Short answer: citizens of Switzerland, the EU, the UK, the USA and Canada do not need a visa for a holiday in Colombia of up to 90 days. You need a valid passport in good condition and a return or onward ticket, and you should fill in the free online Check-Mig form before your flight. For health, the key topic is yellow fever: not required for entry from Europe, but strongly recommended – and compulsory for some regions and national parks inside Colombia. This guide explains everything step by step. It reflects the rules in November 2026; entry and health rules can change, so always check the official sources linked below before you travel.
Do I need a visa for Colombia?
Swiss, EU, UK, US and Canadian citizens can enter Colombia as tourists without a visa. At the airport, the immigration officer stamps your passport and decides how long you may stay – normally up to 90 days, which can be extended once by another 90 days at Migración Colombia. If you plan a long trip, show your return ticket and ask for the number of days you need. If your nationality is not listed here, check with the Colombian embassy in your country.
Passport: what immigration checks
- Validity: your passport must be valid for your whole stay. The German Foreign Office reports cases where travellers whose passport expired less than six months after departure were refused entry, so we recommend at least six months’ validity.
- Condition: damaged passports – loose binding, torn pages, frayed cover – are usually refused.
- Lost or stolen: a passport you once reported lost or stolen is regularly refused, even if you later found it and the report was cancelled. Travel with a new one.
- Return ticket: you may be asked to show a return or onward flight.
- Dual nationals: Colombian citizens must enter and leave with their Colombian passport.
- Children with Colombian nationality need notarised permission from a parent who is not travelling with them in order to leave Colombia.
The Check-Mig form
Check-Mig is Colombia’s online pre-registration for arrival and departure. It is free and takes about ten minutes. Fill it in between 72 hours and 1 hour before each flight – once for arrival and once again for departure. Migración Colombia describes it as recommended rather than compulsory, but airlines often ask for the confirmation at check-in, so we advise all our travellers to complete it.
- Use only the official site: apps.migracioncolombia.gov.co/pre-registro. The address must end in .gov.co.
- Beware of copycat websites that charge a fee – the real form never costs anything.
- Have your passport, flight number and first hotel address ready. Save the confirmation email or a screenshot on your phone.
Do I need travel insurance?
Colombia does not currently require proof of travel insurance at the border for tourists. Even so, we strongly recommend health and travel insurance that includes medical evacuation and repatriation. Private hospitals in the big cities are good, but they usually ask for payment or a guarantee before treatment, and rescue from remote areas can be very expensive.
Yellow fever: what you need to know
Colombia has had a yellow fever outbreak since 2025, and the health emergency was still in place in autumn 2026. The rules are different for entering the country and for travelling inside it:
- Entry: if you fly in directly from Europe or North America, no vaccination certificate is required. Travellers arriving from (or who spent more than 12 hours in transit in) Angola, Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo or Uganda must show one.
- Inside Colombia: for municipalities and national parks classified as high or very high risk, a certificate can be checked on entry. The vaccination must be at least 10 days old.
- Recommendation: the German Foreign Office recommends the vaccine for travel to most areas below 2,300 m. It is not generally needed if you only visit Bogotá, San Andrés and Providencia, or the cities of Cartagena, Medellín, Cali or Barranquilla.
- One dose protects most people for life. In Colombia the vaccine is free – for example at Bogotá’s El Dorado airport (Terminal 1) – but the 10-day rule means you should get it before you leave home if your trip includes the Amazon, the Llanos, the Lost City or other rural areas.
The list of risk areas changes. Check the current map on the Colombian Ministry of Health’s page for travellers, and we will tell you if your itinerary includes a region where the certificate is checked.
Other vaccinations and health risks
- Recommended vaccinations: hepatitis A and yellow fever; depending on your trip, also hepatitis B, rabies, dengue and chikungunya. Make sure your routine vaccinations, especially measles, are up to date. Ask a travel medicine clinic for advice 4–8 weeks before departure.
- Malaria: the risk is highest along the Pacific coast, in the Amazon and in the border regions. Bogotá, Medellín, Cartagena and San Andrés are malaria-free. For our Amazon and Llanos trips, ask your travel doctor about prevention or emergency medication.
- Mosquitoes: dengue and Zika occur in the lowlands. Use repellent, wear long sleeves at dusk and sleep under a net where one is provided.
- Altitude: Bogotá lies at about 2,600 m and some páramo hikes go much higher. Take the first day easy, drink plenty of water and go light on alcohol. Medellín (about 1,500 m) is a gentler start.
- Food and water: in the big cities tap water is generally treated, but many travellers prefer bottled water. Avoid unpasteurised juices from street stalls.
- Medical care is good in the large cities and much more limited in the countryside.
Customs: what you may bring
- Cash up to the equivalent of USD 10,000 can be brought in or taken out without declaring it.
- Taking cultural objects, antiques or wild animals and plants out of Colombia is forbidden – buy handicrafts, coffee or textiles instead.
- Drug offences are punished very severely. Never carry luggage or parcels for other people, and always pack and check your own bags.
- Bring personal medication in its original packaging with a doctor’s note in English.
Checklist before you travel
- Passport valid for at least six months and in good condition
- Return or onward ticket
- Check-Mig completed 72 to 1 hours before each flight (arrival and departure)
- Travel and health insurance with medical evacuation
- Yellow fever vaccination at least 10 days before visiting rural or lowland regions
- Travel medicine consultation 4–8 weeks before departure
- Current travel advice from your government – see our guide Is Colombia safe?
Official sources
- Migración Colombia – entry, stay and Check-Mig
- Ministerio de Salud – vaccination for travellers
- Switzerland (EDA), Germany (Auswärtiges Amt), United Kingdom (FCDO) – travel advice including entry rules
Plan your trip with us
When you book a tailor-made trip with us, we tell you which vaccinations matter for your route and send you a practical checklist before departure. Looking for the right season? Read our guide to the best time to visit Colombia – or ask for your itinerary and write to us on WhatsApp.
Last updated: November 2026. Entry and health rules can change at short notice – always check the official sources before you travel. This guide is general information, not medical advice.
