By Executive Decrees Numbered 197, 198 and 199 the Panama Government has now introduced a new visa for remote workers and has amended the popular Friendly Nations Visa and the Reforestation Visa regimes.

Short Stay Visas for Remote Workers

In recognition of more people wishing and being able to the work remotely, Panama has introduced a new Short Stay Visa for Remote Workers.

The Short Stay Visa permits foreign persons who are self-employed or employed by companies operating outside of Panama to live and work remotely from Panama for nine months with the option to make a one-time extension of another nine months.

As part of the application process, the applicant will be required to provide proof that:

• Their annual income is not be less than $36,000; and
• The income comes from a source outside of Panama.

Friendly Nations Visa

The Friendly Nations Visa regime has been amended to provide that applicants can now only to apply for the visa if they comply with one of the following requirements:

• Have a job with a local employer in order to be able to obtain a work permit; or
• Purchase a property for an amount of not less than $200,000.

The visa is now limited to two years after which time it will be necessary to make a second application in order to obtain a permanent visa.

Reforestation Visa

The Reforestation Visa has also been amended to provide that should you wish to apply for an extension to your Reforestation Visa then it shall now be necessary for the land to certified and approved again by the local authorities and/or its agents.

In addition, it is now possible by: (a) investing $100,000 in a plot of land approved by the land authorities to qualify for the purposes of being permitted to make an application for a permanent visa; or (b) investing $350,000 to be able to automatically obtain a permanent visa.

Should you have any questions, then please do not hesitate to contact:

Manuel Carrasquilla
manuel.carrasquilla@hatstone.com

Other Panama news – the launch of Hatstone Real Estate

We are pleased to let you know that Hatstone has recently launched Hatstone Real Estate S.A in Panama. We are licensed to assist you with the sale and purchase or rental of properties in Panama. The new website advertising properties will go live shortly.

If you have any queries regarding the sale and purchase or rental of property in Panama then please do not hesitate to contact

Lizst Real
lizst.real@hatstone.com