Visa Agency

When I was researching what legal firm to use, I emailed many of them to gauge their response time. The thing is, almost everyone in Colombia is like that... poor, slow communication. It's part of their culture, and we have to just accept it and find workarounds.

I got my digital nomad visa (only for 1 year) about a week ago, with the guidance of Nexo Legal (I believe they are based in Medellin). Their fee was less than $275, funny enough.

Message me directly if you want more information, as well as my spreadsheet of costs (I keep detailed personal records of these type of projects).

Why did you only get 1 year? I'm aiming to get 2 years.

Yeah I'm familiar with this because it was the same when I lived in Brazil. With this agency I have to send multiple emails, messages on whatsapp, threaten that I will cancel the charge on my card, etc. And they tried to sell me their very expensive medical insurance through a questionable insurance provider.

Also I was told that I need to stay in the the country, with the same mailing address until the process is finished. I plan on leaving this apartment on June 1st and go to visit my family back home for about a month. I really don't want to change my travel plans because of tardiness of a service that costed me 1.200.000COP it's frustrating.

@mbalducci1990 they actually are one of the better ones

Its alll down hill from here.Espescially now with the visa changes last October.

Its not the agencies that are that  slow and incompetent, its the Cancilleria....the Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores..you are in for quite an experience..

They ..the Expat Group..reply to my requests the next day the latest

Very slow in translations though..Best to arrange your own

Dont know where you are from, but Colombia is not like developed countries, espescially developed countries 30 years ago.

Colombia bureaucracy and incompetence of government agencies, public servants and even.private services and banks..is more like  what you see in other third world countries..like Canada is today..for example

Expat group has been 2-3 days in replying. Around semana santa it was 10 days to reply.

I'm familiar with things in South America, but I figured a time sensitive service like visas would provide a faster service, especially when I paid a lot of pesos. I'm definitely thinking that it would've been better to do the process myself. How long is the visa wait with the cancilleria? I'm thinking that I need to stay for my complete 6 month tourist visa to get this visa.. I need to leave by july 13

@mbalducci1990 hahaha

You dont have any  choice. in the matter...what ever the agent in the cancillería decides to give you. In my case I pulled the short straw and got one year the last 2 years in a row.

1 year seems common, that way they can extract more money off of you, and maybe, with all the new BS  and additional every year, pizz you off so you leave,

They are charging me more than you..But I think it is the tpe of Visa. I am going for an "R" for an accumulated  time Visa, although Expat Group and Langdon both told me it was "risky" because they quite doing "R" for accumulated time and dont accept salvaconductos as accumulated time anymore as of last October. I am going for it anyway, and maybe my case can be "grandfathered" in as most of my accumulated time and  all my Salvoconductos happened before October last year, In reality, I expect my chances to be less than 50%, which means back to a Rentista Visa, I am not eligibel for a Pensionada visa , because I dont , as , yet have a government pension, and dont expect to have one for a few years. Even then it is sketchy, because I am Canadian, and my "Pension"  which is CPP, base on 35 years of contributions, might not even meet the 3 salarios minimum (depending on exchange rate at the time) , and I have to much income to get the OAS, which is the secongd type of non-contributory pension.

I had a 1 hour consult with Langdon group, the seem quicker and more responsive, respond the same day.

Also , if you use them to get a visa, they have a very detailed schedule of prices, depending on type of visa, and whether you want them to register the visa and get the  cedula for you (which is an easy process to do yourself).

However, the did charge me more than another guy for the 1 hour consultation , $100 vs $80 and they have this ripoff clause that if you pay in $USD with Visa  (rather than a bank transfer in Pesos) they charge you $130,

Anyway, when I told them about this in the interview, they kind of smiled and said I could use the consultation payment agains the Vtsa process, if I decided to go with them (even though in the  caveat notes for the payment they said it couldnt be used).

Anyway, in general,I found them (Langdon) to be professional and responsive.

But you will find stories about them on expat sites as well.

The best reputation of a lawyer or agent is that German guy, I cant recall his name now. Maybe someone else can chime in,

Both Langdon and ExpatGroup gave me the same story on my particular case.

@mbalducci1990 1,2 million is peanuts, Lucky you are not Canadian  (no apostille) and have to pay and wait for all the document legalization charges, which take longer, and cost more every year,

@mbalducci1990 ha ha

If you are applying for a new Visa, and not renewing,  you pick your own insurance provider, and it is cheap, and doesnt have "Repatriation" coverage, the Cancillería  might not accept it and you will be screwed,

Its not the agencys that are pushing this, its the Ministerio de Relaciones Extranjería  -the Cancillería del Gobierno  de Colombia.

I have been getting visa here for 11 years, and it has been geting more and more complicated evey year, and last October was a BIG change.

@nico peligro They told me that maybe I need the apostille. And let's not forget that 1.3mil pesos isn't peanuts, this is a lot of money for Colombia and these companies are extracting a lot of money from foreigners and providing little customer service. Next time I will learn how to do this process myself because I doubt it's difficult as they say.

I bought insurance from ING. 'Patriot International Lite' compared to the Access Card insurance that the agency offered me, the ING insurance covers $50k vs 35k, covers extreme sports (I mountain bike), and has expatriation up to like $1mil USD or something like that. I compared them side to side and the ING insurance was better, nearly half the price, and is from a company that is more trustworthy than that Access Card. I read a lot of bad reviews about Access Card online. So we will see. I'm hoping for the 2 year so I don't have to do this again. I really would like to get this all settled so I can buy the car that I want.

@mbalducci1990 You can go on the Cancilleria web site and see that most of the charges are to the Cancillería, and not to the Expat Group or other agency

https://www.cancilleria.gov.co/tramites_servicios/visa

There is the initial study charge, around $50 $US , and the final Visa Charge, $200 or $250, check the Cabncilleria website for exact charges,

And there is another charge for registering the visa and getting a cedula You shoud check to see if that was included in your quote.

And then translation charges have to be included. I doubt that was included in the $1.8 million in the quote.

At the end of the day , you will spend  a lot more than $1,8 million when this is done, and you will find that the Agency charge is only about 30% of the total.

Believe me, I have been doing this for years.

And none of the above includes medical and emergency evacuation insurance, a new  post October 2023 requirement by the cancillería, which can be very expensie- anywhere  from $500 and $1000 USfor 6 to 12 months. Plus the medical certificate from the physician and who knows who else confirming you are mentally and physically competent,

And yes-better get your document(s) apostilled, , because it is a cheap and easy process in The US. In Canada we dont have that option and to get the documets legalized is a 3 step process that costs anywhere from $250 to $600 US, depending on number of documents and takes  2  months. Going back  8 or 10 years ago, all I needed is one income verification letter, had it notarized, took it to the local Colombian consulate, had it legalized all in less than 3 hours, and cost me maybe $60 US.

@mbalducci1990 Hello there, I'm also applying for an R-Visa and need better insurance but I haven't been able to find an ING website where I could request a policy quote, can you please hook me up with an url for that? Thanks in advance for any help ;?)

Russell

@cymerax Hi. I got the Patriot Lite insurance and expat group started to reply more quickly and the documents were sent. I'm waiting on the response from the government.

The best reputation of a lawyer or agent is that German guy, I cant recall his name now. Maybe someone else can chime in,

Could be more than one German guy in this field, but one that I know of is Christoph Moller, in Medellin I believe.

"I bought insurance from ING. 'Patriot International Lite' compared to the Access Card insurance that the agency offered me, the ING insurance covers $50k vs 35k, covers extreme sports (I mountain bike), and has expatriation up to like $1mil USD or something like that. I compared them side to side and the ING insurance was better, nearly half the price, and is from a company that is more trustworthy than that Access Card. I read a lot of bad reviews about Access Card online. So we will see. I'm hoping for the 2 year so I don't have to do this again. I really would like to get this all settled so I can buy the car that I want.
-@mbalducci1990"

I visited an Access Card representative in Bogota (July 2023) who told me that first, the entire premium must be paid up front, no monthly payment option, and then, if my visa application were to be denied, Access Card would not refund my premium.    She then said something about the company putting aside my policy for my future visa attempts, I didn't ask any further details, she lost me after the first two points.   I wasn't willing to risk the $1000 US dollars on a Colombian Visa gamble.

"The best reputation of a lawyer or agent is that German guy, I cant recall his name now. Maybe someone else can chime in,"  I'm quoting Nico Pilegro

Could be more than one German guy in this field, but one that I know of is Christoph Moller, in Medellin I believe.

Sorry for the double post on this, I'm new here and still figuring out how to post using the "quote" function.

@rf2023

Who ssys they are the best you???

I have sucessfully renewed my visa with an agent in Pereira 3 times.

Some folks say Lagon Law is great, but I have also heard people complaining about them.

It's not so much who you use, because your case will be at the mercy of the agent at the Cancelleria they can deny it or approve it without giving you why!!!

You will quickly realize in Colombia you ask one question and you can get 5 different answers for the same question.

Good Luck

I'm currently using Langon Law for an M Visa renewal.  I've had no issues with them.  They just wrote me saying that my application was withdrawn by the cancelleria, but no indication why.  Not denied, not approved, not rejected...but withdrawn.

They will be writing a petition to get it started again.  Problem is, my first Salvoconducto will be expiring soon.  I can get another, but if the cancelleria is pulling these stunts, I may need to leave and come back on a tourist visa.  I'm not sure how or if I can reapply here in Colombia on a tourist visa, or if I have to apply from out of country.

@mtbe

What Visa type are you renewing?

@HutchX2020

M (Conyugal) Visa

@mbalducci1990 Pay your money take your chances

I used Expat Group in the past, and I got almost instant response from the agent I used there (David) , but they are only agents, not lawyers, and because my case was fairly complex, they werent able to help much with the porqueria that is the Cancillería.

I will be using Langon Group or  Chris Moeller for my next  (and last) attempt, but to be totally honest, there is no guarantee on who you use, the Cancillería are like all powerful gods, and they can deny, accept or reject your appication without any reason, and there seems to be  little your lawyer can do about it, no matter how astute, responsive they are, and how well they know the law.

Also, Langon has several bad reviews also, but this is mostly because people think the lawyers have more power in influencing the Cancillería´s decision than they actually do (which, at least at this point, I believe  is zero to very little).

For new applications , it seems the best results have been by people doing their own applications, without a lawyer or agent.

When I do my next appliction, I will make sure who ever I use is the best of the best, and will also try to do as much as I can to help and stay involved, I always do my own legalization, translation of documents , get my Visa registered and obtain my cedula at the  local migraciones office.

The next time, in addition, I will make sure I have access to the Cancileria platform, so that I am sure all documents have been loaded in a timely manner, and I can see any correspondence from the  and to the Cancilleria right away.

I wll also hold the lawyers "feet to the fire" when it comes to fighting for my cause, should I get any kickback from the Cancilleria on the application.

I also am planning pre-iterviews with selected Lawyers in Medellin t see what my best options are for next visa appication, and to see which lawyer is the most suitable to fight for my case

Same thread going over and over-like Groundhog day

@mtbe Thanks for telling us who your lawyer was MTBE

Note that I asked the same question in the other site.

Good to see they are fighting for you.

Be intersted to see how it goes.

A conyugal (marriage) visa and hey are giving you a hassle??? Woww..they really dont want us here..

@mtbe You can reapply from Colombia with a tourist visa  MTBE. I have done it a cople times.

The issue is, you cant leave the country until it is complete, or it becomes "inadmissable" again. So better to get all your documents ready before habd and leave at least 3 months before your visa expires after  your documents are uploaded on the system.

Langon can confirm all the fine details.,,they are very good with that sort of thing

The good thing about Argentina, although they can be just as ridiculously bureaucratic, pendantic and ebven more slow responding to visa applications (it can take many months) , at least there is no time constraint on document validity, and you can travel in and out of the country during the process.

As amatter of fact, you are not limited to being in the country 180 days a year like in Colombia. Apparently, a slong as you leave 1 day a year after 180, you can be in the country the whole year with just a tourist stamp After 180 days, you pay a small fine to enter the country for another 180.

This is counter the written law, but they are tolerating it because of the need for foriegn currency to prop up their current acccount.

Thats the story I glean for the expat sites anyway, I will be investigating tis in more detail when I am in BA in a week or so.

@mtbe

Did they audit your income for purposes of EPS?

@nico peligro

It seems MTBE was better off doing his application solo, as he has done in the past.

P.S.

I am going to start referring to Langon as "Alan's firm".

Over the past couple of years I've had communication with several of the agent providers listed in this thread.  If I can offer a few opinions:

1. With very few exceptions, the value of the agents is limited to providing you a proper list of documents required, which documents are time-sensitive, which documents are not time-sensitive, templates for affidavits or letters that must be written, etc., and then to collect them from you and inspect them for you just to be sure you have completed everything properly, and to advise you along the way.  Any agent can do this.  In fact, many people have success doing just this without the help of any agent, because the online visa application process is relatively straightforward and easy unless you have some kind of technical glitch.
2. Once the application has been filed, your agent has zero influence over the outcome,except to advise you if the Cancilleria requests more information.
3. The common theory and language on the Migracion / Cancilleria website is that the Cancilleria's decision on a visa application "cannot be appealed".  Implying that if your application is denied, there's nothing that you or your agent can do about it.
4. However:  there is case law in Colombia concerning applicants who did not receive the desired result from the Cancilleria, and who then brought the matter to a Court/Judge capable of over-riding the Cancilleria's decision.   Please don't ask me to find the cases, I don't have the references, but I know that such cases and case law exists.
5. THEREFORE, if you really want someone to help you all the way through the process and beyond the relatively simple visa application, search for an attorney or a firm of attorneys *licensed to practice law and litigate in Colombia*, the attorney or firm having already had success in suing the Cancilleria to obtain a better result for the client, and who can cite specific cases and examples of having done so successfully.

I hope my opinions are helpful, please don't accept them as authoritative, verify everything for yourself before doing anything.   And good luck!

My edit function is not yet working, I've requested help from a moderator:  to add to my previous post, opinions 6 and 7.

(6) If your agent makes the application for you, and makes an honest mistake, you are the one who could lose your visa, having to leave the country within 30 days, and having to wait 6 months before applying again, and having to make your next application from outside of Colombia!  My opinion, get all the advice and document preparation you can from an agent/attorney if you need that kind of help, but make your application yourself on the governments website, with your agent or attorney standing by during the process to advise you if you have any problems.

(7) While you are making your application, screenshot every question and answer and any other event that takes place in the application process until your application is finished.  Sometimes a page in the application is big enough that you have to scroll down to the next part of the page.   Before scrolling, make a screenshot and check your screenshot to make sure it is correct and legible.  Then scroll down to the next questions, answer and repeat.

If you allow your agent/attorney to actually make the application for you, you have no real knowlege of the answers to the quesitons written for you (under your name) on the application or of what documents were uploaded (or forgotten)!  Think about it.

Imagine you have been arrested in the past, and your agent/attorney writes "no" to that question on your visa application.   The Cancilleria then finds out otherwise, either right away or when you apply for your next visa and your "police report" is required.  You, not your agent/attorney, will be held accountable for the answers given on your visa application(s).  You, not your agent/attorney, could find not only your visa application denied "¡RECHAZADA!", but could also find yourself banned from applying for another visa for TEN YEARS for that kind of error.

Get the help you need from agents/attornies before and after the application process, but as for the application itself, best to do it yourself.

@rf2023
Who ssys they are the best you???
I have sucessfully renewed my visa with an agent in Pereira 3 times.
Some folks say Lagon Law is great, but I have also heard people complaining about them.
It's not so much who you use, because your case will be at the mercy of the agent at the Cancelleria they can deny it or approve it without giving you why!!!
You will quickly realize in Colombia you ask one question and you can get 5 different answers for the same question.
Good Luck
-@HutchX2020

hi HutchX2020, no, I did not say anyone was the best.  I was only replying to someone else's post saying he heard of someone, a German guy, who may be the best.  The poster did not know the German guy's name.    So I replied, saying that I know of a German guy who processes visas from Medellin, and that the German guy's name is Christoph Moller.   I was just trying to help out by providing the guy's name.     Thanks.

@rf2023

Just a note:

If you have been living in Colombia last 3 years your criminal report would come from the Policia Nacional in Colombia not your country of birth, And that can be requested online.

@rf2023

I am thinking you should be applying for that blogging job with James.

However:  there is case law in Colombia concerning applicants who did not receive the desired result from the Cancilleria, and who then brought the matter to a Court/Judge capable of over-riding the Cancilleria's decision.   Please don't ask me to find the cases, I don't have the references, but I know that such cases and case law exists.

Well, Alan's website, under the litigation section, seems to agree with you that visa rejections by the cancilleria can be appealed.

@rf2023
Just a note:
If you have been living in Colombia last 3 years your criminal report would come from the Policia Nacional in Colombia not your country of birth, And that can be requested online.
-@HutchX2020

Thank you Hutchx2020 you are correct.   As for me I've been in and out of Colombia six times since the start of 2019.  I guess I could try to get a Colombian national police report, however I don't know whether or not the Cancilleria would accept thething.  My next visa attempt will require I submit also my "movemientos migratorios" (travels in and out of the country) and because of that, they will surely see that I've been visiting Colombia for four years, but certainly have not been living in Colombia for a stretch of three years.

@rf2023
I am thinking you should be applying for that blogging job with James.
-@Mr. Barley

Thank you Mr. Barley, I'll take that as a compliment!

Ok on Alan's website, and maybe I'm being picky with words, but I still have the opinion that you can't appeal.   But you sure can SUE!  Or, put another way, the Cancilleria is not the highest authority in Colombia over the issuance of immigration visas.

I don't know if Alan has ever successfully litigated and won to overturn the Cancilleria. I don't believe Alan himself is an attorney licensed to practice in Colombia, I believe some of his Colombian associates may be.

Makes me wonder if there is an accessible registry of attorneys licensed to practice in Colombia.  Anyone know?

I'm currently using Langon Law for an M Visa renewal. I've had no issues with them. They just wrote me saying that my application was withdrawn by the cancelleria, but no indication why. Not denied, not approved, not rejected...but withdrawn.
They will be writing a petition to get it started again. Problem is, my first Salvoconducto will be expiring soon. I can get another, but if the cancelleria is pulling these stunts, I may need to leave and come back on a tourist visa. I'm not sure how or if I can reapply here in Colombia on a tourist visa, or if I have to apply from out of country.
-@mtbe

Your lawyers will know better than I know, but from experience, of all the visa statuses the Cancilleria can put you into, some of them allow you to just let the application expire without penalty.  The benefit of that is the Cancilleria does not impose "the penalty".   The "penalty" is, first, that they don't explain the problem with your visa or the reason for the status, and then, you have to leave Colombia within 30 days, and then, you cannot apply for another visa until six months have passed, and then, if you ever decide to apply for another visa of any type, you have to be outside of Colombia when you make the application.  By the way, "the penalty" is language used by the Colombian government itself on its related websites.

The point being the importance of understanding what will happen by simply not finishing the application, just letting it expire by not resonding within the deadline date the Cancilleria set for you.

For my case in 2022, I let one expire, because by letting it expire instead of risking a "denial" and "the penalty" that comes with the denial, I could at least stay in Colombia on my tourist permission.

Again you are working with an agent/attorney who may have already explained all of this to you and if not, it might be worth your inquiry into the things I've written here.

There has been some talk in this thread about translation services.

I would like to share my experience with this.

Best to find a certified translator in your city in Colombia...where you live!  I will explain why later in this post.

There are two kinds of certified, "official" translators in Colombia:  Old school, certified by a judge and then the newer kind, by the newer law (newer "resolucion/decreto"), authorized by an accepted Colombian university.     The newer kind, authorized by the newer law and certified by a university, did not / do not eliminate the older kind, who have an authorization from a judge.  Either kind, if they do your translation, will have to provide you with a copy of their credentials to be included with your documents that you submit to the government.  For the older kind, they will have a document signed by a judge.   For the newer kind, they will have a "Certificado de Ideoneodad" from a university.   And sorry if my Spanish spelling is wrong.

You do not need an agent or attorney or anybody else to arrange your translation work.  Just search for certified translators in your city.   A good resource is :   https://anatioficiales.com/

The best prices and confidence you will find is when you deal directly with your translator.

They will take your digital scans of your documents and translate from the digital scans.  Some will do the work but will not release the work to you until they compare your scans with your originals.  That's OK, because you need to have your originals close by in case the Cancilleria asks to see them.  The Cancilleria reserves the right, during the visa application process, to demand your originals at any time.

That's why it's best to find an official translator in your own city.  If they need to meet with you to get your originals, you can just meet by cab or bus or however you like.  If they are in another city, you will have to use a domestic shipping service (such as 'Servientrega') not only to ship the originals to your traslator, but then for your translator to ship them back to you.   And for the return service you will have to pay your translator in advance, usually by a consignation payment at your translator's branch office in your own city.  Think also of the time delay required for the round trip of the originals, and think also of the possibility with a delay or error or loss by your document shipping company.  And your documents are time-sensitive.  If they are too old by the time you submit them, the Cancilleria will not accept them, putting your applicaction into either the "Requirido" status or the dreaded "Rechazada" status.

After you receive all of your translation and the originals from your translator, then you can send the digital translations and the translator's certificate to your agent/attorney, if you have one.  But consider whether or not you want to keep the originals very close to you.   If the Cancilleria demands your originals, you may want to send them yourself.  If you have already sent your originals to your agent/attorney, then you of course have no option to manage it yourself, and you have placed your trust into the hands of your agent/attorney to handle your originals in a very tight time schedule to get them to the government.

If you want a greater list of certified translators than I have provided in the link I wrote above, search the web in Spanish for your city and "certified official translators" .  For example "Bogota certified official translators Cancilleria"  , something like that, but in Spanish.

In those search results, 90 percent of the listings will be from companies who will charge you as much or more than your agent would have charged you.   You have to click on enough links and continue your research until you get closer and closer to being able to communicate with the individual certified translators.  You will be able to tell by the websites, which are bigger companies and which are websites of individual translators.  It takes at least a couple of hours of clicking on links to finda handful of websites for individual translators who can work with you.  That is where and how you will get a trusted professional to help you at a very good price.

My opinions expressed here are based on my own personal experiences, don't take them as authoratative.  I hope they are helpful to someone here on the forum, good luck!

Further notes on using your own translator.

1. Many of the companies will tempt you with a very low advertised price on their websites, say for a birth certificate translation, but after you submit your scan by email or by direct upload to the company via their web interface, you will receive a quote much higher than advertised. If you press for an explanation for the discrepancy, you will receive a "BS" answer about how your particular birth certificate is more complex than average, etc.   Buyer beware!
2. If you are privacy conscious, edit your scans to remove any personally identifiable information without editing so much that the company cannot formulate a quote.  For instance, photocopy your birth certificate, then black out with a marker your name and birthday, your parents names and birthdays if you  like, etc.  When you are comfortable that you are not revealing too much personal information in the photocopy, scan it and use that scan to submit to translators for a quote.
3. If you are not in Colombia, you must know whether your country is a member of the "Hague Convention" all of which countries accept apostilles, or whether instead you much submit legalizations of your documents.  It's either apostilles or legalizations, depending on your country.   Either way, if your document comes from a country other than Colombia, your document will have to be apostilled or legalized, and your apostille or legalization will have to be translated into Spanish by an official translator, as well as your underlying document.

I hope my two posts on this topic might help anyone considering whether they should deal directly with a certified translator or instead turn the entire process over to an agent or attorney.  Good luck!