Transitional period for new agricultural pesticide registration process in Colombia

Colombia has updated its registration process and requirements for the registration of “chemical pesticides for agricultural use” (PQUA) in line with changes to Andean Community (CAN) legislation. 

On August 1, 2022, Resolution 1580 of 2022 of the Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA) entered into force. The Resolution adapts the notification process to changes to recent changes to CAN law, which sets out the regulatory framework for PQUA.

PQUA were first regulated at a regional level in the Andean Community in 1998, when Decision 436 introduced common registration, control and labelling obligations for all Member States (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru). It was accompanied by Resolution 630 (from 2002), which established a detailed technical manual completing the framework. Under the system, both economic operators involved in the PQUA value chain and the pesticides themselves must undergo registration, with the objectives of protecting human health and the environment, promoting good agricultural practices, and ensuring the effectiveness of agricultural products. 

While the overall structure is maintained, recent updates in CAN law have brought in new versions of both the general framework (now established in CAN Decision 804, adopted in 2015) and the Technical Manual (currently Resolution 2075, established in 2019). 

The recent ICA Resolution 1580 of 2022, adopted in February, incorporated these changes to Colombian legislation and updated the registration process in the country. For operators and products registered under the former framework, it contains a three-month transitional period during which registrations can be transferred without fees. Given that the Resolution entered into force on August 1, 2022, the transitional period will last until November 1, 2022. Afterwards, any applications will be considered to be new registrations and be subject to the new framework.