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Promote:Panama

Invest in Panama

A short guide for companies expanding into Panama: the economy at a glance, the rules and steps to set up, and who can help, each with its source.

1. Panama at a glance

The currency is the balboa (PAB), which is at par with the United States dollar, the other legal tender.

Source: WTO, Trade Policy Review of Panama, December 2021 (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of December 13, 2021

2. Before you set up

The investment agency, any one-stop route, the sectors reserved for nationals and the zones, as the guide found them.

3. Steps to set up

The main steps, in order, each with the body responsible and its official page.

Setting up in Panama

  1. Register the company as a taxpayer with the DGI to get the RUC.Dirección General de IngresosTwo to six business days after registrationOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: DGI, taxpayer registration frequently asked questions (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

  2. If you want legal stability for 10 years, register the investment under Law 54 with the commerce ministry.Ministerio de Comercio e IndustriasOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: MICI, legal stability of investments page (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

  3. If you run regional headquarters functions, apply for a SEM or EMMA license, which carries asset thresholds and a US$2 million capital rule for a Panama headquarters.Ministerio de Comercio e IndustriasOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: MICI, multinational headquarters licenses page (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

  4. To operate in a free zone, get a license approved by the National Free Zones Commission, whose technical secretary is the free zones directorate.Dirección General de Zonas FrancasOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: MICI, release on free zone approvals, June 2026 (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of June 18, 2026

Show 3 more set-up steps
  1. To operate in the Panamá Pacífico area, register the company with the Panamá Pacífico Agency, whose SIT window handles the procedures there.Agencia Panamá PacíficoOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: APP, company registration benefits page (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

  2. For foreign staff of a SEM headquarters, request permanent staff visas from the commerce ministry using its listed requirements.Ministerio de Comercio e IndustriasOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: MICI, SEM permanent staff visa requirements (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

  3. Before you buy or lease land, check the title and cadastral status with the land administration authority.Autoridad Nacional de Administración de TierrasOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: ANATI, land administration authority home page (in Spanish)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

4. Organizations that help investors

Start with MICI and ANA. Each card links to the organization’s own site.

Each card says what it can help with:Get adviceFind financeMeet requirementsResearch markets

Investment and business setup

Show 3 more organizations

Customs and tax

Chambers and industry associations

5. Worth knowing

6. How Promote:Global helps

  • Compare Panama with other countriesSet Panama beside other countries on investment momentum, fundamentals and trade access, before site, tax and legal work.
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  • Organize your next stepsKeep each product and market in a project, with a roadmap of steps you work through.

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Promote:Panama is an independent guide by Promote:Global, not an official government portal. The organizations named here are independent public and membership bodies, not Promote:Global partners, and every link goes to their own site.

Facts read from public sources, with an editorial cut-off of October 31, 2026. Nothing here is investment, legal, tax or sanctions advice. Check current status with the organization before you rely on it.