Andean Court upholds Colombia’s compulsory license for HIV treatment

On 27 April 2026, the Court of Justice of the Andean Community dismissed the action brought by ViiV Healthcare Company and Shionogi & Co., Ltd. against Colombia regarding the compulsory license for dolutegravir, an HIV treatment drug. 

 The dispute arose from actions taken by the Colombian authorities between 2023 and 2024. In October 2023, the Ministry of Health declared that there were public interest grounds to grant a compulsory license for medicines containing dolutegravir. In January 2024, the Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio (SIC) began the process and, on 23 April 2024, granted the Ministry of Health a compulsory license for government use by Resolution 20049.  

The discussion focused on the duration of the license. ViiV and Shionogi claimed that Colombia had violated Article 65 of Decision 486 because the license’s validity depended on the ongoing existence of public interest grounds. However, the SIC resolution set several limits: the license would remain in force while the patent was valid, while public health grounds remained, and while certain procedural conditions were met. In any case, it would expire no later than 28 April 2026. 

The Andean Court of Justice considered that this formula determined the license’s duration. Although Article 65 requires the grant period to be specified, it does not stipulate that a fixed date must be set from the outset, as long as objective and verifiable criteria can be used to determine when the measure continues or ceases.