Guide by profile
Relocate your business to Panama
How to operate or relocate your business to Panama legally: companies, territorial taxation, special regimes, hiring staff and annual obligations.
- 14 procedure guides
- 20 guides
- Backed by Panamanian lawyers
In short
Panama combines a territorial tax system, special regimes for international companies and a dollar-based economy. Here are the steps to operate from Panama legally and with real substance.
Before you move your company
- Define what activity you will carry out from Panama and for which clients: that determines how it is taxed.
- Choose the structure: a Panamanian corporation, a branch of your current company or a special regime, such as the multinational headquarters regime, the Colón Free Zone or Panamá Pacífico.
- Plan real activity in Panama: an office, staff and management of the business. Without it, your home country may still consider the company taxable there.
- Plan for the ongoing obligations: business license, tax registration, accounting and electronic invoicing.
Relocating a company is legal tax planning, not a way to hide income: Panama exchanges tax information with other countries.
Frequently asked questions
Is it true that a Panamanian company pays no taxes?
It pays tax on its Panamanian-source income. Income from activities carried out outside Panama is generally not taxed there, but where the service is provided or the business is managed is decisive, and your home country has its own rules.
What is the aviso de operación?
It is the registration that allows you to carry out a commercial or industrial activity in Panama. It is filed online through Panamá Emprende after the company has been incorporated.
Do I need to live in Panama to have a company there?
Not to incorporate it, but actually managing it from Panama is usually necessary for the move to have tax effects in your home country. To live in Panama you also need your own residency.
What currency is used in Panama?
The US dollar, which circulates alongside the balboa, Panama's own currency, at the same value. If your income arrives in another currency, plan for exchange and transfer fees.
Do I need to speak Spanish to have a company in Panama?
Spanish is the official language: the articles of incorporation, Public Registry filings and procedures with the tax authority (DGI) and Panamá Emprende are in Spanish, and foreign documents need an official translation. In the capital's business community it is common to work in English as well.
What you need to know, by topic
Immigration and citizenship
See allGuide
Panamanian Citizenship and Dual Citizenship for Foreigners
How a foreigner becomes a Panamanian citizen, what naturalization requires, whether you keep your original citizenship and how it compares to residency.
Read the guideGuide
Panama Embassies and Consulates: What to Do Before You Travel
What Panama's embassies and consulates do, when you need a visa and how to prepare your residency documents at home: apostille, legalization, translation.
Read the guideGuide
Do You Need a Visa to Enter Panama? Requirements by Nationality
Which nationalities can enter Panama without a visa, which need a stamped or authorized visa, how long you can stay as a tourist and what the visa requires.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Panama Residency Through Family Reunification: Spouse, Children and Parents
Panama residency through family reunification for the spouse of a Panamanian, dependents of a resident and parents of Panamanian children: rules and fees.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Panama Friendly Nations Visa
Which nationalities qualify, what economic tie it requires (a job or an investment), requirements, documents and steps for Panama's Friendly Nations residency.
Read the guideGuide
Panama Immigration: Dealing with the National Immigration Service
How immigration works in Panama: what the National Immigration Service handles, how to apply for residency and what to expect during the process.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Naturalization in Panama: How to Apply for Panamanian Citizenship
How to apply for Panamanian citizenship by naturalization: years of residence for your case, renunciation, solvency, the Electoral Tribunal exam and oath.
Read the guideGuide
Panama Visa Options: Which Residency Visa Fits You?
Every main Panama residency visa side by side: who it is for, the minimum income or investment, whether it is permanent and whether it lets you work.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Permanent Residency in Panama: From Provisional Permit to Foreigner ID Card
How to move from provisional to permanent residency in Panama, which documents you submit, how to get the foreigner ID card and what needs renewing.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Panama Police Record (Récord Policivo) for Foreigners
What Panama's police record is, why a foreign resident may need it, which documents the DIJ requires, how to apply and how long it is valid.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Panama Work Permit for Foreigners
Which work permit a foreigner needs to work in Panama based on their residency, which documents MITRADEL requires, how to apply and how long the card lasts.
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Taxes
See allGuide
Panama Double Tax Treaties and Exchange of Information
What double tax treaties are, how they apply, what happens if your country has no treaty with Panama and what tax information Panama exchanges.
Read the guideProcedure guide
RUC and NIT in Panama: Registering with the Tax Authority as a Foreigner
How a foreigner gets a RUC or Taxpayer Number (NT) and the NIT to log in to the DGI's e-Tax 2.0: who needs it, requirements and steps. Free and online.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Panama Tax Residency Certificate: How to Apply
How to request Panama's tax residency certificate from the DGI to apply a treaty or prove your residency: requirements, e-Tax 2.0 and processing time.
Read the guideGuide
Tax Residency in Panama
The difference between immigration and tax residency, how tax residency in Panama is proven and what to check in your home country.
Read the guideGuide
Panama's Territorial Tax System
How territorial taxation and income tax work in Panama: which income is taxed, what other taxes exist and what changes if you move from another country.
Read the guide
Business and employment
See allGuide
Annual Obligations of a Panamanian Corporation
What a Panamanian corporation must do every year: annual flat fee, registered agent, accounting, beneficial owners and taxes if it operates in Panama.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Panama Business License (Aviso de Operación)
What the aviso de operación is, who needs it, how to get it through Panamá Emprende and what tax it carries.
Read the guideGuide
Colón Free Zone: Trade and Re-export from Panama
What the Colón Free Zone is, which activities it allows, what customs and tax advantages it offers and what a foreign company needs to operate there.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Registering as an Employer with Panama's Social Security Fund (CSS)
When to register as an employer with Panama's Social Security Fund (CSS), which documents you need and how to report contributions on SIPE.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Registering a Branch of a Foreign Company in Panama
How a foreign company registers a branch in Panama's Public Registry: parent company documents, assigned capital, tax registration and when to use a subsidiary.
Read the guideGuide
How to Form a Corporation (Sociedad Anónima) in Panama
How to start a company in Panama with a corporation: who forms it, the steps involved, what it costs to maintain and what obligations it has.
Read the guideGuide
Hiring Employees in Panama
How to hire workers in Panama: contracts, minimum wage, thirteenth-month pay, vacation, CSS contributions, foreign staff and severance.
Read the guideGuide
Panamá Pacífico: Special Economic Area for Companies
What the Panamá Pacífico Special Economic Area is, which activities it accepts, what tax, customs and immigration incentives it offers and what it requires.
Read the guideGuide
Panama SEM Regime: Multinational Company Headquarters
What Panama's Multinational Company Headquarters (SEM) regime is, which groups qualify and what tax and immigration advantages it offers.
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Estate planning and inheritance
See allLiving in Panama
See allProcedure guide
Bank Reference Letter for Procedures in Panama
What the bank reference letter Panama's Immigration and banks ask for is, what «medium four figures» means, how long it is valid and how to legalize it.
Read the guideGuide
Panama's Currency: The Balboa and the US Dollar
What currency is used in Panama, why the balboa and the US dollar circulate together and what a dollarized economy means for your income, savings and transfers.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Declaring Cash When Entering or Leaving Panama
When you must declare cash and other monetary instruments at Panama's border, how to fill in the traveler's sworn declaration and what happens if you don't.
Read the guideProcedure guide
Panama Driver's License for Foreigners: Converting Your License
How long you can drive in Panama on a foreign license and how to convert it at Sertracen once you are a resident: requirements, steps and cost.
Read the guideGlossary
Glossary of Panamanian Legal Terms and Procedures
What the Spanish terms in Panama's procedures mean: cédula E, paz y salvo, RUC, NIT, apostille, registered agent, possessory rights and more.
Read the guideGuide
Health Insurance and the Social Security Fund (CSS) for Foreigners in Panama
Who is covered by Panama's Social Security Fund, what options a foreigner who does not pay contributions has and what to check before buying health insurance.
Read the guideGuide
Opening a Bank Account in Panama as a Foreigner
Which documents Panamanian banks ask foreigners for, what due diligence involves and what to consider before opening an account.
Read the guideGuide
Relocating to Panama: A Step-by-Step Checklist
A step-by-step checklist to relocate to Panama legally: choose your residency, prepare documents, file with a lawyer, then banking, housing and health.
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