Colloidal forces outside the microscopic probe (particle)-substrate adhesion contact area were analyzed theoretically. Equations describing the van der Waals, electrical double layer, and hydrophobic forces were derived for the non-contact area of a probe-substrate system assuming a simple sphere-flat geometry. Two cases were considered: particles freely resting on the substrate surface and particles pulling off the substrate. The results of modeling presented in this communication suggest that the adhesion of fine particles ( microscopic and sub-microscopic particles) to flat surfaces can be affected by the forces acting outside the contact area. However, due to increased distance between the particle and substrate during separation, both the van der Waals and electrostatic forces acting outside the contact area are negligibly small compared to the short-range adhesion forces and they do not contribute to the measured pull-off force to any great extent for most systems. On the contrary, our calculations suggest that the long-range hydrophobic forces can contribute to the strength of adhesion between hydrophobic fine particles and hydrophobic substrates. (C) Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2009