Colombian Embassies and Consulates Abroad: How to Use Cancillería's Official Directory

What the official directory of Colombia's missions abroad is

It is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' public tool for locating Colombia's diplomatic and consular representations outside the country. It is hosted on Cancillería's procedures system (tramites.cancilleria.gov.co), the same domain as the apostille and legalization services. That makes it more reliable than third-party lists, forums or map results, which often show old addresses or phone numbers that no longer work.

Finding the right mission matters because several steps of the visa procedure depend on it: the office or consulate you select in the SITAC form, where you pay if you are abroad and, in some cases, the interview or physical documents the authority may request (art. 24 of Resolution 5477 of 2022).

Mission types you will find

The directory lets you filter by mission type. The options are:

For any visa matter, always confirm with the mission, through its official channels, that it handles your procedure before going.

Map of Colombia's diplomatic and consular network

As a reference before you search the official directory, this is the overview of Colombia's network abroad according to the public compilation of diplomatic missions of Colombia. There are 144 missions: 72 embassies, 49 consulates-general, 17 consulates and 6 permanent missions to international organizations. It does not include honorary consulates or ProColombia offices. Before going or choosing an office in your application, always confirm the mission in Cancillería's official directory, which is the authoritative source.

Colombian embassies (72)

Colombian consulates-general (49)

Colombian consulates (17)

Permanent missions to international organizations (6)

• United Nations (New York)
• Organization of American States – OAS (Washington, D.C.)
• Permanent mission in Geneva (Switzerland)
• FAO (Rome)
• OECD (Paris)
• UNESCO (Paris)

What this map tells you for your visa procedure

• The United States has the largest consular network (11 consulates-general), and 10 of them, together with Calgary and Toronto in Canada, accept Money Order payment according to Cancillería. See the payment guide.
• Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama have consulates in border areas, reflecting regional mobility. The 2020 SITAC user guide warned that consulates in Venezuela could not be selected for payment; check the current situation with Cancillería.
• In Asia, Africa and Oceania the network is smaller: many countries are served by a concurrent embassy in another country. If there is no mission in your country of residence, look for the nearest one in the official directory.
• Spain has the largest network in Europe (four consulates-general and three consulates), due to its large Colombian community.

How to find a Colombian embassy or consulate step by step

1. Open the official directory. Cancillería recommends Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.
2. Under Tipo de misión (mission type), open the list ("SELECCIONE…") and choose embassy, consulate, delegation or honorary consulate. If you do not choose one, the system shows "Debe seleccionar una misión" (you must select a mission).
3. Under País (country), choose the country where you live. It is required; without it, "Debe seleccionar un país" appears.
4. Wait for the "Por favor espere…" (please wait) indicator to finish and review the results.
5. Write down the mission's contact details and confirm hours and services through its official channels.

When you need a consulate in your visa procedure

1. When choosing the office in the visa form

In the confirmation tab of the official form you select the consulate or office that will process the visa. In group applications, the office chosen when registering the last member applies to the whole group. We explain it in the guide to apply for the visa online step by step.

2. When paying from abroad

If you are outside Colombia, you can pay the review fee at the nearest consulate: the system generates the number to present. Remember that the issuance fee of the approved visa must be paid by the same method as the review fee. Details in our guide on visa fees and payment.

3. If the authority requests an interview or physical documents

Resolution 5477 allows the authority to request physical documents and summon the applicant to an interview (art. 24). The summons arrives at the registered email.

4. After a denial

If your visa was denied while you were in Colombia, you must leave within 30 days, and the new application is filed from your country of nationality or permanent legal residence after six months (art. 99).

Common problems and how to solve them

• The page does not load results: try Chrome or Firefox and check that you chose a mission type and country.
• Contact details that do not respond: use the official directory as the main source and discard third-party lists.
• Choosing a consulate that does not handle your procedure: confirm before selecting it in the visa form.
• Confusing directories: this directory shows missions of Colombia abroad. If you are looking for your country's embassy in Colombia, use the directory of the diplomatic corps accredited in Colombia.

Official sources: Cancillería – Colombia's missions abroad · Cancillería – Fees and payment methods abroad · Supplementary reference: compilation of diplomatic missions of Colombia · User guide "Solicitar Visa en línea" (08/29/2024) · Resolution 5477 of 2022. Informational content.