Before you can apply for your Registro Nacional de Turismo (RNT), the DIAN requires an active lodging economic activity on your RUT. For most urban Airbnb and Booking hosts, that code is 5519. Here's what it means, when a different code applies instead, and how to update it.
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This code covers short-stay tourist lodging without the formal infrastructure of a hotel — exactly the category an Airbnb or Booking apartment or house falls into in an urban area.
The CIIU (Clasificación Industrial Internacional Uniforme) is the catalog the DIAN uses to identify your economic activity. When you file for the RNT, the platform checks that the tourism activity you declare matches an active CIIU code on your RUT — if they don't match, the registration doesn't go through. That's why 5519 needs to be on your RUT before you start the RNT process, not after.
The DIAN clarified the scope of CIIU 5519 (with an update deadline of June 30, 2021) to cover informal temporary lodging without hotel-style infrastructure: using a home, or part of one, to host visitors, with or without shared common areas. It's the description that best fits an Airbnb or Booking apartment in the city — unlike a hotel, an aparthotel, or rural lodging, which each have their own codes.
If your operation isn't a simple urban apartment, a different code may apply instead of — or alongside — 5519:
| Code | Activity | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| 5511 | Hotel accommodation | Establishments with reception, an independent entrance, and rooms with private bathrooms |
| 5512 | Aparthotel accommodation | Several independent apartments under a single management and operation |
| 5513 | Vacation resort accommodation | Vacation complexes with their own recreational services |
| 5514 | Rural accommodation | Farms and tourist lodging outside the urban perimeter |
| 5519 | Other types of lodging for visitors | Airbnb/Booking apartments or houses in urban areas — most hosts |
| 5530 | Hourly-stay service | Motels — doesn't apply to an Airbnb-style tourist rental |
| 6820 | Real estate activities (leasing) | Long-term residential leasing — not tourism, doesn't qualify you for the RNT |
Do you manage several apartments under one company, with centralized operations? 5512 might apply to you instead of (or alongside) 5519. If in doubt, check with your accountant or Chamber of Commerce before filing for the RNT.
See whether you already have a lodging economic activity registered. If you only have activities unrelated to tourism, you need to update it before applying for the RNT.
This is done online through the DIAN portal if you have an electronic signature, or in person at a DIAN service point. Add 5519 as an economic activity — it can be a secondary activity if you already have a different primary one.
Download your updated RUT and verify that 5519 appears in the economic activities section.
With your RUT updated, you can start your Registro Nacional de Turismo application on the RNT platform (Confecámaras), where you'll declare the same tourism activity.
You can register more than one CIIU code if you offer other services (bike rentals or tours, for example). That doesn't replace 5519 — it just adds to it.
The CIIU code and the RNT are the entry point to your other obligations as a host: without an RNT you can't report the TRA or the SIRE, or adhere to the ESCNNA code of conduct. Once that base is in place, Rapitra takes care of automating what does repeat with every guest.
Automate TRA and SIRE with RapitraIt's a risk: if the DIAN or MinCIT cross-check your information and the economic activity doesn't match the tourism activity, your RNT could be called into question. The safest move is to update your RUT as soon as possible, even if your RNT is already active.
Yes, 5519 doesn't depend on the city — it depends on the type of lodging (informal, without hotel-style infrastructure). What does change is if your property is rural, in which case 5514 applies instead of 5519.
Yes. It doesn't need to be your primary activity to qualify you for the RNT — it just needs to be active on your RUT.
It's not required, but if you've never done it before or your tax situation is more complex (multiple properties, a company instead of an individual), it's worth doing with the help of an accountant or your Chamber of Commerce.
No. They're two separate processes with two separate entities (the DIAN and the RNT/Confecámaras). You need the CIIU active on your RUT before filing or updating each property in the RNT.
Update your RUT with code 5519, apply for your RNT, and let Rapitra handle the TRA and SIRE for every guest.
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