DIAN may consider that the value you declared on an import is too low, adjust the customs value, assess additional duties and taxes and, if there is underpayment, impose a fine. Customs value is determined under the WTO Valuation Agreement, whose main method is transaction value: the price actually paid or payable. Ligal reconstructs the proof of that price and defends before the authority, with lawyers, accountants and ex-DIAN experience.
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The legal basis of customs value is in Article 320 of Decree 1165 of 2019: the WTO Agreement on Valuation (Law 170 of 1994), Andean Decision 571 of 2003 and its Community Regulation (Resolution 1684 of 2014 of the SGCAN). The main method is transaction value, that is, the price actually paid or payable for the goods (Article 1 of the Agreement). Only if it cannot be applied does one move, in order, to the secondary methods: value of identical goods, of similar goods, the deductive method, the computed value method and, as a last resort, reasonable means. To support the value, Article 323 requires, on every import (except the exceptions of Article 327), an Andean Customs Value Declaration (DAV) prepared before filing the import declaration. Article 330 lists the supporting documents that may be required during control (commercial invoice, contract, among others) and Article 335 requires keeping the DAV and its support: commercial and financial relations between the parties, contracts and expenses. If a provisional value had to be declared, Article 338 (as amended by Decree 360 of 2021) governs the procedure.
The sanction regime in force is Law 2586 of 2026, in force since its promulgation (June 19, 2026), which repealed Decree-Law 920 of 2023, declared unconstitutional by ruling C-072 of 2025 with deferred effects. Under its Article 15, declaring a taxable base below the customs value is a serious infraction (item 15.14.2.1) punished with a fine of 50% of the difference, without prejudice to the duties and taxes; it applies only if there is underpayment and to the importer. Failing to submit the contract when a provisional value was declared is punished with 200 UVT (item 15.14.2.2), and inaccuracies in the DAV that prevent applying the valuation technique, with 100 UVT (item 15.14.3.1, minor). To correct the value, the law provides the official correction assessment for value (Art. 61, only once) when the declared value does not match the one established by the authority, and value studies on a single importer's operations over a period (Art. 62), which may end in official assessments or in closure. Articles 56 and 57 allow the official assessment to modify the declaration. The sanctioning power lapses 3 years after the act (Art. 20). Deadlines to respond are short from notification. If the same value is also discussed as a related-party transaction, see also /precios-de-transferencia-dian, and for the general framework of the operation, /comercio-exterior.
Key points on defense in customs valuation
Ligal reviews the DAV, the import declaration and DIAN's act, reconstructs proof of the price with accounting support and defends by the route that best fits your case, without promising results.
01
We verify whether the DAV was prepared before the import declaration, whether the support (commercial invoice, contract, payments, transport document) matches what was declared and whether elements are missing that the authority could challenge. That review defines the line of defense.
02
We analyze whether DIAN discarded transaction value with sufficient reasons and whether the method it used instead respects the order of the WTO Agreement: identical goods, similar goods, deductive, computed and last resort. A comparison with goods that are not truly comparable is a technical point of defense.
03
LIGAL Auditores and Jeysson Pulido recalculate the additional duties and the fine, and compare scenarios: contest the adjustment, make a voluntary admission under Article 19 of Law 2586 of 2026, or correct. We also assess whether there is in fact an underpayment, the condition for the 50% fine.
04
We prepare the response to the requirement, submit the evidence and, if a decision on the merits is issued, file the available appeal within the deadlines, which are short from notification. Ligal runs the case end to end.
A valuation case is decided between the legal argument on the method and the accounting proof of the price actually paid.
Director · Tax lawyer, ex-DIAN
Leads the legal strategy and representation before DIAN: decides whether to contest, correct or make a voluntary admission, how to challenge the valuation method and how to conduct the appeals.
Accountant · Quantification and tracing
Reconstructs the price paid with invoices, payments and records, and recalculates duties and the fine to support the importer's position with figures.
Certified public accountants
Prepare accounting support and technical analyses on costs, value adjustments and payments that serve as evidence before DIAN and the courts.
Paying or making a voluntary admission can be a good decision or a mistake. Before deciding, we analyze the authority's method, the available evidence and the reductions of Article 19 of Law 2586 of 2026.
Invoices, contracts or payments made after the import to answer a requirement can worsen the case. We work with authentic proof of the operation.
The authority may apply other methods when it does not accept transaction value. We assess the chances candidly before starting the dispute.
When DIAN questions the value declared on an import, Ligal conducts the defense before the customs authority, from the response to the requirement through the appeals and the instances that apply. Juan Santiago Rodríguez Prieto, a tax lawyer and ex-DIAN, leads the strategy together with accountant Jeysson Pulido and LIGAL Auditores (certified public accountants), to establish the price actually paid and precisely quantify duties and sanctions. The team, with lawyers, accountants and direct experience inside DIAN, handles real cases of tax and customs audit, enforced collection and tax and customs litigation.
Please note: no result is guaranteed; each case depends on the facts, the support and the method applied by the authority.
Director
Juan Santiago Rodríguez Prieto
Tax lawyer · Ex-DIAN
Deadlines from notification are short. We assess DIAN's requirement or assessment within 48 business hours. Use the form or open Diagnosis.
01
TodayWe review the requirement or assessment, the import declaration, the DAV and the support of the operation (invoice, contract, payments, transport).
02
48 business hWe verify the method applied by DIAN, recalculate duties and the fine and assess whether it is best to contest, correct or make a voluntary admission.
03
ImmediateWe define the evidence, the response and the appeals, and who files them, within the deadlines from notification.
Frequently asked questions
The authority may question the declared value, and the law provides for the official correction assessment for value (Art. 61 of Law 2586 of 2026, only once) when the declared customs value does not match the one it established, and value studies on a single importer's operations over a period (Art. 62), which may end in official assessments or in closure. The decision must rest on the valuation method and the facts. It is not automatic: the importer can submit evidence and contest the method.
It is the base on which customs duties are assessed. Its basis is in Article 320 of Decree 1165 of 2019: the WTO Agreement on Valuation (Law 170 of 1994), Andean Decision 571 of 2003 and its Community Regulation (Resolution 1684 of 2014 of the SGCAN). The main method is transaction value, the price actually paid or payable. If it cannot be applied, one turns in order to identical goods, similar goods, the deductive method, the computed value method and, as a last resort, reasonable means.
Under Article 323 of Decree 1165 of 2019, every import (except the exceptions of Article 327) requires an Andean Customs Value Declaration, prepared before filing the import declaration. Article 335 requires keeping the DAV and its support: commercial and financial relations between the parties, contracts and expenses. Article 330 lists the supporting documents that may be required during control, such as the commercial invoice and the contract.
Article 15 of Law 2586 of 2026 punishes as a serious infraction declaring a taxable base below the customs value (item 15.14.2.1) with a fine of 50% of the difference, without prejudice to the duties and taxes; it applies only if there is underpayment and is a sanction on the importer. Other valuation-related conduct carries lower sanctions: failing to submit the contract when a provisional value was declared (200 UVT, item 15.14.2.2) and inaccuracies in the DAV that prevent applying the valuation technique (100 UVT, item 15.14.3.1).
Article 19 of Law 2586 of 2026 allows voluntarily acknowledging the infraction and reducing the sanction, with rules depending on the stage: before the Special Customs Requirement, after the requirement and before the decision on the merits, and within the deadline to appeal the decision on the merits; the text sets percentages of 20%, 40% and 60% depending on the stage. Payment of duties, interest and the reduced sanction must be attached, and it does not apply to the most serious infractions. Whether it is worthwhile depends on the strength of the evidence and the figures; the decision should be taken with a prior estimate of both paths.
The commercial invoice, the contract or purchase order, proof of payment to the supplier, the transport document and the accounting records of expenses, together with proof of the commercial and financial relations between the parties. Consistency among the DAV, the import declaration and the accounting is decisive. If the supplier is a related party, support for the agreed price is also advisable. The evidence must be authentic and contemporaneous with the operation.
Deadlines to respond to requirements and appeals are short from notification; check the exact date in the document you received and act immediately. In addition, the authority's sanctioning power lapses 3 years after the act (Art. 20 of Law 2586 of 2026). Do not wait until the last day: accounting evidence and technical review take time.
If the foreign supplier is a related party, the agreed price can also be analyzed under transfer pricing rules, in addition to the customs regime. They are different frameworks with different purposes, but what is argued in one must be consistent with the other. See /precios-de-transferencia-dian.
Ligal is a firm specialized in tax and customs law. Under the direction of Juan Santiago Rodríguez Prieto, a tax lawyer and ex-DIAN, together with Jeysson Pulido, accountant, and LIGAL Auditores (certified public accountants), we combine the legal argument on the valuation method with the accounting proof of the price paid. Our work is backed by 5.0 / 5 on Google with 36 reviews: https://share.google/VVzMvULrOj8Mj52Au. The team handles real cases of tax and customs audit, enforced collection and tax and customs litigation. No result is guaranteed.
Free. Attach the requirement or assessment, the import declaration, the DAV and the support of the operation. We assess the method applied, the figures and the strategy.