During the 19th century, different types of illegal trade became widely spread activities all over the territory that today constitutes Colombia. Given that government policies affected illegal trade, the purpose of this article is to examine how the configuration of 19th century State had repercussions on the development and persistence of opportunities for smuggling. In order to achieve this objective, two complementary theoretical positions regarding State management are analized. On the one hand, the Neoinstitutionalist theory, and on the other, opportunity surplus. Finally, as an exercise meant to evaluate the proposed theoretical approaches, the case of gold smuggling in Antioquia during the first half of the 19th Century is analyzed.