monthly salary payments for the employee

The type of salary must be agreed to by both the employee and employer. This salary type must be outlined in the relevant Employment Agreement.

The CST (Código Sustantivo del Trabajo) specifies that an integral salary cannot be less than 10 monthly minimum wage payments, plus 30% of the benefit factor.

That means in 2023, the benchmark for a gross integral salary in Colombia must be at least 15,080,000 Colombian pesos (COP) as the minimum monthly wage is 1,160,000 COP.

Employees in Colombia who are earning an Ordinary Salary are entitled to receive an extra month’s pay each year, calculated by dividing the gross annual salary by 12.

The payment is equally split and delivered 50% in June and 50% in December. These payments are not only customary but are required by law.

If an employee earns less than $15,080,000 COP per month, an Ordinary Salary would apply. Note that the 13th salary should not be included in the total annual gross salary.

If an employee earns a gross salary of $15,080,000 COP per month or more, an 'integral salary' is usually applied. Employees who receive an integral salary, do not receive a 13th salary payment.

For customers of Remote, all employee payments will be made in equal monthly instalments on or before the last working day of each calendar month, payable in arrears.

We can help you get a new employee started in Colombia fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 5 working days.

Our team ensures your employees are onboarded and paid as quickly as possible while keeping your business compliant with all local employment legislation. The minimum onboarding time begins after the employee submits all required information onto the Remote platform. The onboarding timeline is also dependent upon registration with local authorities.

For all non-nationals of the country of employment, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the total time to onboard. There may be extra time required if we need to follow-up on the right to work assessment.

Please note, payroll cut-off dates can impact the actual first day of employment. Remote has a payroll cut-off date of the 10th of the month unless otherwise specified.