The reduction of payment terms in Colombia

Such legislative initiative has been inspired from Chile, a country that at the beginning of 2019 enacted Law 21.131 or "30 Days Payment Law". This law established that any contract in which the seller is obliged to issue an invoice, the maximum term to pay the amounts due may not exceed thirty (30) days.  However, such restriction was not established absolutely, but the same rule left open the possibility of changing these terms, albeit with stricter requirements in order to protect the seller.

Thus, in the light of the Chilean regulation, if the parties intend to modify the legally established term of thirty (30) days, they must elevate this agreement to a writing containing the conventional term, as long as such stipulation denotes an abusive nature. Likewise, the parties are obliged to deposit this agreement in a registry created by the Chilean Government within the following five days, under penalty of considering the agreement as not in writing. Additionally, as a measure to protect the seller, Law 21,131 established a list of prohibited clauses, which, in general, would grant unjustified advantages to the buyer.

In the Colombian case, last September 2018, Bill 181 was filed in the House of Representatives, "whereby rules on Fair Installment Payments in the commercial sphere are adopted and other provisions on payment and invoicing are issued". This legislative project intends to gradually reduce the maximum term of payment of commercial obligations, starting from a maximum term of 60 days, up to a maximum of 30 days, within ten years from the enactment of the law.

It should be noted that this bill seeks to adjust all payment procedures to the maximum terms provided therein.

For its part, Article 270 of the National Development Plan, approved last May 5, established in its Article 270 that, "The National Government shall establish the conditions to regulate the payment in fair terms of commercial operations derived from mercantile acts between individuals with the objectives of promoting business competitiveness, improving the liquidity of supplier companies and reducing payment delays once the provision of goods and services has been completed". Since this norm has not been regulated, it is necessary to wait for the decree issued by the National Government.

Making a comparison between the Chilean legislation and the guidelines in our legal system, it is pertinent to criticize our system, since it does not provide a mechanism to modify these legal terms, which would ultimately make it difficult for the rule to be in line with the realities and needs of traders.

In conclusion, the executive and legislative branches of the Colombian State have already begun to take the initiative to reduce payment times in the commercial sphere. This will bring multiple benefits to small and medium-sized businessmen, since it will dynamize the payment cycles of the obligations.