Short answer
DIAN, Colombia's tax authority, publishes a list of proveedores ficticios (fictitious suppliers): taxpayers it has declared as such by resolution, published under Article 671 of the tax statute. The list is keyed by NIT, the tax ID, so a buyer checks a Colombian supplier by asking for its NIT and searching the list with it.
Key facts
- Publisher
- DIAN
- Edition read
2026-08-13 - Rows held by Testigo
- 1,108
- Format
- One PDF file
- Key
- NIT
- Licence
- No licence statement found in the file
The file, and what a row holds
DIAN publishes the list as a PDF. The header of each page gives the date the list was updated to. Each row has seven columns.
- The regional office of DIAN that issued the resolution.
- The NIT.
- The name or legal name.
- The number of the resolution and its date.
- The publication under Article 671 of the Estatuto Tributario, and its date.
The PDF states no total. Testigo read 1,108 rows from its text. About ten rows that wrap over two lines may have been missed, so the count is a floor, not an exact figure.
How to check a supplier
- Get the NITAsk the supplier for its NIT and its legal name as registered. A company's NIT has nine digits and starts with 8 or 9, followed by a check digit.
- Open the current listDownload the PDF from DIAN and read the date in the page header. Use the newest file.
- Search by NITA NIT match settles identity. A name match alone does not.
- Read the resolutionNote the resolution number, its date and the publication date. Then ask the supplier and consult a Colombian tax adviser.
How Testigo holds the list
Colombian records on Testigo come from RUES, the business register, and carry the NIT. The list is matched to a record by NIT only. With Pro, an entry appears on the record, and the tax ID check reads any NIT against the list.
Rows whose ID is not a company NIT belong to a natural person. Testigo keeps the ID for those rows and removes the name. 3 of the 70,609 Colombian manufacturers loaded are named on the list.
Frequently asked questions
What is a proveedor ficticio?
It is DIAN's term for a taxpayer that it has declared a fictitious supplier by resolution. DIAN publishes those declarations in one list, with the resolution number and date for each. Read Article 671 of the Estatuto Tributario for the effects, and ask a Colombian tax adviser how they apply to you.
Does an empty search mean the supplier is clean?
No. It means the edition of the list you searched does not name that NIT. The list covers one kind of declaration by one authority. It says nothing about other tax matters, court cases or sanctions elsewhere. Note the date of the file you searched, and keep it with your supplier record.
Why does Testigo hold fewer rows than the PDF may contain?
The list is published as a PDF with no stated total. Testigo reads its text layer row by row. A few rows wrap over two lines and may be missed, and the report on this source says so. For a decision that depends on it, search DIAN's current file as well.
Sources
- Proveedores ficticiosDIAN · edition
2026-08-13 - RUESConfecámaras · edition
2026-10-02