By The Rio Times | Created at 2026-08-31 08:59:49 | Updated at 2026-08-31 10:10:04
1 hour ago
Practical: Colombia
Key Facts
- —President Abelardo de la Espriella ordered a new national traffic code at Saturday’s Council of Ministers in Barranquilla; Transport Minister Elsa Noguera will draft the bill.
- —Some fines would fall by up to 50 percent, driving licences would get cheaper and last longer, offender-discount courses would cost 25 percent less, and tow and impound fees would drop.
- —A watchdog is investigating more than 7.5 million camera-issued fines; about 5.8 million unpaid ones could be cancelled depending on the outcome.
- —City halls collected about COP 11.9 trillion (roughly US$3.7 billion) in fines over two decades — the fiscal wall the reform must climb.
- —Nothing is law yet. The bill must pass Congress, and existing fines remain valid until anything is signed. Check your status on SIMIT; do not assume a cancellation.
Cheaper licences, fines cut by up to half, and 5.8 million camera tickets that may never need paying: Colombia’s promised traffic-code overhaul is the biggest motoring news in years. But it is a draft order, not a law — here is what changes, what does not, and what to do with a fine on your record today.
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What the president ordered
At Saturday’s Council of Ministers in Barranquilla, President Abelardo de la Espriella instructed his government to draft a new national traffic code. Transport Minister Elsa Noguera will write the bill. The outline, as presented over the weekend: some fines cut by up to 50 percent; driving licences that are cheaper to obtain and valid for longer; the discount courses for offenders priced 25 percent lower; and reduced tow-truck and impound-lot fees — the charges that turn a minor infraction into an expensive weekend.
The political target is the camera business. Automated enforcement — fotomultas — has become one of the most resented interfaces between Colombians and their city halls, and the draft aims to bring it under tight control. Senator Gustavo Moreno, a critic of the system, claims about 751 cameras issued roughly 1.4 million fotomultas in three years; those are his figures, not yet audited, but they frame the scale of the fight.
The 5.8 million fines that could vanish
Separate from the draft code, a watchdog investigation is examining more than 7.5 million camera-issued fines. Of those, about 5.8 million remain unpaid — and could be cancelled depending on the investigation’s findings. That is a contingency, not a policy: no cancellation mechanism exists yet, and until one does, every outstanding fine remains valid and enforceable.
The numbers behind the resistance are municipal. City halls collected about COP 11.9 trillion in traffic fines over two decades through December 2024, according to the Federación Colombiana de Municipios — roughly US$3.7 billion at today’s TRM of 3,202.79. Of that, COP 3.96 trillion (about US$1.24 billion) flowed through the SIMIT system and COP 7.94 trillion (about US$2.48 billion) was collected directly. Companies face their own exposure, with potential sanctions above COP 2.1 trillion, about US$656 million.
Do the cameras actually work?
Bogotá’s numbers say yes, at least in the capital. Speed-camera fines there fell from 676,803 in 2023 to 302,035 in 2025 — and accidents in camera zones dropped 15 percent over the same period. That is the city halls’ best argument: the cameras change behaviour, then the revenue declines as compliance rises. The counterargument is that in much of the country the cameras are pure revenue machinery, badly sited and opaquely contracted.
Expect both claims in the congressional debate. The reform was aired at Asobancaria’s 60th convention in Cartagena, where the government also floated a plan to pull five million adults away from illegal gota-a-gota lenders — part of the same cost-of-living offensive.
What expats and foreign drivers should do now
Three rules while nothing is law. First, check your status on SIMIT: fines attach to the vehicle’s plate and to the driver’s licence record, and unpaid ones can surface at the worst moments — a licence renewal, a vehicle sale, a traffic stop. Second, do not assume cancellation: the 5.8 million figure is what a watchdog is reviewing, not what a court has voided. Third, if you drive a foreign-plated car or rent regularly, remember that rental agencies pass fines through with administrative fees, so a “cheap” fotomulta can cost double by the time it reaches your card.
If you are in the process of getting a Colombian licence, the promised changes — cheaper, longer validity — argue for patience but not delay: any reform is a congressional session away at best, and current rules remain the ones that count at the licensing office.
What happens next
Minister Noguera’s draft goes to Congress, where city halls will lobby hard: COP 11.9 trillion over two decades is not revenue mayors surrender quietly. The watchdog’s camera-fine investigation runs on its own clock. For drivers, the practical calendar is simple — nothing changes until a law is signed, and The Rio Times will track the bill’s progress.
Are Colombian traffic fines really being cut by 50 percent?
Not yet. President de la Espriella ordered a draft traffic code on Saturday that would cut some fines by up to 50 percent, make licences cheaper and longer-lasting, and reduce tow and impound fees — but the bill must still be written by the transport ministry and passed by Congress. Until a law is signed, current fines and fees remain in force.
Will my unpaid camera fine be cancelled?
Possibly, but do not count on it. A watchdog is investigating more than 7.5 million camera-issued fines, and about 5.8 million unpaid ones could be cancelled depending on the outcome. No cancellation mechanism exists yet. Check your record on SIMIT, and treat every outstanding fine as valid until an official decision says otherwise.
How much do Colombian cities make from traffic fines?
About COP 11.9 trillion over two decades through December 2024, according to the Federación Colombiana de Municipios — roughly US$3.7 billion at today’s TRM of 3,202.79. Of that, COP 3.96 trillion (about US$1.24 billion) came through the SIMIT system and COP 7.94 trillion (about US$2.48 billion) was collected directly. That revenue is why city halls are expected to fight the reform in Congress.
Sources
- Rio Grande — traffic-code order at the Barranquilla Council of Ministers, 30 August 2026
- Caracol Radio — traffic-code draft details and camera-fine investigation, 28 August 2026
- Federación Colombiana de Municipios — municipal fine revenue through December 2024
- Asobancaria 60th convention, Cartagena — government financial-inclusion announcements
- Superfinanciera de Colombia — TRM reference rate, valid through 31 August 2026
More: Colombia news in English, every day from The Rio Times. See also: today’s LatAm Expat & Nomad Daily Guide and what Peru’s emergency mode means for travelers and expats.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error
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