Colombia gambling tax hike halted by Constitutional Court

Summary

Colombia’s Constitutional Court has provisionally suspended Legislative Decree 1390 (22 December 2025), which would have imposed a 19% VAT (IVA) on online gambling and betting services. The suspension — adopted by a 6-2 majority after an 8-magistrate session — follows an 86-page report by magistrate Carlos Camargo that identified formal and substantive defects in the government’s emergency decree and questioned the justification for invoking emergency powers to introduce fiscal measures.

The court’s order blocks the measure while constitutional review continues; no final timetable has been set. President Gustavo Petro publicly criticised the suspension, arguing it protects tax advantages for the wealthy and warning of broader economic consequences if the decree is struck down.

Key Points

The Constitutional Court provisionally suspended the emergency decree that would have applied a 19% VAT to online gambling and betting services.
Magistrate Carlos Camargo’s report cited procedural irregularities and insufficient justification for the state of emergency that authorised the decree.
The court’s suspension prevents potentially irreversible legal and fiscal effects while it assesses constitutionality.
Petro responded publicly, arguing the suspension shields wealthy groups and could shift economic burden onto society in future policy debates.
No timeline has been announced for the court’s final ruling; the suspension remains in force during continued constitutional scrutiny.

Context and relevance

This ruling is especially relevant to operators, investors and advisers in the iGaming sector active in Colombia and Latin America. Using emergency decrees to enact tax changes raises constitutional and procedural questions — if the practice is curtailed, future fiscal policy may need to go through the normal legislative process, affecting revenue forecasts and commercial strategies. The decision also signals the court’s willingness to scrutinise executive fiscal measures, which matters for any sector facing emergency-rule tax changes.

Author style

Punchy: this is a clear win for legal oversight over emergency fiscal moves. If you track regulatory risk or commercial exposure in LatAm iGaming, read the detail — it changes the near-term operating and tax landscape.

Why should I read this

Don’t skip it — if you have any stake in online gambling in Colombia (or policy watching in LatAm), this affects pricing, tax planning and regulatory risk. We’ve done the reading: the court has paused a big tax change and flagged potential overreach by the executive. That pause could mean delays to higher tax bills, reshaped negotiations with Congress and knock-on effects for revenue and compliance efforts.