Terms and Conditions for Products of International Origin. Use of the MELI Ecosystem by Foreign Sellers
Products of international origin. Use of the MELI Ecosystem by Foreign Seller - Colombia
This annex explains the rules for using the MELI Ecosystem services applicable to:
(i) the purchase and sale of products of international origin, which are sold by Foreign Sellers (the “Foreign Sellers”), imported and shipped to Colombia.
(ii) the use of MELI Ecosystem services by Foreign Sellers, such as Envios Full services, Envios Full USA, Mercado Ads or other MELI Ecosystem services.
All operations carried out by the Foreign Seller will be governed by the Terms and Conditions of the Mercado Libre website where they were carried out.
1. Registration and account
The Seller must register with a Foreign Seller account, following the special process for this type of account. By doing so, the Seller simultaneously accepts the Terms and Conditions of the Mercado Libre websites and countries where Mercado Libre operates. This will allow them to list and sell products of international origin and use other services from the MELI Ecosystem on the websites of the mentioned countries.
2. International Purchase and Sale of Products
2.1. Selling
a) Obligations of the Foreign Seller
The Foreign Seller will be the seller and the exporter of the products.
As such, i) theymust comply with all requirements, authorizations, and procedures required by the legislation and regulations in force for the sale and export of products in the country of origin, and for import and commercialization in the destination country; ii) they will be responsible for complying with the current regulations and the criteria adopted by the customs authority and any other relevant authority in each country; iii) they must bear the costs related to the export of the products; and iv) they must provide the necessary documents and information to prove the previous paragraphs, either to Mercado Libre or at the express request of any Authority.
Listings must comply with the Marketplace Terms and Conditions, which include the Listing Policies and Prohibited Products Policies. These will be written in the local language and identified as being of international origin.
The Foreign Sellers undertake to comply with the liabilities established for the seller in the Marketplace Terms and Conditions.
b) Price
The Foreign Seller will set the selling price in United States dollars, but it will be expressed in local currency in their listings. For such purposes, the Foreign User authorizes Mercado Libre to convert the price to local currency and adjust it according to variations in the exchange rate.
Mercado Libre may add to the product price reported by the Foreign Seller the costs related to shipping and/or international importation (if applicable).
The Foreign Seller may receive the proceeds of their sales (i) through one or more transfers to a bank account in their name, which Mercado Libre will carry out through any of its linked companies; and/or (ii) through other payment platforms operated by third parties, when enabled. In such cases, the Foreign Seller shall bear any service fee applicable to the use of said payment platforms.
2.2. Buying
Whenpurchasing a product from an international source, the Buyer is subject to the obligations and rights set forth in the Marketplace Terms and Conditions.
Additionally, the Buyer agrees that they will be the importer of the products into their country and that they are purchasing them exclusively for personal, family use, and not for commercial purposes.
As the importer, the Buyer must comply with all requirements, authorizations, and procedures required by the regulations in force for importing into their country. Furthermore, they must ensure that the international products are suitable and authorized for sale and use in their country; and bear the import costs.
The Import Costs are calculated based on an estimate of all expenses and customs costs that must be paid for the importation of the product, such as customs duties, taxes, and fees. The payment is the responsibility of the Buyer and is essential for the Carriers to carry out the customs import procedures on behalf of and at the expense of the Buyer.
The Buyer must pay the final purchase price, which will include the product price, shipping costs, and import costs. The final purchase price of a product of international origin will be indicated in the purchase flow, which starts upon clicking the “Buy” button and ends with the purchase confirmation notice.
In the case of returning a product of international origin, the Buyer may be considered an exporter from Colombia and, consequently, must comply with all current export regulations. When the return is due to reasons attributable to Mercado Libre or the Seller, we will refund the Import Costs; otherwise, these costs may not be refundable.
2.3. International shipments
International shipmentsof the products will be made through national and international transportation and logistics service providers, and/or courier, parcel, postal, and courier companies (the "Carriers") that maintain commercial relationships with Mercado Libre or the Foreign Seller.
Users authorize the Carriers and/or Mercado Libre to carry out, on their own account and on their behalf, the customs formalities, the preparation and presentation of the necessary documentation in each case, and the payment of import duties, fees, and other corresponding taxes.
International shipments will be governed by the Envios Terms and Conditions, except for:
- The home pickup mechanism, which may be agreed upon in different ways between Foreign Sellers and Carriers;
- Anything related to the invoicing of the logistics and transportation service. In the case of international shipments, Mercado Libre will issue an invoice to the User corresponding to the amounts paid for this service;
- Any other particularity that is expressly stated in the product listings.
Users expressly and irrevocably authorize Mercado Libre to inform the Carriers of their personal data and all information related to shipments and/or products of international origin.
Mercado Libre mayrequest Foreign Sellers to provide a local address and/or an address in their country of origin to receive returns of products in the event of a cancellation of a purchase and sale of products of international origin.
Mercado Libre may charge Foreign Sellers the difference between (i) the shipping amount estimated by Mercado Libre’s service related to the shipments and charged to the corresponding User; and (ii) the actual shipping amount effectively reported by the Carrier. If applicable, Mercado Libre will recalculate such differences taking into account the actual shipping amount reported by the Carrier and the fees and conditions in effect at that time.
3. Use of Envios Full
The Foreign User may use the services of Mercado Libre's Distribution Centers in Mexico and/or the United States, in accordance with the provisions of the Envios Full Terms and Conditions and Envios Full in the United States (available for US Sellers).
4. Fees and Invoicing
When making a Purchase and Sale operation or using the services of the MELI Ecosystem, the Foreign User must pay a fee for the IT services provided by Mercado Libre. Mercado Libre will generate the corresponding invoices for these costs with any of its affiliated companies.
Check more information about the applicable selling fees in the FAQ.
5. Sanctions Use of Mercado Ads
The use of Mercado Ads services by the Foreign User is governed by the provisions set forth in the Terms and Conditions for Contracting Mercado Ads.
6. Sanctions
The Foreign User's transactions are subject to the prohibitions and sanctions set forth in the Terms and Conditions of the Mercado Libre websites where they are carried. Mercado Libre may warn, suspend, restrict, or temporarily or permanently deactivate or shut down the Foreign User’s account across all websites if the Foreign User infringes any law, the Terms and Conditions, and/or the specific rules for using Mercado Libre’s services.
7. Personal Data
At Mercado Libre, we protect the privacy and personal details of all Users in accordance with the applicable personal data protection legislation.
If you are a Buyer and want to know more about how we protect your personal data, please Mercado Libre Privacy Statement.
If youare a Foreign User, please check: (i) Privacy Statement for US-based Sellers; and/or (ii) Privacy Statement for China-based Seller.
3. Special considerations for Colombia
8.1. International Purchase
In compliance with the regulations in force in Colombia for operations of this nature, the International Purchase is subject to the contracting of the services of customs agents for shipments not exceeding USD 2,000 (two thousand dollars of the United States of America), in accordance with the provisions of Decree 1165 of 2019. For the foregoing, the Buyer hereby grants power to Mercado Libre and to POSTAL & PARCEL MAILAMERICAS INC S.A. and BRINGER S.A. so that the latter may appoint the customs agent and any other necessary steps for the nationalization and delivery of the goods subject of the International Purchase.
7. Price
The ForeingUser expressly and irrevocably designates and authorizes Mercado Libre Colombia Ltda, Mercado Pago Ltda and/or Global Selling, LLC and/or any of their related companies (collectively "Mercado Libre") and/or their local banking partners in the country, to act as its agents for the limited purpose of receiving, withholding and settling payments to each Seller, deducting any amount owed to Mercado Libre, in accordance with these Terms and Conditions. The Foreign User agrees that it shall not have any claim against the Buyers for the payment of the products and that it may only claim the settlement of such payments from Mercado Libre.
7. Buyer´s Representations and Obligations
The Buyer shall make an International Purchase of a good of foreign origin that will be legally imported into the country. The payment mechanism used (payment in Colombian pesos) is authorized in Article 70 of Resolution 1 of 2018 of the Board of Directors of Banco de la República, regulated in point 3.1.1. of Chapter 3 of Circular DCIN 83 of the International Exchange Department of the same entity.
The Buyer is responsible for complying with the applicable exchange regulation, including ensuring that the payment is made from a financial institution qualified as an Exchange Market Intermediary and filing the exchange declaration for imports of goods (previously form No. 1) with such entity.
If you are unsure about which entities qualify as an Exchange Market Intermediary, please check the following link.
The buyer must keep the relevant information abd the exchange statement for imports described in item viii for a term not less than five (5) years in case it is required by the National Tac and Customs Directorade and other exchange control authorities.
8.4. Significant Economic Presence
If, in the previous year or the current year, you sell goods or provide services to Colombia for an amount exceeding 31,300 UVT (Tax Value Unit) (UVT 2024 = COP 47,065; UVT 2023 = COP 42,412; this value is updated on January 1st each year), you qualify as having a Significant Economic Presence (PES) in Colombia and are required to pay taxes on these earnings in Colombia.
This means that Mercadopago Colombia Ltda. (Mercadopago) or the applicable withholding agent will apply a 10% withholding tax on the total amount of each payment. This withholding tax does NOT apply if (1) your sales during that period do not exceed 31,300 UVT, or (2) you are registered with the National Tax and Customs Directorate (DIAN) as responsible for Significant Economic Presence (PES) and pay the tax directly at a rate of 3% on your total income.
To this end, before January 31 of each year, you must certify under penalty of perjury to the email address notificacionestributarias@mercadolibre.com.co, indicating that your sales did not exceed 31,300 UVT in the previous year or that you are registered with the National Tax and Customs Directorate (DIAN) as responsible for PES, by attaching your Unique Tax Registration (RUT) issued by DIAN.
Despite the above, the user authorizes Mercadopago or the withholding agent to apply the 10% withholding tax if it is determined that sales exceeded the specified amount during the relevant period.