The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism of the Republic of Colombia issued Decree No. 0170 of 2026, by means of which reciprocal tariffs equivalent to 30% ad valorem are adopted on products imported from the Republic of Ecuador, as well as measures restricting the entry of goods coming from and originating in Ecuador for reasons of national security.
Article 1 of the Decree imposes the tariff on 23 tariff headings, broken down into 73 specific subheadings expressly detailed in the text of the Decree. These subheadings cover agricultural and agro-industrial products, goods from the food sector, certain manufactured products, and other strategic goods identified by the Colombian Government.
Article 3 of the Decree establishes an independent and stricter measure, prohibiting the entry, under any customs regime and by land route (Sectional Directorates of Taxes and Customs of Ipiales and Puerto Asís), of goods classifiable under 3 tariff headings used in the production of fentanyl.
The Decree establishes that the 30% tariff will be applied to the customs value of goods imported from Ecuador.
Likewise, through an official statement, the Government of Ecuador announced that, as of March 1, the security surcharge applicable to imports originating from Colombia will be increased from 30% to 50%. It was specified that this decision is based on national security considerations, aimed at strengthening shared responsibility in a task that must be undertaken jointly: addressing the presence of drug trafficking at the border. At this time, the measure has been publicly announced; however, once it is formalized through the corresponding regulatory instrument, we will inform you immediately.
From the perspective of Andean Community law, Colombia and Ecuador are Member States of the Andean Community, therefore these measures could be reviewed under the Liberalization Program, which prohibits duties and restrictions on intra-community trade, except for justified exceptions.
The Government of the Republic of Colombia has already submitted a formal request to the General Secretariat of the Andean Community (CAN) for the 30% rate imposed by Ecuador to be reviewed and declared a levy incompatible with the Andean intra-Community Liberalization Program, and accordingly requesting that it be eliminated.
Our team remains attentive to any pronouncements within the framework of the Andean Community, as well as to possible diplomatic developments or regulatory adjustments arising from this measure, including the assessment of associated regulatory risks.
Andrea Moya, Socia en CorralRosales
amoya@corralrosales.com
+593 2 2544144
