Panama digital nomad visa (2026)

Who can apply

Nationals of countries on Panama's restricted list must first obtain an authorized visa.

• Employed by a foreign company or self-employed with foreign clients
• Income from foreign sources of at least B/.36,000 a year
• International health insurance covering the stay
• Clean criminal record
• Already in Panama when the application is filed through a lawyer

Income requirement

You need to show at least US$36,000 per year (B/.36,000). Self-employed or contracted applicants need at least B/.36,000 a year from foreign sources; employees of a private foreign company need over US$3,000 a month paid from abroad.

Documents you need

• Notarized power of attorney and lawyer's application
• Certified passport copy and three passport photos
• Apostilled or legalized criminal record certificate and a health certificate
• International health insurance policy
• Bank income certificate and recent bank statement showing transfers
• Employer letter, or proof of the applicant's foreign company plus a sworn statement on clients and income

How to apply, step by step

1. Enter Panama (with an authorized visa if your nationality requires one)
2. Hire a Panamanian lawyer and gather apostilled documents
3. Lawyer files at the Special Procedures window of the National Migration Service
4. Pay the US$250 fee and wait for the decision

Where and how to apply

Executive Decree 198 of 7 May 2021, published in Gaceta Oficial No. 29290-A on 20 May 2021, created the Short Stay Visa as a Remote Worker within Panama's non-resident category. The deciding authority is the Servicio Nacional de Migración (SNM). According to the government investment portal PROPANAMA, the application is filed at the SNM headquarters' Ventanilla de Trámites Especiales (special procedures window). It is filed through an apoderado legal, a Panamanian lawyer acting under a notarized power of attorney, and the applicant must already be in Panama. The SNM's own checklist (PM18) adds that the power of attorney must include the names and nationalities of the applicant's parents. Panama has no consular or online route for this visa. Nationals of countries without a visa-waiver agreement, or of restricted nationalities, must first obtain an authorized visa to enter. Article 6 of the decree also subjects them to extra checks before approval. All documents issued abroad must meet article 247 of Executive Decree 320 of 2008, which in practice means an apostille or consular legalisation.

Timeline

1. Gather and legalise documents abroad Not stated officially
   Get the criminal record certificate, bank letters and company certificates apostilled or legalised under article 247 of Decree 320 before you travel. Documents issued abroad must meet that rule.
2. Enter Panama Not stated officially
   Enter under your normal visitor rules, or with an authorized visa if your nationality requires one. The application must be filed from inside Panama.
3. Sign the power of attorney and hire a lawyer Not stated officially
   The notarized power must name your parents and their nationalities. The lawyer prepares the application and the sworn declarations.
4. Lawyer files at the SNM special procedures window Not stated officially
   The fee of B/.250 is paid to the SNM. Applicants from restricted nationalities go through additional checks under article 6 of the decree.
5. Approval and carnet Not stated officially
   The visa is valid for nine months. The decree sets the cost of the corresponding carnet (ID card) at B/.50.
6. Request the single extension Before the 9 months end
   The extension runs another nine months. It needs the same documents as the first application, including fresh bank proof that income comes from abroad.

Proving your income

Decree 198 requires income from foreign sources of at least B/.36,000 a year (the balboa is at par with the US dollar), or the equivalent in another currency. Article 4 lists two ways to show that the money comes from abroad: a bank certification linking the payments to the declared job, or a statement from the foreign bank, or from a local bank, bearing the issuing bank's authentication stamps. The statement must show the transfers and link them to the declared work. Employees also need a certificate that the foreign company exists where it is registered, plus a letter on company letterhead signed by its legal representative. The letter gives the applicant's details, role and duties, and states a monthly income of at least B/.3,000 paid from abroad, with the payment frequency. It also confirms that the work is remote and that the company will pay for repatriation if needed. Self-employed applicants replace the company certificate and letter with a certificate of their own company registered abroad. They also give a sworn statement before a notary naming each client and describing the services, the amounts earned, the source of the funds and how often payments arrive. Foreign documents need an apostille or legalisation, and a Spanish translation is generally expected.

Bringing your family

Decree 198 and the SNM requirements checklist do not mention spouses, partners or children. Every requirement is written for the individual remote worker, and there is no higher income threshold for a family. Official sources therefore do not set out a dependant route under this visa. A partner who also works remotely for foreign employers or clients could apply in their own right with their own income, lawyer, fee and insurance. A partner or child without such work would need some other immigration status, and the remote worker decree does not describe one. Because the visa forbids accepting work or service offers from anyone in Panama, a family member could not use it as a basis for local employment. Before planning a family move, ask the SNM or a Panamanian immigration lawyer which category would cover accompanying relatives.

Health insurance

Article 2 of Decree 198 requires a copy of the applicant's health insurance policy. It must provide cover within Panama and remain in force for the whole stay. PROPANAMA describes it as an international health insurance policy. The decree sets no minimum cover amount and does not require a Panamanian insurer. Because the visa lasts nine months, the policy should run at least nine months from the expected approval date. If you plan to extend, renew it so that it also covers the second nine-month period, because the extension needs the same documents as the first application. Separately, the SNM checklist asks for a health certificate (certificado de salud). The official documents do not say who must issue it or how recent it must be, so ask the lawyer handling the file.

Cost and processing time

The fee is uS$250 paid to the National Migration Service (lawyer fees extra), plus B/.50 for the ID card. Processing takes not stated on official sources. Budget extra for translations, certified copies and health insurance.

After you arrive

• Collect the carnet (ID card) once the visa is approved. The decree sets its cost at B/.50, separate from the B/.250 application fee.
• Work only remotely for your foreign employer or clients. The decree says the visa lets you work remotely in Panama without any further permit, but you have sworn not to accept work or service offers from anyone in Panama.
• Do not represent your foreign company in local business. Article 7 of the decree says the visa is cancelled if you do.
• Count your days in Panama. Under article 762-N of the Código Fiscal, staying more than 183 days in a fiscal year makes you a Panamanian tax resident.
• Keep your health insurance and your bank records showing foreign income current, because the single extension needs the same documents as the first application.
• Plan your exit or a change of status before 18 months. The visa allows nine months plus one nine-month extension.

Tax

Decree 198 and the SNM requirements do not mention tax, and no official source reviewed grants remote workers a tax exemption. The tax residence test is in article 762-N of the Código Fiscal, quoted in Dirección General de Ingresos (DGI) Resolution 201-0354 of 2016. Individuals are tax residents if they stay in Panama for more than 183 days, continuous or not, in a fiscal year or in the year before it. They are also residents if Panama is where they have their permanent home. The DGI reads 'permanent home' as the centre of a person's vital economic or family interests. Simply having a rented or owned home available is not enough. A nine-month stay is roughly 270 days, so a holder who spends most of that time in Panama would normally pass the 183-day test. The official sources reviewed do not say whether pay for remote work done in Panama for foreign employers or clients counts as Panamanian-source income. Ask the DGI or a Panamanian tax adviser, and check your home country's rules on leaving tax residence.

Does it lead to permanent residence?

The remote worker visa sits in Panama's non-resident category. Executive Decree 320 of 2008, as amended by article 8 of Decree 198, describes short-stay visas as being for foreigners who enter 'without the intention of establishing residence' in Panama. The remote worker visa lasts nine months and can be extended only once for the same period. Nothing in the decree or the SNM checklist says time on it counts toward temporary or permanent residence. On the official sources, the stay ends after 18 months at most and does not lead to permanent residence. Anyone who wants to stay longer would need to qualify for, and apply for, a separate residence permit under Decreto Ley 3 of 2008 and Decree 320, with its own requirements. The decree does not say whether you can switch from inside the country, so check that with the SNM.

Why applications get refused

• Applying without a Panamanian lawyer or from outside Panama. The procedure needs a notarized power of attorney that names your parents, and the filing must be made in Panama.
• Income below B/.36,000 a year, an employer letter showing less than B/.3,000 a month, or bank records that do not tie the payments to the declared foreign job.
• Foreign documents, such as the criminal record certificate or bank letters, that are not apostilled or legalised under article 247 of Decree 320.
• Health insurance that does not cover Panama or does not last for the whole stay.
• For restricted nationalities, entering without an authorized visa or not passing the extra checks required by article 6 of the decree.
• After approval, representing the foreign company in local activities or taking local work, which leads to cancellation under article 7.

Cost of living in Panama City

1-bedroom rent

US$1,000-1,860 per month in the city centre; US$750-1,600 outside the centre (Numbeo, Nov 2026)

Coworking desk

US$107-234 per month for a coworking desk, starting price to median, before tax (workin.space, Nov 2026)

Broadband of 60 Mbps or more typically costs US$40-60 a month (Numbeo, Nov 2026).

Good to know

• Applications must be filed by a lawyer, not by the applicant directly
• Holders sign a sworn declaration not to accept local work

Visiting first? Entry rules for popular passports

116 passports can enter Panama visa-free for a short stay, a common way to try the country before applying. Check Panama visa requirements for your passport.

Official source

PROPANAMA – Visa para Nómadas Digitales

Not yet confirmed on an official source: processing time, tax. Check these with the consulate before you apply.