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Should I really pay a "Columbia Resident Exit Tax"?

Should I really pay a "Columbia Resident Exit Tax"?

Old Jan 21, 2014, 4:45 pm
  #16  
 
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To be honest I'm not sure what the deal with this tax is. I paid it out of pocket once in 8 trips. I get the feeling it's usually built into my airfare. That being said, everytime I'm about to leave the country I get to the front of the check-in line the guy gets half way through the process and says "ok now go over to that desk and get the stamp" and then they don't charge me anything.
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Old Oct 21, 2014, 1:41 am
  #17  
 
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Probably a good idea to ask here with people more frequent with the BOG airport...I have a ticket that has me connecting internationally at BOG, in fact between two UA flights from and to the US. My current idea is to just stay in transit and not enter Colombia at all...will this mean I will run into any trouble because of the Exit fee since I have had no opportunity to get my passport stamped? Also my ticket features no Airport Embarcation tax - I understand that when staying in transit that tax is no applicable, but if I need to get landside to get my stamp, will I the incur this tax (to be paid locally)? Or am I just too worried about this and BOG allows for really seamless connections when in transit?

On a related issue, will I even be able to stay in transit at BOG at all arriving from EWR and departing to IAH within three hours, or will I need to go through immigration and check-in/security on my connection? Let's assume I have been able to get my boarding pass for the BOG-IAH flight already in advance either through online check-in or at the EWR airport...

Finally, can anyone enlighten me if there will be a lounge available to use during my layover? I will arrive at 10:30p and depart at 1:15a...the *A website says that AV's lounges close at 11pm - is this in fact correct?

Thanks for any insight you can share!

Greetings - Dirk
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Old Oct 21, 2014, 4:01 am
  #18  
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If you stay airside then you will not encounter any checks of your tax status

If you go landside then you are still exempt from taxes as you can get a stamp. Even Colombian residents don't pay Colombian resident exit tax if they are in transit.

If the *A website says that the AV lounge closes at 11pm then I'd have no reason to not believe that. I am sure if anyone has visited after that then they'll come and say something

Happy travels
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Old Nov 11, 2014, 2:19 pm
  #19  
 
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Originally Posted by djohannw
Finally, can anyone enlighten me if there will be a lounge available to use during my layover? I will arrive at 10:30p and depart at 1:15a...the *A website says that AV's lounges close at 11pm - is this in fact correct?

Greetings - Dirk
As somebody who takes that flight from time to time, I can confirm the lounge closes at 11, though sometimes it stays open a few minutes longer.
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Old Dec 11, 2014, 9:06 pm
  #20  
 
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Originally Posted by JohnnyColombia
If you stay airside then you will not encounter any checks of your tax status

If you go landside then you are still exempt from taxes as you can get a stamp. Even Colombian residents don't pay Colombian resident exit tax if they are in transit.

If the *A website says that the AV lounge closes at 11pm then I'd have no reason to not believe that. I am sure if anyone has visited after that then they'll come and say something

Happy travels
Completed a mileage turnaround this past week. Stayed in transit. Never left BOG thru customs. UAL Gate Agent wouldn't let me board my flight (BOG-EWR) w/out paying the COLOMBIAN Exit Tax. I DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO GO BACK TO THE EXEMPT WINDOW, CHECK-IN and go thru security.

The UAL AGENT said the tax was $37 USD. Then he said it was $45 and did NOT have the CREDIT CARD machine at the gate. (United Airlines Ph Desk Agent confirmed today that all global gates are cashless/credit card only?). UAL AGENT SAID I HAD TO PAY B/C I WAS IN THE COLOMBIA FOR LESS THAN 24 HRS. (He made that up?)

Onboard, the UAL flight attendant handed me a UAL receipt for 77900 COP (which equals about $32) which the UAL Gate Agent promised would be delivered before flight.

WHERE DID MY MONEY GO? WHY DID I HAVE TO PAY (TWICE) WHEN MY UAL TIX RECEIPT SHOWS I ALREADY PAID "COLOMBIA TAX" FOR $36 & $15? (WHERE'S MY REFUND?)

Last edited by alibedard; Dec 14, 2014 at 11:00 am Reason: Spelling correction: COLOMBIA !!
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Old Dec 11, 2014, 10:56 pm
  #21  
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Should I really pay a "Columbia Resident Exit Tax"?

Sorry alibedard. What can I say? UA at BOG is completely useless. I'd suggest you contact them and ask for your money back. That are definitely wrong, believe me.
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Old Dec 12, 2014, 2:56 am
  #22  
 
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Originally Posted by alibedard
Completed a mileage turnaround this past week. Stayed in transit. Never left BOG thru customs. UAL Gate Agent wouldn't let me board my flight (BOG-EWR) w/out paying the Columbian Exit Tax. I DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO GO BACK TO THE EXEMPT WINDOW, CHECK-IN and go thru security.

The UAL AGENT said the tax was $37 USD. Then he said it was $45 and did NOT have the CREDIT CARD machine at the gate. (United Airlines Ph Desk Agent confirmed today that all global gates are cashless/credit card only?). UAL AGENT SAID I HAD TO PAY B/C I WAS IN THE COLUMBIA FOR LESS THAN 24 HRS. (He made that up?)

Onboard, the UAL flight attendant handed me a UAL receipt for 77900 COP (which equals about $32) which the UAL Gate Agent promised would be delivered before flight.

WHERE DID MY MONEY GO? WHY DID I HAVE TO PAY (TWICE) WHEN MY UAL TIX RECEIPT SHOWS I ALREADY PAID "COLUMBIA TAX" FOR $36 & $15? (WHERE'S MY REFUND?)
In this case, I don't think UA is at fault, at least for collecting the resident exit tax.

The two taxes that you paid as part of your ticket are not the resident exit tax. Everybody who flies out of a Colombian airport (resident or not) pays a flat $36 airport tax. People who fly into Colombia from outside pay a $15 tourism tax. Residents pay the resident exit tax instead of the tourism tax (and we get to pay hefty Colombian sales taxes as well*).

Airlines cannot board you without either having seen that piece of paper from the tax office that confirms that you are exempt or collecting the tax. As I have never done int'l-to-int'l transit at BOG, I am only speculating, but I suspect that you are still supposed to go through a process to get the exemption confirmed.

Frankly, had I been in your shoes the same thing would have happened to me. Until I read this post, I hadn't thought much about what would happen if one stayed on the airside.

*FWIW - As a resident flying out of Colombia, my total Colombian taxes on a ticket are about $130. Airport tax, resident exit tax, and about $60 in sales taxes for the fares I usually buy. US taxes and fees on top of that bring the total to around $200.

Last edited by coolcoil; Dec 12, 2014 at 3:05 am
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Old Dec 12, 2014, 10:47 am
  #23  
 
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First it is COLOMBIA no Columbia.

Second, with a US passport , once you check in on your flight out of Bogota you will get your money back for that particular tax. As long as you actually entered the country (no transit) and you stay more than 3 days. Just ask the rep at the avianca desk and they will point you on the right direction to get that money back.
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Old Dec 13, 2014, 2:21 pm
  #24  
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Originally Posted by coolcoil
In this case, I don't think UA is at fault, at least for collecting the resident exit tax.
How come? There is no resident exit tax for pax in transit up to 24 hours. Plus every single pax at the gate is either in transit or has already confirmed their tax status, exemption, refund or otherwise at check in.

There is therefore no need to check passports and tax status again at the gate.

Furthermore they are nasty, bullish and aggressive with it too. "We don't understand the rules properly but pay us some money or you are not getting on that flight"

They suck, admittedly the Colombian resident exit tax system sucks too, but the rules do exist and it would suck a lot less if UA learnt them.
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Old Dec 14, 2014, 8:37 am
  #25  
 
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Originally Posted by JohnnyColombia
How come? There is no resident exit tax for pax in transit up to 24 hours. Plus every single pax at the gate is either in transit or has already confirmed their tax status, exemption, refund or otherwise at check in.

There is therefore no need to check passports and tax status again at the gate.
I'm making some assumptions here, as I have never done int'l-to-int'l transit at BOG, and maybe somebody (including the OP) can correct me:

1) This is treated differently than an international transit, because the OP's flight is originating in BOG.

2) Because the flight originated in Colombia, a BP could not be issued to them at the airport in the USA, because UA's system would have a flag that says "don't issue a BP for travel originating in Colombia until you see the tax exemption form." I would bet all airlines have that in place. Given the way I see the process handled, I am confident that the government requires airlines to have a record of each exemption.

3) Because of #2, the OP had to get their BP issued by the gate agent in BOG and said agent would not hand over the BP without seeing the exemption.

Again, if any of these assumptions are incorrect, I stand ready to be corrected.

Could/Should UA and the Colombian government have a process in place to handle the occasional traveler who flies in only to enjoy the amenities of the international terminal and fly right back to where they are going? You could make that argument, I suppose. For what it's worth, this would not have been possible in the old terminal.
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Old Dec 14, 2014, 11:03 am
  #26  
 
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Originally Posted by alibedard
completed a mileage turnaround this past week. Stayed in transit. Never left bog thru customs. Ual gate agent wouldn't let me board my flight (bog-ewr) w/out paying the colombian exit tax. I didn't have enough time to go back to the exempt window, check-in and go thru security.

The ual agent said the tax was $37 usd. Then he said it was $45 and did not have the credit card machine at the gate. (united airlines ph desk agent confirmed today that all global gates are cashless/credit card only?). Ual agent said i had to pay b/c i was in the colombia for less than 24 hrs. (he made that up?)

onboard, the ual flight attendant handed me a ual receipt for 77900 cop (which equals about $32) which the ual gate agent promised would be delivered before flight.

Where did my money go? Why did i have to pay (twice) when my ual tix receipt shows i already paid "colombia tax" for $36 & $15? (where's my refund?)
12/14/14 update: Ual cust care emailed me a $100 travel voucher as a result of my inquiry.
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Old Dec 14, 2014, 12:38 pm
  #27  
 
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Should I really pay a "Columbia Resident Exit Tax"?

Colombia is the correct spelling.
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Old Dec 14, 2014, 2:34 pm
  #28  
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Originally Posted by coolcoil
I'm making some assumptions here, as I have never done int'l-to-int'l transit at BOG, and maybe somebody (including the OP) can correct me:

1) This is treated differently than an international transit, because the OP's flight is originating in BOG.

2) Because the flight originated in Colombia, a BP could not be issued to them at the airport in the USA, because UA's system would have a flag that says "don't issue a BP for travel originating in Colombia until you see the tax exemption form." I would bet all airlines have that in place. Given the way I see the process handled, I am confident that the government requires airlines to have a record of each exemption.

3) Because of #2, the OP had to get their BP issued by the gate agent in BOG and said agent would not hand over the BP without seeing the exemption.

Again, if any of these assumptions are incorrect, I stand ready to be corrected.

Could/Should UA and the Colombian government have a process in place to handle the occasional traveler who flies in only to enjoy the amenities of the international terminal and fly right back to where they are going? You could make that argument, I suppose. For what it's worth, this would not have been possible in the old terminal.
All logical points, but the OP did not enter Colombia so common sense should prevail and he should not have to pay any fee to exit. BOG is now a major hub in *A and there are dozens of itineraries that AV operates that connect in BOG.

If this was a major deal for Avianca pax then we would have heard about it long before now. Having experienced UA's cluelessness and lack of understanding of the residents' exit fee. I am standing firm and pointing the finger back at UA.
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Old Dec 15, 2014, 4:16 pm
  #29  
 
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Originally Posted by JohnnyColombia
All logical points, but the OP did not enter Colombia so common sense should prevail and he should not have to pay any fee to exit. BOG is now a major hub in *A and there are dozens of itineraries that AV operates that connect in BOG.

If this was a major deal for Avianca pax then we would have heard about it long before now. Having experienced UA's cluelessness and lack of understanding of the residents' exit fee. I am standing firm and pointing the finger back at UA.
First, I see that the OP got an e-cert, which indicates UA felt they deserved some compensation.

Second, I will stipulate that I agree that the OP should not have had to pay the fee, because they are definitely exempt as a foreigner visiting for less than 60 days. They may possibly be covered under the 24 hour in-transit rule, but I think there is every possibility that they are not. I tried to find the rule* on line, but I had no luck. However, I think it is likely that as the OP had two reservations for separate flights, one to BOG and the other from BOG they are not. I don't know that for sure, though.

I would not expect to see a lot of complaints from AV passengers because they typically have tickets country#1-BOG-country#2, which is what the in-transit process is set up for. I would not be surprised if the in-transit rule specifically excludes a flight that returns to the same destination as the exemption from paying the airport tax on national connecting flights does. I would also say that the number of people who fly AV into BOG and return to their original destination is so vanishingly small that even if they had a problem they are unlikely to show up on FT.

My point is that UA cannot "know" that the OP never entered the country and therefore does not need the form. I suppose they could be trained to inspect passports to see that no entry/exit stamps were applied. However, as this is such a rare event, I really cannot fault them for not having people on the ground who would know how to handle such an event.

Imagine this: a government auditor is going through UA's records and says, "I see you have a passenger that originated in BOG, but have no record of an exemption for them**." How would UA prove they were a transit passenger?

* Some websites referred to Decreta 2586 de 1999, but I could not find anything about the exit tax in there. It all seemed to apply to customs.

**Hypothetical question translated from Spanish.
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Old Dec 15, 2014, 11:22 pm
  #30  
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Originally Posted by coolcoil
As somebody who takes that flight from time to time, I can confirm the lounge closes at 11, though sometimes it stays open a few minutes longer.
And if you just grab a table at the food court adjacent to the lounge, you can poach the lounge internet even after they close

Originally Posted by JohnnyColombia
Having experienced UA's cluelessness and lack of understanding of the residents' exit fee. I am standing firm and pointing the finger back at UA.
Yes, while it's possible to construct a rational explanation for the UA agent's conduct, my experiences match your comments. UA staff at BOG is both clueless and unbelievably aggressive when it comes to collecting and/or refusing to refund the exit tax. Never had similar problems with CM at BOG.
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