For the first time in the country’s constitutional history, the Constitutional Court (Corte Constitucional) has ordered the provisional suspension (suspensión provisional) of a legislative decree while conducting a full review of its constitutionality (exequibilidad). By a six to two vote, the Court provisionally suspended Legislative Decree 1390 of 2025 (Decreto Legislativo 1390 de 2025), through which the Government sought to declare a nationwide State of Economic and Social Emergency (Estado de Emergencia Económica y Social). The stated objective was to prevent allegedly irreversible tax related harm arising from measures adopted under this exceptional regime.
As a direct consequence of the suspension of Decree 1390 of 2025, the Court further ordered that implementing Decree 1474 of 2025 (Decreto 1474 de 2025) shall likewise produce no legal effects until a final decision is rendered on the constitutionality of the parent decree.
This ruling marks a watershed moment. It is the first time the Court has operationalized its authority to exercise preventive and effective judicial review over decrees issued during states of exception. Historically, such review was subsequent and automatic. The Court grounded this expanded authority in a jurisprudential development based on a broad interpretation of Articles 241 and 4 of the Constitution (Constitución Política), revisiting and refining the precedent established in Order 272 of 2023 (Auto 272 de 2023).
By invoking provisional suspension, the Court sought to safeguard institutional balance. The objective was clear. To prevent the Executive from temporarily displacing Congress in its exclusive constitutional authority over taxation. The Full Chamber (Sala Plena) determined that it was necessary to halt the exercise of this exceptional power in order to avoid materially irreversible consequences associated with the collection of immediately effective taxes that, under ordinary procedures, would have required congressional approval.
Although the full text of Order 082 of 2026 (Auto 082 de 2026) has not yet been published, the Court announced the operative portion of the decision through Press Release 01 of January 29, 2026 (Comunicado 01 del 29 de enero de 2026):
“FIRST. TO PROVISIONALLY SUSPEND Legislative Decree 1390 of December 22, 2025, ‘whereby the State of Economic and Social Emergency is declared throughout the national territory,’ until the Full Chamber of the Constitutional Court renders a final decision.”
The decision establishes a foundational precedent. When extraordinary measures are adopted by the Executive under states of exception, the other branches of government must continue to operate without displacement. The system of checks and balances remains a core constitutional guarantee.
Upon publication of the final order, greater clarity is expected regarding the scope, reasoning, and doctrinal framework the Court has applied to provisional suspension in this context. The ruling preserves constitutional order. At the same time, it underscores a structural reality. Many of the conditions invoked by the Government are foreseeable and systemic in nature. They require durable legislative solutions, not temporary emergency instruments.
