Legal Bulletin | Decree 1390 of 2025 – State of Economic and Social Emergency in Colombia

Guerrero Ruiz | Legal
Jan 7
3 min read

Decree 1390 of 2025 – State of Economic and Social Emergency in Colombia

Date: December 22, 2025

Authority: Presidency of the Republic

Constitutional basis: Article 215 of the Political Constitution

Validity: thirty (30) calendar days

1. Declaration of a state of emergency

Through Decree 1390 of 2025, the national government declared a State of Economic and Social Emergency throughout the national territory , considering that there are supervening, extraordinary and unforeseeable events that seriously and directly affect the economic, fiscal and social stability of the country, and that cannot be averted through the use of the ordinary powers of the State.

The declaration is adopted based on Article 215 of the Political Constitution and within the framework of constitutional jurisprudence that requires reinforced motivation , both in the identification of the facts and in the justification of the need, connection and proportionality of the exceptional measures.

2. Facts and circumstances that support the emergency

The decree identifies a cumulative set of structural and situational factors , among which the following stand out:

Deterioration of fiscal balance , reflected in the sustained growth of the deficit and public debt, as well as in the rigidity of public spending and the increase in inflexible spending.
Inadequacy of the medium-term fiscal framework , aggravated by the non-approval of the financing bill and by restrictions derived from the fiscal rule.
Severe pressures on social spending , particularly in the health, energy and care sectors for vulnerable populations.
Impact of natural disasters associated with the current winter season , which demand immediate resources for humanitarian aid, reconstruction and infrastructure.
Outstanding judicial and administrative obligations that compromise the financial sustainability of the State and the guarantee of fundamental rights.
Adverse international economic context , characterized by high interest rates, financial volatility, global economic slowdown and restrictions on access to financing.

3. Critical sectors identified

The Government highlights the following areas as particularly affected :

General Social Security System in Health , due to structural resource insufficiency, increased cost of the UPC and liquidity tensions.
Public electricity service , given the fiscal burden of subsidies to strata 1, 2 and 3, the deficit of the Price Stabilization Fund and the risks to the continuity of the service.
Territorial finances , due to the impact of concurrent obligations, natural disasters and budget constraints.
Disaster response and risk management , due to the magnitude of recent climate events.

4. Scope of the exceptional powers

During the state of emergency, the national government is authorized to:

To issue decrees with the force of law , exclusively intended to address the crisis and prevent the spread of its effects.
Adopt tax, budgetary, financial and administrative measures , provided they are directly and specifically related to the causes of the emergency.
Establish exceptional mechanisms for financing , budget reallocation and management of public spending.
Implement immediate actions to guarantee the provision of essential public services and the protection of fundamental rights.

The decree reiterates that these measures will be subject to automatic constitutional review by the Constitutional Court and political oversight by the Congress of the Republic.

5. Express constitutional limits

Decree 1390 emphasizes that the measures adopted must respect:

Human rights and fundamental freedoms .
The principles of legality, necessity, proportionality, and connection .
The prohibition of diminishing social rights and suspending essential judicial guarantees.
The strict temporality of the state of exception.

6. Final considerations

The declaration of the State of Economic and Social Emergency through Decree 1390 of 2025 creates an exceptional legal scenario of high relevance , with direct impacts on fiscal policy, the budgetary regime, public services and economic activity in general.

The measures adopted in response to this emergency will be crucial not only for addressing the immediate crisis, but also for shaping the fiscal and regulatory framework for 2026 , which requires strict technical and legal monitoring by the public and private sectors.

Download here our Sectoral Early Warning on the declaration of the State of Economic and Social Emergency