Colombia's prima de servicios: how to calculate it and the December 20 deadline
Colombia's prima de servicios is calculated employee by employee, on a base that mixes salary, the transport allowance and variable pay, and its second installment is due on December 20. This guide covers the formula, the cases most often miscalculated and the deadline, with examples built on the 2026 minimum wage.
Every December, a finance team in Colombia finds out that the prima de servicios is not paid as one company-wide figure but employee by employee: one person joined in September, another earns commissions, another sits right at the edge of the transport allowance. A small error in the base, repeated across 40 contracts, becomes a labor claim and a cash gap days before the deadline.
At Soulbit Academy we explain how the prima de servicios is calculated and when it falls due, with examples so an SMB with 10 to 100 employees can settle it without surprises. This article focuses on the individual calculation; to set cash aside month by month, see prima and aguinaldo provisioning.
What the prima de servicios is and when it is paid: June 30 and December 20
The prima de servicios is a statutory benefit equal to 30 days of pay per year, which the employer pays in two installments: the first by June 30 and the second by December 20. Article 306 of Colombia's Labor Code, amended by Law 1788 of 2016, sets both dates.
Each installment covers one half-year. The June payment covers January to June and the December payment covers July to December. As of October 2026, the installment due on December 20 has been accruing for almost four months, and anything that changes the pay base before year end changes its value.
Why is December 20 the date that strains cash the most?
December 20 squeezes cash because it overlaps with December payroll, year end supplier payments and the start of a slower sales season in several sectors. The December installment also puts a full half-year of prima for the whole team on a single date. That is why the individual calculation should be ready by late November, not in deadline week.
How to calculate the prima de servicios: formula, pay base and days worked
The prima for one half-year equals the monthly pay base multiplied by the days worked in the half-year and divided by 360. A full half-year counts as 180 days, so the result is half a month of base pay: 15 days of pay per installment, 30 per year.
The formula has three steps. First, set the monthly base: salary, plus the transport allowance when the employee qualifies. Second, count the days worked in the half-year using the commercial convention of 30 days per month. Third, multiply the base by those days and divide by 360.
The 2026 transport allowance is COP 249,095 a month under Decree 1470 of 2025, and it goes to anyone earning up to two minimum wages. The 2026 monthly minimum wage is COP 1,750,905 under Decree 1469 of 2025. The two-minimum-wage threshold is therefore COP 3,501,810: whoever earns that amount or less adds the allowance to the base, and whoever earns more does not.
The examples below are illustrative assumptions, not real cases or Soulbit figures.
Example 1: minimum wage, full half-year. An employee earns COP 1,750,905 and qualifies for the COP 249,095 allowance. Her base is COP 2,000,000. Prima: 2,000,000 x 180 / 360 = COP 1,000,000.
Example 2: salary above two minimum wages. An engineer earns COP 5,000,000 and gets no allowance. His base is COP 5,000,000. Prima: 5,000,000 x 180 / 360 = COP 2,500,000.
Example 3: hired mid-half-year. A coordinator starts on October 1 on COP 3,000,000 plus the allowance. Her base is COP 3,249,095 and she worked 90 days. Prima: 3,249,095 x 90 / 360 = COP 812,274 rounded.
| Case (assumptions) | Monthly base | Days in half-year | December prima |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum wage, full half-year | 2,000,000 (allowance included) | 180 | 1,000,000 |
| Salary of 5,000,000, no allowance | 5,000,000 | 180 | 2,500,000 |
| Hired October 1, 3,000,000 plus allowance | 3,249,095 | 90 | 812,274 |
| Exit on November 15, salary of 4,200,000, no allowance | 4,200,000 | 135 | 1,575,000 |
Prima de servicios on variable pay: averages, commissions and surcharges
When an employee has variable pay, the prima base is the average earned across the half-year, not the last month. That is the usual settlement practice, and it should be confirmed with labor counsel because each contract mixes different pay items.
The base includes whatever counts as salary: ordinary pay, commissions, overtime with its surcharges and night, Sunday and holiday surcharges. It excludes sums the employer pays occasionally as a gift, which Article 128 of the Labor Code keeps out of the concept of salary.
Two 2026 changes push the base up in the second half of the year. Law 2466 of 2025 raises the Sunday and holiday surcharge to 90% from July 1, 2026 and cuts the maximum workweek to 42 hours from July 15, 2026, which moves the hourly rate and overtime. A company that settles the December prima with first-half surcharges understates the installment. Those changes are covered in the employer checklist for the labor reform.
Hypothetical example: a salesperson with a COP 1,800,000 base salary and commissions averaging COP 900,000 a month over the half-year. Average pay is COP 2,700,000, below COP 3,501,810, so the allowance of COP 249,095 is added. Base: 2,949,095. Prima: 2,949,095 x 180 / 360 = COP 1,474,548 rounded.
Who is entitled to the prima de servicios and who is not
Every employee under a labor contract is entitled to the prima de servicios, whether the contract is fixed term, indefinite or for a specific task, and whatever the working hours. Law 1788 of 2016 expressly extended it to domestic workers. Part-time employees receive it in proportion to what they earned.
Two common cases require different treatment:
- The service contractor. There is no subordination, so there are no social benefits. If the relationship is in practice subordinated, the law treats it as employment and the prima can be claimed retroactively. That exposure is explained in independent contractors in Colombia.
- The employee on integral salary. Article 132 of the Labor Code allows it when ordinary pay exceeds ten minimum wages, and it compensates benefits in advance. Apprentices are not a blanket exclusion. Article 21 of Law 2466 of 2025 defines apprenticeship as a special fixed-term employment contract. During the practical phase, or throughout dual training, the law grants statutory employment benefits, including the prima. Ask a labor adviser how to calculate the relevant period and apply the rule to each contract; context is in apprenticeship contract and labor reform.
Prima de servicios at exit and proportional payment
When a contract ends before December 20, the prima for the current half-year is settled in proportion to days worked and paid with the final settlement. It does not wait for the December date.
The calculation is the same: monthly base times days worked from July 1 to the last day of the contract, divided by 360. In the fourth row of Table 1, an employee on COP 4,200,000 who leaves on November 15 accrues 135 days and receives COP 1,575,000. The prima is one line of the final settlement; the rest, such as severance and vacation, is covered in terminating an employee in Colombia.
What happens if the final settlement is paid late?
Article 65 of the Labor Code provides that, if at the end of the contract the employer does not pay the wages and benefits owed, it must pay as compensation an amount equal to the last daily wage for each day of delay, for up to 24 months. How it applies depends on the case and the judge's assessment, and part of the text was struck down in Ruling C-781 of 2003. For delay during an ongoing contract, the cited provision sets no equivalent penalty that this article can state.
What happens if the prima is paid late and how to control the risk
Not paying the prima by December 20 is a labor breach that the employee can raise before the Ministry of Labor or a labor judge. If the contract also ends with the prima unpaid, the Article 65 compensation described above comes into play.
There is also an enforcement risk that builds up quietly. The social security enforcement agency (UGPP) can audit contributions on salary payments up to five years back, and a miscalculated prima base often signals an equally miscalculated contribution base. The control is simple: reconcile the prima base with the contribution base every year.
These are the three most frequent settlement errors:
- Leaving the transport allowance out of the base for an employee earning up to two minimum wages.
- Using the last salary instead of the average when there are commissions or surcharges.
- Counting the half-year in calendar months instead of days, which skews mid-period hires and exits.
| Date | What happens | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| By end of November | Close hires, exits and variable pay for the half-year and calculate the prima per employee | Payroll and finance |
| First week of December | Approve the individual settlement and set aside the total amount | Finance |
| By December 20 | Pay the second prima de servicios installment | Employer |
| At an employee's exit | Settle the proportional prima with the final settlement | Payroll |
| January | File support documents and reconcile with the contribution base | Accounting |
Where Soulbit Salaries fits after the prima calculation
Soulbit does not calculate the prima de servicios, run payroll or replace the employer's payroll software. The calculation, the base and the approval stay with the company and its labor counsel.
The V1 scope starts after the calculation: Soulbit Salaries is designed to disburse already calculated and approved payments in bulk, with institutional MPC custody, Colombian local banking rails and human support. The flow for paying payroll from a stablecoin balance is described in paying payroll with stablecoins and COP in Colombia.
Some limits deserve plain wording. Soulbit is a custodial platform, not a bank, and does not offer bank accounts. Paying a statutory benefit such as the prima to an employee in stablecoin has not been validated, so the payment method needs review with labor counsel. Soulbit's mobile apps should not be treated as available until they are published in the app stores. This article promises neither a price advantage nor automatic conversion to fiat.
Frequently asked questions
What is the prima de servicios formula in Colombia?
The prima for one half-year equals the monthly pay base multiplied by the days worked in that half-year and divided by 360. The base is salary plus the transport allowance when the employee qualifies for it. A full half-year counts as 180 days, so the result is half a month of base pay.
What is the deadline to pay the December prima de servicios?
The second installment must be paid no later than December 20, under Article 306 of Colombia's Labor Code. The first installment is due by June 30. An employer whose December payroll runs after the 20th has to move the prima payment forward to meet the deadline.
Does an employee on integral salary receive the prima de servicios?
Not as a separate payment. The integral salary of Article 132 of the Labor Code compensates social benefits in advance, and the prima is one of them. The employer must make sure the integral arrangement meets the legal requirements, because if it does not, the employee can claim the benefits.
How is the prima calculated for an employee paid commissions?
When pay is variable, the base is the average earned during the half-year, not the last month. Payments that count as salary, such as commissions and overtime with surcharges, are included. Occasional payments made as a gift of the employer are not salary under Article 128 of the Labor Code.
Does Soulbit calculate the prima de servicios?
No. Soulbit does not calculate the prima, run payroll or replace the employer's payroll software. Soulbit Salaries disperses payments that the company has already calculated and approved, and paying a statutory benefit to an employee in stablecoin has not been validated, so confirm it with your labor counsel.
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