In order to send a SWIFT payment to COLUMBIA it is highly recommended to meet the following recommendations:
To send payments to Colombia, the following information provided by the beneficiary is required: SWIFT BIC, account number, beneficiary bank address, and beneficiary’s tax ID, email address, and telephone number.
Refer to the Central Bank of Colombia at www.banrep.gov.co/en for additional information.
Country Requirements/Restrictions:
- The beneficiary must have an in-country presence to receive COP FX payments.
- Supporting documentation may be required from the beneficiary to receive credit into their account.
- Anti-money laundering regulations require supporting documentation declaring the source of the funds when dealing with the FX desk.
- The beneficiary must sign and return the required forms by 1:00 p.m. local time for funds to be received by 5:00 p.m. local time.
- A declaration form and a letter of instruction must include the U.S. dollar amount sent by the third-party vendor.
Payment Formatting Rules for COP:
- Ordering Customer (SWIFT MT103 F50): Include the account number, full name (no initials), and address of the ordering customer. Initials can delay receipt.
- Beneficiary Customer (SWIFT MT103 F59): For all currencies, include the account number, full name (no initials), address, corporate tax ID ('NIT'), or individual tax IDs ('Cédulas') along with the telephone number. Include account type as 'CACC' for Checking, 'SVGS' for Savings, and 'OTHR' for Electronic Deposit. This information may also be included in SWIFT MT103 F70.
- Beneficiary Bank (SWIFT MT103 F57): Include SWIFT BIC with branch identifier (where required), full name, and address of the beneficiary bank. There are no specific bank clearing codes in Colombia for cross-border payments. SWIFT BIC is key to routing payments to the beneficiary bank. SWIFT BIC is 8 or 11 alphanumeric characters: xxxxCOxx or xxxxCOxxxxx.
- Sender to Receiver Information (SWIFT MT103 F72): To avoid payment delays, include the beneficiary’s email address. Replace '@' with '_AT_' (blank space before and after '_AT_') for smooth processing. Sample Format: /INT/name AT jpmchase.com.
- Reason for Payment (SWIFT MT103 F70): Purpose of payment is mandatory and must be clearly identified (goods, services, capital, etc.).
- Additional Information: In-country beneficiary banks supported for COP FX payments include:
- Banco AV Villas - BAVICOBB (only payments less than 10,000 USD equivalent)
- Banco de Bogota – BBOGCOBB
- Bancolombia - COLOCOBM
- Banco de Occidente - OCCICOBCBO2
- BBVA Colombia - GEROCOBB
- Citibank - CITICOBB
- Banco Caja Social BCSC / CASOCOBB (only payments less than 10,000 USD equivalent)
- Banco Davivienda – CAFECOBBXXX
- Itaú Corpbanca Colombia – BCTOCOBB
- Banco Santander - SANTCOBBXXX
- Banco GNB Sudameris – BSUDCOBB
- Banco Colpatria - COLPCOBB (only payments less than 10,000 USD equivalent)
- For payments below USD 10,000 COP: Beneficiary will have to accept the funds by filling out the appropriate forms onshore with their bank.
- For payments above USD 10,000 COP: Beneficiary bank will require any supporting documents to be filled out and presented on the day the transaction is closed for the funds to be credited.
For the following financial institutions in COLUMBIA you can find a list of their correspondent banks with the currencies and nostro accounts. Also you will find an instructions how to track the payments and other useful information which will help you to send/receive a SWIFT funds transfer or investigate a status of existing payment.