Tool 7.5

Colombian labor severance and liquidation calculator

Calculate the final settlement (liquidación) when a job ends in Colombia: cesantías and their interest, prima and unused vacation, with the days each covers.

Runs on your deviceRuns entirely in your browser: nothing you type or upload leaves your device.

An informational estimate; not legal, employment or tax advice.

How to use it

Enter the contract's start date and the end date, and the fixed monthly salary in Colombian pesos.
Type the working days of vacation already taken over the whole contract, if any.
Read each concept with the days it covers: cesantías and their interest for this year, prima for this semester, and the vacation days still owed.

What a liquidación pays when a job ends

When a labor contract ends in Colombia, for any reason (resignation, end of a fixed term, dismissal or mutual agreement), the employer must pay the final settlement, the liquidación laboral. Under the Código Sustantivo del Trabajo (CST) it covers what the worker has earned and not yet received: severance pay (cesantías), the interest on it (intereses sobre cesantías), the service bonus (prima de servicios) and unused vacation, paid in money.

Enter the start and end dates, the fixed monthly salary and the vacation days already taken. The tool shows each item with the days it covers, and the total, so you can check a settlement or prepare one. For salaries up to 2 SMMLV the transport allowance is added to the base automatically. The calculation runs in your browser.

Example: six months on the 2025 minimum wage

Take an employee of the fictional company tienda-ejemplo.co who worked exactly 180 days from 1 January 2025 to 30 June 2025 earning 1 SMMLV ($1,423,500) plus the statutory transport allowance ($200,000). Under Ley 1 de 1963 (Article 7), the transport allowance must be incorporated into the base for cesantías and prima, giving a calculation base of $1,623,500.

First, severance pay under Article 249 of the CST is: ($1,623,500 × 180) ÷ 360 = $811,750. Second, interest on severance under Ley 52 de 1975 (12% per year) is: ($811,750 × 180 × 0.12) ÷ 360 = $48,705. Third, prima de servicios under Article 306 of the CST is: ($1,623,500 × 180) ÷ 360 = $811,750. Fourth, vacation owed in money (CST Articles 186 and 192, and Ley 995 de 2005, which pays it in proportion when a contract ends) uses the base salary without transport allowance ($1,423,500): ($1,423,500 × 180) ÷ 720 = $355,875. The four items add up to $2,028,080.

Months of 30 days, and what the calculator leaves out

Payroll in Colombia counts every month as 30 days and the year as 360, both dates included, and a contract that ends on the last day of February counts that month as 30 days. Each concept only counts what is still unpaid: earlier years' cesantías went into the worker's fund each February (and their interest to the worker each January), and earlier semesters' prima was paid in June and December. So cesantías and interest cover this year, prima covers this semester, and vacation covers the whole contract minus the days already taken.

The calculator doesn't include the indemnity for dismissal without just cause (indemnización por despido injustificado under Article 64 of the CST). It also doesn't cover salario integral or variable pay such as commissions, overtime and night surcharges. Employees with variable wages must calculate the average salary earned during the last year or relevant semester.

FAQ

What concepts make up a Colombian employment liquidation?

A standard statutory liquidation includes cesantías (one month per year worked), intereses sobre cesantías (12% annually), prima de servicios (one month per year, paid in two installments), and accrued compensated vacations (15 business days per year).

Is the transport allowance included in the liquidation base?

Yes, but only for cesantías and prima de servicios for workers earning up to 2 SMMLV (under Ley 1 de 1963). The transport allowance is never included in the base for calculating compensated vacation days.

Why is vacation divided by 720 instead of 360?

Colombian law grants 15 business days of vacation for every 360 days worked. Since 15 days is half of a 30-day monthly wage, the mathematical formula is (Salary × Days) ÷ 360 × (15 ÷ 30), which simplifies to (Salary × Days) ÷ 720.

What is the deadline for an employer to pay the liquidation?

Under Article 65 of the CST, the employer must pay the full liquidation upon termination of the contract. Paying late can trigger a sanction for the delay (indemnización moratoria), which grows with each day; how much depends on the salary and the time, so ask a lawyer if it happens.

Does an employee receive liquidation after resigning voluntarily?

Yes. Resignation forfeits only dismissal indemnity, but all accrued statutory social benefits (cesantías, intereses, prima, and vacations) must be paid regardless of the reason for termination.

Guides for this tool

G26Severance pay in Colombia: how to calculate the liquidaciónHow a Colombian final settlement is worked out: cesantías, their interest, the prima and unused vacation, with the formulas and two worked examples.

7.1NIT check digitCalculate or check the DIAN verification digit (DV) of a Colombian NIT or cédula with the modulo 11 formula, and see the calculation step by step.
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7.3Net salary ColombiaWork out take-home pay in Colombia from the gross monthly salary: health and pension deductions, the solidarity fund and the transport allowance, line by line.
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7.6Cuenta de cobro PDFFill in a Colombian cuenta de cobro, the payment request freelancers send, and download it as a one-page PDF with the amount in words.
7.7UVT converterConvert between Colombian pesos and UVT (Unidad de Valor Tributario) for 2026 and 2025, with common DIAN thresholds and the rounding of article 868 ET.
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7.94×1000 GMF calculatorWork out the 4×1000 (GMF) on a withdrawal or transfer in Colombia, with or without the monthly 350 UVT exemption for savings accounts, for 2025 or 2026.

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