Moving from Colombia to the United Kingdom (2026): Relocation Guide
Key takeaways
- Sort your pet first — it is the longest lead item. Colombia is an unlisted country under Great Britain’s own pet-travel rules, so a dog or cat needs a rabies antibody blood test (blood drawn at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination) and you cannot enter GB until three months after that satisfactory sample was taken. From microchip to arrival is roughly four to five months. Dogs also need tapeworm treatment shortly before travel.
- The UK waives import VAT and duty on your used household goods under Transfer of Residence (ToR) relief. Apply online with form ToR1, receive a Unique Reference Number (URN), and your agent quotes it on the import declaration. You need proof you lived outside the UK for the previous 12 months.
- Leaving Colombia means a DIAN “Definitive Export” declaration for your menaje doméstico and an ICA sanitary inspection certificate (CIS) for pets.
- Colombians are third-country nationals and need the correct UK visa before travel; after arrival, register with a GP, get a National Insurance number and set up council tax.
- You can drive on a Colombian licence for up to 12 months, but there is no straight exchange — you will need to pass a UK test to keep driving beyond that.
- Sea freight runs from Cartagena or Buenaventura to Felixstowe or Southampton; air freight is the fast, costly option for essentials.
1. Leaving Colombia: what to close out
Household goods export (DIAN). If you are leaving Colombia to live abroad, your used furniture and personal effects (menaje doméstico) leave under the “Exportación Definitiva” (Definitive Export) modality. The shipping-authorisation request and export declaration go to the DIAN, Colombia’s customs authority, with a window of up to 30 days before departure or within 120 days after you leave. Keep a detailed, valued inventory in Spanish; your mover or customs broker typically prepares the DIAN filing.
Residence and personal admin. Wind down your Colombian affairs: if you held a cédula de extranjería, close the arrangements tied to it, settle outstanding DIAN tax matters, redirect or close utilities and banking, and collect the civil documents you will need in Britain. The UK generally does not require an apostille to the same extent as EU states, but it is still worth having apostilled, certified copies of birth, marriage and qualification documents — and certified English translations — before you leave, because obtaining them from the UK is slow.
Pets (ICA). Every dog or cat leaving Colombia needs a Certificado de Inspección Sanitaria (CIS) from the ICA (Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario), issued only at ICA offices in ports, international airports and border posts, and requiring a 15-digit microchip plus an ante-mortem clinical inspection. Because Great Britain’s entry rules are the binding constraint, read section 5 first — the ICA certificate is the last Colombian step.
Ports. Your shipment will most likely load at Cartagena on the Caribbean coast (closest to central and Atlantic Colombia) or Buenaventura on the Pacific (common from Cali and the south-west). Cartagena is generally the more direct routing to the UK.
2. How your household goods ship to the UK
Sea freight is the workhorse for a household move. A part-load travels as shared groupage (LCL); a whole home usually justifies a sole-use 20ft or 40ft container (FCL), which clears faster and reduces handling damage because the box is exclusively yours.
Route and transit. From Cartagena or Buenaventura, containers cross the Atlantic to Felixstowe or Southampton — the UK’s main container ports and the usual discharge points for personal effects. Treat transit time qualitatively: the ocean leg on this corridor commonly runs a few weeks, and once you add Colombian export handling, any transhipment, UK customs clearance and final delivery, a realistic door-to-door figure is several weeks to a couple of months. Groupage adds time because the container must fill and then be deconsolidated at destination. Keep a buffer and ship nothing you will need in your first fortnight.
Air freight. Air moves in days rather than weeks but is charged by weight and volume, so reserve it for a compact set of essentials, work equipment or irreplaceable items. Many families pair a small air shipment of essentials with the bulk of the home by sea.
Documentation. UK clearance depends on a clean inventory and your ToR approval (section 3). Your URN must be in hand before the goods arrive, so apply for ToR1 early. Prepare a valued, itemised packing list, flag high-value items for insurance, and keep passports, visa and proof of overseas residence together in hand luggage.
3. UK customs & transfer-of-residence relief
The UK grants relief from import VAT and customs duty on personal belongings when you move your normal home to the UK from outside the country. This is Transfer of Residence (ToR) relief, run by HMRC:
- You apply online using form ToR1 on GOV.UK, listing your goods (grouped categories such as “200 books, 40 items of clothing, 1 washing machine” are acceptable), and providing proof you lived outside the UK for the previous 12 months, your passport photo page, and details of any vehicles or pets in the shipment.
- If approved, HMRC issues a Unique Reference Number (URN), valid from up to 6 months before your move and up to 12 months after arrival. Your shipping agent quotes the URN on the import declaration under the transfer-of-residence customs procedure.
- Processing typically takes two to four weeks and can stretch to around six weeks during the summer peak, so apply as soon as your move is confirmed.
- Household effects, furnishings, clothing and personal effects are covered; brand-new goods, items for resale, and furniture for a second home are generally excluded.
The practical rule is simple: get your URN before the shipment sails, or at least well before it lands, because without it your goods can be held and become liable for VAT and duty. Your UK destination agent will handle the import declaration using your URN.
4. Arriving: registration, residence, driving, healthcare
Visa and residence. As a Colombian you are a third-country national and need the correct UK visa arranged before you travel — a Skilled Worker visa, Global Talent, Student, family or other route depending on your circumstances. Most work and study routes also require paying the Immigration Health Surcharge, which gives access to the NHS. Check your visa’s conditions and any biometric residence requirements before departure.
Registration on arrival. The UK has no single “town hall registration”, but there are several essential steps: register with a local GP surgery to access NHS primary care; apply for a National Insurance (NI) number if you plan to work (many visa holders can start work before it arrives, but you need it for tax and benefits); and set up council tax with your local council once you have an address. Open the mail from HMRC and your local authority promptly — several of these steps are triggered by post.
Driving licence. You can generally drive in Great Britain on your valid Colombian licence for up to 12 months from becoming resident. However, Great Britain does not offer a straightforward exchange of Colombian licences, so to keep driving beyond that period you will need to pass the UK theory and practical driving tests and obtain a GB licence. Plan for this early if you rely on a car, and confirm the current position on GOV.UK.
Healthcare. If your visa required the Immigration Health Surcharge, you can use the NHS on broadly the same basis as a resident. Register with a GP as soon as you have an address — it is free and is the gateway to most NHS services, including referrals and prescriptions.
5. Pets
This is the item to schedule first. Under Great Britain’s own pet-travel rules, Colombia is an unlisted country, which triggers the blood-test pathway for a dog or cat:
- Microchip (ISO-standard), implanted before the rabies vaccination.
- Rabies vaccination after the microchip.
- Rabies antibody blood test: a sample taken at least 30 days after vaccination, confirming a satisfactory level of protection.
- Three-month wait: you cannot enter Great Britain until three months after the date the satisfactory blood sample was taken.
- Tapeworm treatment for dogs: given by a vet no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (1–5 days) before you arrive in GB.
- Official third-country veterinary certificate for entry, plus the ICA CIS to leave Colombia.
Chaining these together — microchip, vaccinate, wait 30 days, draw blood, then wait three months — comes to roughly four to five months. Because Great Britain runs its own regime separate from the EU, confirm the exact, current requirements (including approved entry routes and carriers) on GOV.UK before you book. Record the blood-sample date precisely: the three-month clock starts on that day.
6. Money, banking & tax basics
Banking. Opening a UK bank account usually requires proof of identity (passport/visa) and proof of a UK address, such as a tenancy agreement or a council-tax or utility letter. If you cannot yet show a UK address, digital and “newcomer” accounts can bridge the gap until you have documents in your name.
Moving money. To bring savings from Colombia, compare a specialist currency-transfer service against your bank; on larger sums the exchange-rate spread matters far more than advertised fee-free deals. Keep records of the source of funds — UK banks may ask.
Tax residence. UK tax residence is determined by the Statutory Residence Test, which looks at days spent in the UK and your ties here. UK residents are generally taxed on worldwide income, though specific rules may apply to newly arrived residents. If you have Colombian income, property or investments, take cross-border advice before you arrive; there are mechanisms to relieve double taxation, and how they apply depends on your circumstances.
How Flyto handles your Colombia to United Kingdom move
Flyto Relocation runs international household moves end to end, and the Colombia-to-UK corridor is one we handle regularly. We coordinate the DIAN definitive-export filing and loading at Cartagena or Buenaventura, the ocean or air leg, and clearance and delivery in the UK — making sure your ToR1 and URN are in place so your Transfer of Residence relief is applied and your goods are not held or charged VAT and duty. We plan the pet timeline backwards from your arrival date so the blood test and three-month wait never become the bottleneck, and we draw on our own hubs across Northern, Central and Southern Europe to keep the wider move under one roof. Send us your dates and inventory and we will map the critical path. Get a quote.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my dog or cat need a blood test to enter Great Britain?
Because Colombia is an unlisted country under GB’s pet-travel rules, which requires a rabies antibody blood test in addition to the microchip and vaccination. See GOV.UK — Bringing your pet dog, cat or ferret to Great Britain.
How long is the wait after the pet blood test?
You cannot enter Great Britain until three months after the date your vet took a satisfactory blood sample, which itself must be at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination. See GOV.UK — rabies vaccination and blood tests.
How do I avoid import VAT and duty on my belongings?
Apply for Transfer of Residence relief with form ToR1, receive a Unique Reference Number, and have your agent quote it on the import declaration; you need proof of living outside the UK for the previous 12 months. See GOV.UK — Transfer of residence to Great Britain.
When should I apply for ToR1?
As early as possible — processing typically takes two to four weeks and up to about six weeks in summer, and the URN is valid from up to 6 months before your move. See GOV.UK — Application for transfer of residence relief (ToR1).
Can I keep driving on my Colombian licence?
Yes, generally for up to 12 months after becoming resident, but there is no straight exchange — you must pass the UK theory and practical tests to continue driving beyond that. Check GOV.UK — driving on a non-GB licence.
What do I file in Colombia to export my furniture?
A definitive-export declaration and shipping-authorisation request with the DIAN, up to 30 days before departure or within 120 days after, with a valued inventory. See the DIAN menaje doméstico page.
Sources
- GOV.UK — Bringing your pet dog, cat or ferret to Great Britain
- GOV.UK — Pet travel: rabies vaccination and blood tests
- GOV.UK — Transfer of residence to Great Britain
- GOV.UK — Application for transfer of residence relief (ToR1)
- GOV.UK — Driving in Great Britain on a non-GB licence
- DIAN (Colombia) — Menaje doméstico
- ICA (Colombia) — Ingreso y salida de animales de compañía (mascotas)
- GOV.UK — UK visas and immigration