Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio

The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC) is a public authority and a technical agency attached to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism of Colombia. It is organized into six principal divisions (named “Deputy Superintendences”), each headed by a Deputy Superintendent: Competition Protection, Consumer Protection, Personal Data Protection, Industrial Property, Technical Regulation and Legal Metrology, and Judicial Affairs.

The duties and faculties of the SIC are stablished in Decree 4886 of 2011, article 1, and some of the most important are: 

• Advise the Government and participate in the formulation of policies on all matters having to do with consumer protection, promotion and protection of competition, industrial property rights, personal data protection, legal metrology and technical regulations, and related areas;
• As the National Competition Authority, ensure compliance with legal provisions related to this area in national markets;
• Conduct claims or complaints by events that affect competition in all markets, and process those that are significant to achieve, in particular, the following purposes: free participation of enterprises in the market, consumer welfare and economic efficiency.
• Impose, based on the law and in accordance with the applicable procedure, penalties for the violation of any of the provisions of competition protection and unfair competition, and for not complying with instructions issued in performance of its functions.
• Order, as a precautionary measure, the immediate suspension of conducts that may be contrary to provisions on competition protection and unfair competition.
• Order the modification or termination of the conducts that are contrary to provisions on competition protection and unfair competition.
• Grant benefits for collaborating with the SIC under the Competition Protection Law (Leniency Program).
• Submit, when deemed appropriate, a previous concept of State regulation projects that may have an effect on competition in the markets.(Competition Advocacy).
• Decide, on the terms of law, mergers or acquisitions, whatever the economic sector or the legal form of the proposed operation is.
• Exercise control and surveillance upon the Chambers of Commerce, their federations and confederations, in accordance to the existing provisions on the matter, and coordinate all issues related to the trade registry.
• Ensure compliance with the provisions on consumer protection, and conduct those claims and complaints, whose jurisdiction has not been ascribed to another authority, in order to establish the corresponding administrative responsibilities and order pertinent measures.
• Impose sanctions that according to law result from the violation of consumer protection laws, failure to comply with legal metrology, failure to comply with the technical standards whose supervision has been expressly assigned to the SIC, evaluation entities’ failure to comply with technical standards’ conformity, and failure to comply with the instructions issued in the performance of its functions.
• Perform the functions established in Act 1335 of 2009 and those modifying, supplementing or substituting such Act, that concern advertising, packaging, and the prohibition to promote and sponsor tobacco and its derivatives.
• Ensure, as established by law and the regulations issued by the Regulatory Commission for Communications, that the provisions related to consumers protection and users of telecommunication services are complied, and process any complaints and claims that may arise.
• Solve the appeals and complaints brought against rulings issued in first instance by telecommunication services providers.
• Impose, after conducting an investigation and in accordance with the applicable procedures, sanctions for the violation of rules on consumer protection and the regime of protection of telecommunication services’ users.
• Ensure compliance with the provisions governing consumer protection in connection with postal services and the postal services’ users, conduct the complaints and claims that may arise, and solve appeals or complaint that may be brought against decisions issued in first instance by the operators of such services.
• Carry out administrative investigations related to the protection of tourist services users, because of the infringement of Act 300 of 1996 and the rules amending or regulating it.
• Organize and instruct the manner in which legal metrology shall operate in Colombia.
• Exercise functions in connection with mandatory metrology at the national level.
• Exercise, directly or in coordination with other national authorities, control over weight and measures.
• Manage the National Industrial Property System and conduct and decide any issue related to it.
• Issue the regulations that, consistent with supranational provisions, fall under the jurisdiction of the national industrial property office.
• Carry out the judicial functions assigned by virtue of lay, through its Deputy Superintendences, internal Working Groups or officers assigned for these purposes by the Superintendent of Industry and Commerce, guaranteeing their independence and autonomy.
• Monitor operators, sources, and users of financial, credit, commercial and services’ information, and information with the same nature coming from third countries regarding personal data management activities, pursuant to Act 1266 of 2008, notwithstanding the jurisdiction of the Superintendence of Finance.
• Issue instructions on consumer protection, competition protection, industrial property, personal data management, and other areas under its supervision, establish the criteria to facilitate their compliance and define the procedures for their full application.