Legislation

Colombia: Court overturns decree imposing VAT on online betting and orders tax refunds

Thursday 16 de April 2026 / 12:00

⏱ 1 min read

(Bogotá).- The court declared Decree 1474 of 2025 unconstitutional, eliminating the 19% VAT on online betting and liquor, and ordered the DIAN to return the amounts collected during its validity.

Colombia: Court overturns decree imposing VAT on online betting and orders tax refunds

The Constitutional Court of Colombia declared unenforceable Decree 1474 of 2025, which had been issued in the context of the failed economic emergency and established a 19% VAT on liquor and online betting, in addition to reducing the wealth tax threshold to 2,000 million pesos.

The decision was adopted unanimously by the eight authorized magistrates, as a direct consequence of the fall of the "mother" decree 1390 of 2025. The high court determined that the state of emergency did not comply with constitutional requirements, as it was not based on supervening or unforeseeable events that would justify granting extraordinary powers to the Executive.

With a presentation by Judge Juan Carlos Cortés, the Plenary Chamber also ordered the return of the resources collected during the validity of the law, which aimed to reach 11 billion pesos. According to estimates by some unions, the amount already received would exceed one billion pesos.

In this sense, the Court ruled that the indirect taxes paid under the decree must be refunded to taxpayers who prove that they have made such payments. To do this, the DIAN must apply existing legal mechanisms or implement a specific one within 30 days of notification of the ruling.

Likewise, the court clarified that the legal situations consolidated during the validity of the decree must be respected, so taxpayers who have complied with the requirements and accessed tax benefits in that period will not be affected.

Categoría:Legislation

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País: Colombia

Región: South America