Dokument #1127522
IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (Autor)
Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa
The Colombian Constitution of 1991 states the following:
[translation]
Article 96
[Amended by Legislative Act No. 1 of 2002]
Colombian nationals are:
....
(Colombia 1991)
In correspondence with the Research Directorate, an official at the Colombian embassy in Ottawa provided the following information:
A foreign national with a Colombian parent can become a Colombian citizen if the person obtains a Colombian birth certificate (Registro Civil de Nacimiento) at either a notary in Colombia or a Colombian consulate abroad. It is not necessary that the parents of the foreign national be registered at the consulate. The requirements to obtain the Colombian birth certificate are:
In further correspondence, the official at the Colombian embassy also said that, if the applicant provides all the required documentation, the Colombian birth certificate is issued that same day (ibid. 27 June 2014a). Once the person has the Colombian birth certificate in his or her possession, he or she may apply for a citizenship card, which takes about six months for applications made outside Colombia (ibid.). The website of the National Civil Registry (Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil), the government agency responsible for issuing the citizenship card in Colombia and abroad (ibid. 3 July 2014a), indicates that applications made within Colombia for a citizenship card take three months to process (ibid. 3 July 2014b). The website also states that applications of persons older than 25 years of age take eight to nine months to process, since the application is subject to a [translation] "technical search ... to establish that the person does not have another identity" (ibid.). The official at the Colombian embassy added that, once the person has the citizenship card, he or she can apply for a Colombian passport, which takes about five days to process (ibid. 27 June 2014a).
The official at the Colombian embassy also explained that, once the person has the citizenship card, he or she can start the process to obtain Colombian birth certificates for his or her foreign-born children as enunciated above (ibid.). The Colombian birth certificate is required to issue Colombian passports to the applicant's children; otherwise, children need the applicable visa to travel to Colombia (ibid. 3 July 2014c).
Decree No. 834 of 2013, which regulates immigration procedures in Colombia, outlines three types of visas: NE (Business), TP (Temporary), and RE (Resident) (ibid. 2013, Art. 5). TP visas are issued to foreigners who do not seek to settle in Colombia (ibid., Art. 7), whereas RE visas are issued to those who do (ibid., Art. 8). The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores) indicates that Colombian visas are not renewable, and foreigners wishing to extend their stay in Colombia must apply for a new visa before the current one expires (ibid. 4 July 2014c).
The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicates that foreign-born spouses or partners of Colombian citizens may apply for a TP-10 visa, which has a validity of three years (ibid. 4 July 2014a). This visa authorizes its holder [translation] "to exercise any legal occupation in the country," including employment (ibid.). Additional information on the rights and benefits of temporary visa holders could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
The website of the Colombian embassy in Ottawa enumerates the following requirements to obtain a TP-10 visa:
The website also points out that all foreign documents submitted in support of an application for a Colombian visa must be legalized and officially translated into Spanish, and that an interview or additional documentation may be required by the authority processing the application (ibid.). According to the web portal of the Colombian government, TP-10 visas are processed within four business days (ibid. n.d.).
Decree No. 834 of 2013 states that persons who hold a TP-10 visa for a period of at least three continuous and uninterrupted years are eligible to apply for a RE visa, which will be valid for five years (ibid. 2013, Art. 8). The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia indicates the following requirements for TP-10 visa holders to obtain a resident visa:
The website further indicates that resident visa holders are authorized "to exercise any legal activity in the country," including employment (ibid.). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia indicated that holders of RE visas may apply for Colombian citizenship as follows:
Additional information on the rights and benefits of temporary visa holders could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
The website of the Colombian embassy in Ottawa indicates that holders of Colombian visas with a validity period longer than 3 months must register with Migración Colombia within 15 days of entering the country (ibid. 27 June 2014b). Migración Colombia is the government agency responsible for border migration control (ibid. 4 July 2014b). The website of Migración Colombia indicates that upon registration, foreigners may apply for a Foreigner's Identification Card (Cédula de Extranjería) (ibid. 4 July 2014d). Even though TP-10 visa holders are not included among those foreigners who are required to obtain a Foreigner's Identification Card, the website indicates that they can do so [translation] "voluntarily to facilitate the exercise of the rights that the document affords to its holder" (ibid.).
Information on the rights afforded to foreigners with a Foreigner's Identification Card could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response. However, the Constitution of Colombia states the following:
[translation]
Article 100
Aliens will enjoy in Colombia the same civil rights which are granted to Colombians. Nevertheless, for reasons of public order, the law may subordinate them to special conditions or deny the exercise of specific civil rights to aliens. Similarly, aliens will enjoy, in the territory of the Republic, the guarantees conceded to nationals, except for the limitations that the Constitution or the law establish.
Political rights are reserved to nationals, but the law may concede to aliens resident in Colombia the right to vote in elections and in popular consultations of municipal or district character. (ibid. 1991)
The following are the requirements to obtain a Foreigner's Identification Card for the first time:
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
Colombia. 11 July 2014. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Cancillería. Correspondence from an official to the Research Directorate.
_____. 7 July 2014. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Cancillería. "RE."
_____. 4 July 2014a. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Cancillería. "TP10."
_____. 4 July 2014b. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Migración Colombia. "Misión - Visión."
_____. 4 July 2014c. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Cancillería. "Preguntas frecuentes: Visas."
_____. 4 July 2014d. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Migración Colombia. "Cédula de Extranjería."
_____. 3 July 2014a. Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil. "Funciones de la Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil."
_____. 3 July 2014b. Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil. "¿Cuáles son las dificultades para la entrega de la Cédula de Ciudadanía?"
_____. 3 July 2014c. Embassy of Colombia in Ottawa . Correspondence from an official to the Research Directorate.
_____. 27 June 2014a. Embassy of Colombia in Ottawa. Correspondence from an official to the Research Directorate.
_____. 27 June 2014b. Embassy of Colombia in Ottawa. "Clases de visas."
_____. 25 June 2014. Embassy of Colombia in Ottawa. Correspondence from an official to the Research Directorate.
_____. 2013. Decreto Número 834 de 2013: Por el cual se establecen disposiciones en materia migratoria de la República de Colombia.
_____. 1991 (Amended 2013). Political Constitution of Colombia of 1991 (Constitución Política de la República de Colombia de 1991). Translated by Anna I. Vellvé Torras, Jefri J. Ruchti, and María del Carmen Gress. In World Constitutions Illustrated. Edited by Jefri Jay Ruchti. Buffalo, NY: William S. Hein & Co., Inc.
_____. N.d. Portal del Estado Colombiano. "Visa Temporal TP-10 (Cónyuge o compañero(a) permanente de nacional colombiano(a))."
Oral sources: Representatives of the following organization could not provide information for this Response: Migración Colombia.
Internet sites, including: Colombia – Caprecom, Embassy in Washington, DC, Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social, Ministerio de Trabajo, Presidencia de la República; Lexdir; Nueva EPS; United Nations – Integrated Regional Information Networks, Refworld, ReliefWeb.
Colombia: Requirements and procedures for a person born in another country to Colombian parents to acquire citizenship; requirements and procedures for the spouse and child of a citizen to obtain permanent residency; rights and social benefits available to permanent residents [COL104916.E] (Anfragebeantwortung, Französisch)