1    Dates in which it applies

This year, there will be three days without VAT: (i) March 11th, 2022, (ii) June 17th, 2022, and (iii) December 2nd, 2022 (the “Days Without VAT”).

2    Consumer protection

External Circular No. 002 of March 7th, 2022, issued by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (“SIC” pursuant to its Spanish acronym) establishes the main aspects to take into account for the Days Without VAT.

In the following sections the main aspects that companies must take into account for the Days Without VAT are summarized as it follows. 

3    Goods covered by the sales tax exemption - VAT

In accordance with Law 2155 of 2021, the goods covered by the day without IVA are:

3.1 Clothing with a sales price per unit equal to or less than COP$760,000 (US$192 approx.). Not including VAT.

3.2 Clothing accessories with a sales price per unit equal to or less than COP$760,000 (US$192 approx.). Not including VAT.

3.3 Household appliances, computers, and communications equipment with a sales price per unit equal to or less than COP$3,040,000 (US$770 approx.). Not including VAT.

3.4 Sports items with a sales price per unit equal to or less than COP$3,040,000 (US$770 approx.). Not including VAT.

3.5 Toys and games with a sales price per unit equal to or less than COP$380,000 (US$96 approx.). Not including VAT.

3.6 School supplies with a sales price per unit equal to or less than COP$190,000 (US$48 approx.). Not including VAT.

3.7 Goods and supplies for the agricultural sector with a sales price per unit is equal to or less than COP$3,040,000 (US$770 approx.).  Not including VAT.

4    Requirements

According to the law 2155 of 2021 and the decree 1314 of 2021, the following requirements must be observed to obtain the tax benefit of the Days Without VAT mentioned in the articles 37 to 39 of the previous law:

4.1 The natural or legal person responsible for the VAT may only sale the covered goods located in Colombia, at retail, and directly to the final consumer of the goods.

4.2 An electronic invoice must be issued with prior validation where the final purchaser of the goods is identified. The invoice must be issued the same day of the purchase in the case of in-store sales and in the case of electronic sales, the invoice must be issued before midnight of the day following the day without IVA.

4.3 The goods covered by the Days Without VAT must be delivered or collected by the consumer within 2 weeks from the date of issue of the invoice.

4.4 The forms of payment that may be used on the day will be cash or through debit or credit cards, or other electronic payment mechanisms.

4.5 The date of the proof of payment or voucher must correspond to the day without VAT in which the sale was conducted.

4.6 The final consumer may acquire up to three units of the same good covered by the VAT exemption and sale by the same individual in charge.

4.7 The suppliers of the goods must reduce of the sales price to the public, the VAT at the rate that is applicable to them and without exceeding the amount in UVT (tax value units) to be beneficiaries of the tax exemption.

When returns, exchanges or guarantees are requested for the goods covered by the exemption, the one responsible for the tax must make the return, exchange or guarantee for another good of the same reference, brand, value and to the same purchaser of the good that is being returned. In the event of a return or reimbursement of the money, if the consumer wants to make a new purchase, it will not be VAT exempted unless it is made on another day that has this benefit.

5    Minimum information

To ensure compliance with the information duty, the following instructions must be complied with, before and during the Days Without VAT:

5.1 INCLUDE the necessary conditions to access the benefits of the Days Without VAT at the entrance and inside the commercial establishments, on the web pages,social networks, and in the media aimed at consumers.

5.2 INDICATE in the published information, the special conditions established by the marketer for access to purchases during the Days Without VAT, in case of having special strategies.

5.3 INFORM in a clear and precise manner, before concluding the purchase transaction done in person, the date of delivery of the products that are not available to the consumer at that time. This time must be less than 2 weeks later after issuing the invoice.

5.4 INFORM before concluding the product purchase transaction through distance sales modalities, the date on which the product will be delivered, which must be less than 2 weeks after issuing the invoice.

5.5 DESIGN AND IMPLEMENT INFORMATION PROTOCOLS that communicate aspects related to the operational capacity of the platforms, the technological requirements, the waiting time in line, and the scheduled service time according to the assigned shift. When there are variations in the initial conditions, the consumer must be informed immediately, indicating the reasons for the variation

5.6 ADOPT ideal mechanisms that provide clear and truthful information about the additional costs to the product and that are not included in the benefit of the Days Without VAT. In addition, during these days, the fundamental right to due processing of personal data of consumers must be safeguarded. Those who collect, use or circulate personal data must comply with the regulation of the matter.

6    Price information

Suppliers that market goods within the Days Without VAT will have the duty to inform consumers the public information of the price and the following must be taken into account:

6.1 INFORM if the price includes or not the VAT, situation that must be reflected in the invoice, and the price must be informed in Colombian pesos pursuant to Circular No. 002.

6.2 To ensure compliance with the duty of public information on prices, the ensuing instructions are issued so that the following is carried out:

6.1.1 INFORM according to the public pricing system used, and the method of sale, if the price announced to the public on Days Without VAT includes or not the reduction of the VAT.

6.1.2 ADOPT suitable mechanisms to provide information on products that are usually exempt from VAT by different regulations issued before Law 2155 of September 14th, 2021.

7    Promotions, offers and incentives

Suppliers who market goods within the framework of the days without IVA will observe the following aspects regarding the promotions that are in force at the time of the days without IVA:

7.1 The promotions and offers that are in force at the time of the day without IVA, will be fully valid and, consequently, both discounts must be applied.

7.2  It must be reported that the current promotions are different from the benefit for the day without IVA.

7.3 The final price of the product will correspond to the final value of the article being sold before applying the VAT and the offer must be applied to it.

7.4 To ensure compliance with the duty of information regarding promotions, offers or incentives the following must be done on the day without IVA:

7.4.1 APPLY the discounts corresponding to the exemption and the promotion to the promotions and offers that are in force on days without VAT.

7.4.2 INFORM in the case of current promotions and offers the days of tax exemption if the price announced to the public includes the discount of the offer and VAT

7.4.3 INFORM in advertising issued the terms and conditions, restrictions on promotions, offers or incentives, as well as the requirements to access them.

7.4.4 DISCRIMINATE in electronic purchases the value of the VAT exemption and the discount value of the promotions and offers that are in force, in the order summary so that consumers know the value that has been discounted from the final price of the product.

8    Advertising

Suppliers who market their goods on the Days Without VAT must take into account the following when advertising:

8.1 The advertising pieces issued by the suppliers of goods with respect to the products that will be part of the day without IVA must indicate that it is not a promotion when it is not.

8.2 The advertising pieces issued by the suppliers of goods with respect to the VAT exempted products may not include phrases that mislead, deceive or confuse consumers about the tax benefit.

8.3 To ensure compliance with the foregoing, the following instructions are issued to suppliers of goods 

8.3.1 INFORM in the advertising in which it is informed the day without VAT, that the tax exemption corresponds to an incentive granted by the National Government, including the following legend: "The deduction that applies to this sale corresponds to the exemption established in law 2155 of September 14th, 2021, it is NOT a promotion”.

8.3.2 REFRAIN from using statements, proclamations, images or text that convey the message that the tax incentive is granted by the producer or supplier or that the costs of the sale are assumed by him instead of the consumer. For this purpose, the pieces of communication used to announce the day without VAT may not include phrases such as: "VAT is yours", "we give you the VAT" "we pay you the VAT" or other similar or equivalent phrases.

8.3.3    REFRAIN from offering products that are not covered by the tax exemption as if said benefit were applied to them and consequently, ABSTAIN from including in all communication pieces images, proclamations, texts, that may generate confusion to the consumer of the tax exemption application.

9    Biosecurity Measures

Those who market goods physically on the Days Without VAT, must adopt the biosafety measures established by the National Government and by the Territorial Authorities of the country which should be taken into account in the physical establishments

10    Sanctions

In accordance with the law 1480 of 2011, the SIC may impose, previous administrative investigation, among others, the following sanctions for failure to comply with the law:

10.1 Fines of up to COP$2,000,000,000 (US$500,000).

10.2 Temporary closure of the commercial establishment for up to 180 days.

10.3 In case of repetition and taking into account the seriousness of the offenses, definitive closure of the commercial establishment or the order of definitive withdrawal of the portal web page on the Internet or the means of electronic commerce used.

10.4 Temporary or definitive prohibition of producing, distributing, or offering certain products to the public. 

11    Personal data

Suppliers must comply with requirements established under Law 1581 of 2012 (general data privacy law) in the collection and processing of information about the final purchaser of the goods, necessary electronic invoicing purposes. Accordingly, suppliers must:

11.1 Obtain prior, express and informed consent from consumers. In particular, inform consumers about the purposes for collecting their data and the place where they can find the applicable privacy policy, among other. 

11.2 1Limit the collection of data to that which is relevant for the purposes that are sought (e.g., electronic invoicing).

11.3  Adopt adequate measures for ensuring the confidentiality, security and integrity of the personal data.

11.4 Refrain from engaging in practices that entail a risk or harm to the rights of consumers as data subjects.