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Home / Peptide legality / By country / Colombia

Peptide legality · Colombia · updated 2026-09-22

Are peptides legal in Colombia?

Restricted

Peptides are legal in Colombia only as INVIMA-registered prescription medicines (such as Ozempic®, Wegovy® and Mounjaro® dispensed with a doctor's order); unregistered research or compounded peptides like BPC-157, TB-500 and retatrutide have no sanitary registration and their sale for human use is illegal and treated as fraudulent.

Legal status overview

Peptides are restricted in Colombia: they are lawful only when they hold an INVIMA sanitary registration and are prescribed and dispensed through the formal pharmacy system, while unregistered 'research' or weight-loss peptides sold online are illegal. The national medicines and food regulator INVIMA (Instituto Nacional de Vigilancia de Medicamentos y Alimentos) governs medicines under Decreto 677 of 1995, requiring a registro sanitario for any product marketed with therapeutic claims. Only a handful of GLP-1/GIP peptide drugs (Ozempic®, Wegovy®, Mounjaro®) are registered and prescription-only, and INVIMA has issued repeated 2024-2026 health alerts declaring social-media peptide sales fraudulent and referring cases for criminal investigation.

Key points

  • In Colombia any medicine marketed with therapeutic claims must hold an INVIMA sanitary registration under Decreto 677 of 1995, and peptide products sold without one are legally considered fraudulent and illegal to commercialize. [1]
  • INVIMA, Colombia's national medicines and food regulator, treats semaglutide as authorized only under a single registered product (Ozempic®, registro 2019M-0019473) that must be dispensed under medical prescription for type 2 diabetes. [2]
  • Cosmetic topical peptides are legal in Colombia when they carry a Notificación Sanitaria Obligatoria under Andean Community Decisión 516, while peptide medicines require an INVIMA registration and prescription and unregistered peptides remain prohibited. [6]
  • INVIMA issued a public health alert on 25 June 2026 naming six unregistered weight-loss products sold on social media and messaging apps (including retatrutide, a tirzepatide 10 mg injection, GHK-Cu peptide and NAD+), declaring their commercialization illegal and the products fraudulent. [3]
  • INVIMA has escalated enforcement, issuing three consecutive health alerts on illegally sold weight-loss peptides during June 2026 and stating it refers cases to the Fiscalía General de la Nación for criminal investigation. [8]
  • Travelers should declare pharmaceutical products at Colombian customs and carry a prescription or doctor's letter for prescription peptides such as semaglutide or tirzepatide, since only INVIMA-registered, prescribed products are clearly lawful to bring in. [3]
  • For personal importation, Colombia's medicines regime rests on Decreto 677 of 1995, and DIAN's traveler (régimen turista) rules exempt accompanied goods below roughly USD 200 per day / USD 2,000 per trip from duty, but this does not authorize commercial sale of unregistered peptides. [7]

Compound-by-compound status

BPC-157BPC-157 is not registered as a medicine in Colombia and is not admitted in Colombian magistral (compounded) preparations, so it exists only as an unapproved research chemical that cannot be lawfully sold for human use. [6]
Semaglutide (Ozempic® / Wegovy®)Semaglutide is legal in Colombia only as INVIMA-registered prescription medicines, Ozempic® (2019M-0019473) for type 2 diabetes and Wegovy® (2024MBT-0000122) for obesity, while compounded 'Semaglutida + Vitamina B12' and other unregistered versions have been declared illegal and fraudulent. [6]
Tirzepatide (Mounjaro®)Tirzepatide is legal in Colombia only as the INVIMA-registered prescription drug Mounjaro® (registros 2025M-0021776 and 2025M-0021778) for type 2 diabetes, whereas tirzepatide injections sold online for weight loss or aesthetics without registration are illegal. [6]
TB-500 (Thymosin Beta-4)TB-500 has no INVIMA sanitary registration and is not permitted in Colombian magistral compounding, making it an unapproved research peptide that cannot be legally marketed for human use in Colombia. [6]
Human growth hormone (HGH / somatropin) and GH-axis peptidesGrowth-hormone and GH-releasing peptides are lawful in Colombia only as INVIMA-registered prescription medicines; unregistered 'HGH peptides' sold outside the formal system are illegal, and such peptide hormones also remain on the WADA prohibited list for athletes. [9]

Frequently asked questions

Can I buy peptides in Colombia without a prescription?

No, in Colombia peptide medicines such as semaglutide and tirzepatide are prescription-only INVIMA-registered products, and unregistered peptides sold on social media, e-commerce or aesthetic clinics are illegal and considered fraudulent by INVIMA. [5]

Is BPC-157 legal in Colombia?

BPC-157 is not legal to sell for human use in Colombia; it has no INVIMA sanitary registration and is not allowed in compounded (magistral) preparations, so it is only an unapproved research chemical. [6]

Can I travel into Colombia with my peptides?

You should declare pharmaceutical products at Colombian customs and carry a prescription or doctor's letter, especially for prescription peptides like semaglutide or tirzepatide; unregistered research peptides have no legal import pathway for sale and carry seizure risk. [3]

What are the penalties for selling unregistered peptides in Colombia?

Selling peptides without INVIMA registration is illegal in Colombia; INVIMA classifies such products as fraudulent, conducts inspection and market-removal actions, and refers cases to the Fiscalía General de la Nación for criminal investigation. [3]

Are weight-loss peptides sold on TikTok or Instagram legal in Colombia?

No, INVIMA warned in 2026 that weight-loss peptides promoted on social media, e-commerce platforms, aesthetic centers and community drugstores lack sanitary registration, so their commercialization in Colombia is illegal. [4]

Sources

  1. INVIMA, Alerta Sanitaria No. 090-2024 sobre comercialización fraudulenta de Semaglutida + Vitamina B12 (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  2. INVIMA, Alerta Sanitaria, Dirección de Medicamentos y Productos Biológicos (Alerta No. 090-2024) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  3. peptide.law, Peptide Laws in Colombia (Can You Buy, Travel & Import?) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  4. Portafolio, Invima alerta por venta ilegal de péptidos para bajar de peso (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  5. Infobae, El Invima lanzó alerta por productos para bajar de peso que se comercializan de forma fraudulenta (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  6. Krece.io, ¿Son Legales los Péptidos en Colombia? Marco INVIMA y Casos Prácticos (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  7. Peptilab.co, Péptidos en aduana de Colombia: práctica operativa para viaje RUO (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  8. El Tiempo, Alerta del Invima por péptidos para bajar de peso: el riesgo oculto (retrieved 2026-09-22)
  9. YouMedicine Colombia, The Best Peptides in Colombia 2026: Doctor-Guided Buyer's Guide (retrieved 2026-09-22)

Last researched: 2026-09-22.

General information based on the sourced research above, not legal advice. Laws change and enforcement varies; for a specific situation in Colombia, consult a licensed attorney or the national regulator.