The decision opens a second process between the Cartagena refinery and the tax entity, which could lead to coercive charges.
The National Tax and Customs Directorate (Dian) denied two applications submitted by Ecopetroll and its subsidiary Reficar to reconsider the collection of VAT applied to the import of fuels produced at the Cartagena refinery and ordered the immediate payment of $17,406 million.
With this decision, the Dian opens a second process that could move towards coercive collection and possible embargoes, while it is still ongoing the first case for $1.3 billion started last week. Due to this previous process, Dian has already gone to court, and the Second Family Court of Cartagena admitted the protection presented by the companies to stop the collection.
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The resolution was notified through the electronic channels established in the standard and also sent to thes legal and collection areas of the entity in Bogotá and Cartagena, as well as the DHL Global Forwarding Colombia Customs Agency, linked to the process.
The conflict between Dian and Reficar originated at the end of 2024, when the entity concluded that Ecopetrol had to pay the 19% VAT on the import of gasoline from the refinery. Reficar maintains that fuels should not be treated as imports, since they are produced in the country with a mixture of national and international inputs.
The company is preparing a protection action to avoid possible embargoes and a claim for nullity and restoration of the right, with which it will seek to dispute the technical and legal foundations of the Dian. According to Reficar, a embargo could affect the operation of the refinery and the jobs associated with its operation.
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Recently, the National Tax and Customs Directorate clarified that it has not decreed preventive precautionary measures or enforcement processes. coercive collection against fuel importing companies, after the controversy that arose on November 5.
The entity explained that imports of gasoline and ACPM are taxed with a rate of 19 percent VAT, in accordance with the concepts issued in 2024 and 2025, available for consultation in your normogram.
Within the framework of its control and inspection powers, the DIAN carries out investigations on the import declarations of all fuel importers, in order to verify the correct settlement and payment of customs taxes.
The tax authority recalled that fuels are subject to VAT since Law 1819 of 2016, and that importers must declare and pay taxes when nationalizing these goods. He also noted that retailers pay the VAT since 2017 and that importers can deduct it in accordance with the Tax Statute.
Source: Integrated Information System
