Colombian police certificate from the US: free consular or apostilled

To show from the United States that you have no criminal record in Colombia, there are two different documents, and it helps to know which one you are being asked for before you start. The constancia de antecedentes judiciales is issued by a Colombian consulate, is free and is requested entirely online, but the Cancillería (Colombia’s Foreign Ministry) warns it only works if the requesting authority accepts it without an apostille. The apostilled National Police certificate is requested on the Cancillería apostille portal and carries the apostille fee (USD $11.0 paid from abroad, per the Cancillería cost page checked October 3, 2026). Neither requires visiting an office.

Versión en español

Quoted passages from Colombian official sources appear either in the original Spanish or, where shown in English, in our translation.

The two documents side by side

Consular certificate (constancia)Apostilled National Police certificate
Who issues itThe consul, based on National Police informationNational Police, apostilled by the Cancillería
Where to request itSITAC online formOnline apostille and legalization portal
CostFree (‘sin costo alguno’, Cancillería)Apostille fee: USD $11.0 from abroad
ApostilleNoYes
LimitOnly works if the foreign authority accepts it without apostille or legalizationAutomatic procedure for Colombian citizens only
Who can request itAdult Colombians with a machine-readable or electronic passport or a prior SITAC procedureColombian citizens, with cédula number and email
How it arrivesBy email, with the National Police certification attachedBy email or via the portal lookup; the certificate is attached inside the apostille PDF

Document A: the consular certificate (free)

The Cancillería describes it as ‘a written statement by the Consul regarding the criminal-record information of the requesting national, based on the information that can be consulted in the National Police database’. It is requested ‘at no cost’ and issued by ’the Colombian Consulate you choose’. It is a ‘completely online procedure, so you do not have to go to any office’.

The key warning: ’this certificate is only useful to the extent that the foreign authorities requiring it accept the document without an apostille or legalization’. Before requesting it, confirm with whoever is asking whether they accept it without an apostille.

Requirements

Per the Cancillería: ‘have your cédula de ciudadanía and valid passport at hand, and an enabled email account’.

Step by step (SITAC guide, updated July 10, 2024)

  1. Open the form at tramitesmre.cancilleria.gov.co. Depending on the consular office you choose, a language option for the certificate may appear.
  2. Fill in the details and pass the ‘I’m not a robot’ check.
  3. Identity verification. If you have a machine-readable or electronic Colombian passport, the system asks for the details of the last passport issued. If not, but you have done a procedure in SITAC, it asks for the details of the last recorded procedure.
  4. Save the request. You receive a confirmation email.
  5. When the consulate authorizes the request, you receive the certificate by email together with the certification issued by the National Police. If it cannot be issued, the system notifies you by email.

Why it can fail

The Cancillería guide lists these cases:

  • No machine-readable passport and no SITAC procedures: ‘you will not be able to request your criminal-record certificate’.
  • A request already in process: if a request is still awaiting consulate authorization, the system will not let you create another.
  • Data that does not match the records: the system will not save the request.
  • Service unavailable: when the connection to National Police services is down.

Document B: the apostilled National Police certificate

The Cancillería says that ’the criminal-record certificate issued by the National Police, duly apostilled, may also be requested online’ on the apostille and legalization portal. The apostille requirements page describes the route:

  1. Go to tramites.cancilleria.gov.co/apostillalegalizacion.
  2. Choose ‘Documentos electrónicos con firma digital - Certificado De Antecedentes Judiciales - Policía Nacional’.
  3. Enter your cédula number and an email you can access.
  4. Say whether you need the certificate for immigration purposes or not.
  5. Choose the destination country, check the data and pay.

The Cancillería describes it as an ‘automatic procedure that applies only to Colombian citizens’. Its FAQ clarifies that if you only receive the apostille, the criminal-record certificate is attached inside the apostille PDF.

Cost: the page for this procedure does not publish a separate fee. The portal’s cost page lists USD $11.0 per apostille paid from abroad (37,800 pesos in Colombia); card payments carry a bank commission of 3,253 pesos. See apostille Colombian documents from the US.

What the National Police says

  • The paper certificate no longer exists. ‘The Certificado Judicial was abolished by Article 93 of Decree 19 of January 10, 2012’; the Police set up an online lookup instead. For procedures outside Colombia, it points to ’the apostilled criminal-record certificate through the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’.
  • The online lookup has no validity period, ‘because the information is updated daily’.
  • The two possible results. ‘NO TIENE ASUNTOS PENDIENTES CON LAS AUTORIDADES JUDICIALES’ (no pending matters with judicial authorities) applies to people with no record or whose sentence was extinguished or time-barred by a judicial authority. ‘ACTUALMENTE NO ES REQUERIDO POR AUTORIDAD JUDICIAL’ (not currently wanted by a judicial authority) applies to people serving a sentence or who have not updated their judicial information.
  • Minors: the Police does not certify criminal records or issue certificates for minors.
  • If your name does not appear or you changed your name: the Police says to send a request by email with a copy of your cédula (and the public deed if you changed your name), or go to the DIJIN in Bogota or a SIJIN office.

What you cannot do from the US

  • If the request returns a notice that it ‘could not be processed’ and that you should go to the DIJIN, the Cancillería FAQ says to go to the DIJIN or a Police SIJIN office with your Colombian cédula, register, and repeat the request; those offices are in Colombia.
  • Request the consular certificate without a machine-readable or electronic Colombian passport or a prior SITAC procedure.
  • Use the consular certificate where an apostille is required.

Foreign nationals

The apostille requirements page says foreigners request their criminal-record certificate from the National Police by email, attaching a copy of their ID and of the passport pages showing entries into Colombia.

Not the same as an FBI check

These documents cover records in Colombia. A US background check is a separate process: see FBI background check.

Official sources

Last verified: 2026-10-03. General procedural information for educational purposes. Procedures set by Colombia’s Cancillería and National Police change. Verify directly with the Cancillería, and with the authority requesting the document, which version it accepts. Not legal advice.