Most common visas for living in Panama 2025

Panama offers a varied immigration system that allows foreigners to settle in the country for different purposes: work, entrepreneurship, studies, investment or family reasons. Choosing the right type of visa depends on your nationality, your plans in Panama and how long you want to stay. Here's an overview of the visas in Panama most common in 2025.

Main migratory categories to reside legally in Panama

If you're thinking of settling in Panama, it's important to understand how the country classifies its visas and residence permits:

• Temporary residence visas: They allow you to live legally in the country for one or several years, usually renewable. They are ideal for international students, foreign workers or people displaced by companies.
• Permanent Residence Visas: They grant the right to reside indefinitely, with the possibility of applying for Panamanian nationality in the future. It applies to citizens of countries with special agreements, investors or spouses of Panamanians.
• Work permits: They are visas to work legally in Panama within foreign or Panamanian companies, under formal contracts.

Most requested visas to live in Panama in 2025

Taking into account recent inquiries and migration statistics, these are some of the most popular visas among foreigners:

1. Visa from Friendly Countries: Ideal for citizens of more than 50 countries with special ties to Panama (such as the United States, Argentina, Germany or Spain). It's one of the fastest ways to get permanent residence in Panama.
2. Contract Worker Visa: For those who receive job offers from companies legally established in Panama.
3. Visa for employees of multinational companies (SEM): It requires that the employee has been transferred by an international company.
4. Student Visa: Aimed at students enrolled in universities or educational centers in the country.
5. Visa for marriage with Panamanians: For foreigners legally married to Panamanian citizens.

Each category has its own migratory requirements and advantages. That's why it's key to consider your personal and professional goals before making a decision. If your intention is to stay for the long term, it will be important to choose a category that will eventually allow you to apply for permanent residence in Panama.

In the next section, we'll dive deeper into one of the most popular and accessible options: the Friendly Countries Visa, updated for 2025.

La Friendly Countries Visa is, without a doubt, one of the fastest and most effective ways to obtain legal residence in Panama. Originally created as a bridge between Panama and nations with close diplomatic relations, this visa has undergone significant changes in recent years. Starting in 2021, its process became a little more demanding, but it's still an excellent option in 2025 for citizens of authorized countries.

Who can apply for the Friendly Countries Visa?

This visa is available to citizens of more than 50 countries with friendly relations with Panama, including:

• Spain
• United States
• Argentine
• Chile
• Germany
• Portugal
• Peru
• Australia
• France

The list is officially updated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and may vary.

Requirements for the Friendly Countries Visa in 2025

To obtain this visa, the applicant must demonstrate a professional or economic link with Panama. Starting in 2021, this link must meet at least one of the following criteria:

• Formal employment contract: With a Panamanian company, duly registered with Social Security. This results in a Legal work visa in Panama.
• Purchase of property: It is also accepted as an economic link, although conditions must be reviewed with an immigration lawyer.

In addition to demonstrating one of the above points, among Documents needed to legally move to Panama under this visa are:

Key Documentation:

• Valid passport
• Criminal Record Certificate
• Tests of economic solvency (deposit with a Panamanian bank)
• Migration Fee Application and Payment Form

Advantages of this visa compared to others

This visa is especially attractive because it allows you to apply temporary residence for two years from the beginning of the process. Once that time has elapsed, and if all legal requirements are met, it can be applied to permanent residence in Panama.

Important benefits include:

• Relatively simple and fast process
• It does not require high real estate investment
• Eligibility to apply to Permanent Residence After 24 months
• It allows you to work legally when you have a work permit

Of course, although it seems simple, this category has certain requirements and can change depending on your profile. That is why it is recommended to have personalized immigration legal advice in Panama to accompany you from the collection of the documents to the final delivery of the resident card.

In the next section, we'll explore more types of visas designed for specialized workers, employees of multinational corporations, students, and people married to Panamanian citizens. This way you can compare options depending on your situation and personal goals.

If you have a job offer in Panama or are part of an international company that transfers personnel to the country, there are specific immigration options that facilitate your legal arrival. Estas visas to work legally in Panama are designed to attract qualified talent and facilitate operations of foreign companies on Panamanian soil.

Residency for employees of multinational companies (SEM)

One of the most efficient ways is the SEM (Multinational Company Headquarters) regime. This program allows international companies to establish regional offices in Panama and bring in foreign personnel without having to comply with certain common immigration restrictions.

Main requirements:

• The company must be officially registered as a regional headquarters under the SEM regime.
• A letter of employment is required for the foreign worker, including details of their position, functions and length of the contract.
• Valid passport, professional history and certificate of good health.

This type of visa grants a work permit in Panama and temporary residence for renewable time. In addition, it allows the inclusion of spouses and children as dependents.

Visa for foreign personnel hired by private companies

If a Panamanian company wants to hire foreign personnel outside the SEM regime, there are other options based on labor quotas. By law, only the 10% of a company's staff can be foreigners, although there are exceptions for specialized technicians that are not easily available in the country (up to 15%).

Applicants must submit:

• Employment contract approved by the Ministry of Labor.
• Letter of responsibility issued by the employer.
• Academic certificates or proven experience depending on the position.
• Verified criminal record and copy of the full passport

This type of visa is requested together with the application for temporary residence, and if the requirements are met for several consecutive years, it can result in a permanent residence in Panama.

Key Benefits of These Work Visas

Visas associated with formal job offers allow:

✔ Work legally in Panama
✔ Get work benefits and social security
✔ Include the family as dependents
✔ Move toward permanent residence

These modalities are ideal if you are looking for Develop a professional career in Panama or if your current company plans to move you to their local offices. In both cases, count on personalized immigration legal advice can make the process much easier, avoiding errors that could extend approval deadlines.

In addition to work or investor visas, Panama offers a variety of permits adapted to personal situations such as studies, marriage with Panamanian citizens or even humanitarian and special laws. These options allow moving to Panama legally without the need for significant economic investment.

Student visa in Panama

This visa is intended for foreigners who wish to study in person at universities, technical schools or educational centers approved by the Panamanian Ministry of Education.

Basic requirements:

• Letter of acceptance from an educational center in Panama.
• Certification of financial solvency of the student or their sponsor.
• Health insurance and police record with no criminal record
• Current passport and passport-type photos.

La visa for international students in Panama is awarded for the corresponding academic period and can be renewed annually. It will allow you to reside legally in the country while your studies are being carried out, but it does not qualify you to work for a remunerated basis except for special permits.

Visa for marriage with a Panamanian citizen

If you are married to a Panamanian citizen, you can request a residence permit for marital relationship. This option is presented once the marriage has been legally formalized and allows you to first obtain a temporary residence of 2 years, followed by permanent residence.

Key Documentation:

• Marriage certificate valid in Panama.
• Evidence of real coexistence (interviews, photographs, joint documents).
• Applicant's passport, history and health certificate
• Identity documents of the Panamanian spouse.

El Procedure for married to Panamanians requires demonstrating strength in the relationship. Simulations of marriage are criminally punishable, so count on professional migration counseling is highly recommended.

Visas under special laws and humanitarian protection

Panama also has programs such as visas for humanitarian reasons, for refugees or under international treaties (such as Conventions for the Protection of Human Rights). Each category has specific requirements, such as the validation of conditions of vulnerability or political persecution.

Equally, there are temporary visas according to national interests, environmental, religious and other legal figures that allow certain groups obtain temporary or permanent residence in Panama.

In short, if your situation doesn't fit with investment or employment avenues, you can still find legal alternatives based on your personal profile. In all cases, it is vital to be informed about migratory requirements current and receive appropriate advice to avoid unnecessary delays or rejections.

In the next section we will explain it to you How to start your immigration process in Panama in 2025, step by step and without complications.

If you have already identified the type of visa in Panama that best suits your needs — whether for work, investment, studies or marriage ties — the next step is to start your migratory procedure in an organized and secure manner. Although each visa has specific requirements, there is a general route that can help guide you through this process.

Gather the basic documents

Before filing an immigration application, it is essential to have the right documentation. Here are some common documents when applying for any type of residence in Panama:

• Passport valid at least 6 months before the expiration date.
• Criminal record certificate from the country of origin (apostilled or legalized, as applicable).
• Passport size photos (size 2x2 or similar).
• Corresponding request form.
• Proof of financial solvency (depending on the type of visa).

In the case of specific visas such as Visa Friendly Countries Or the work visa in Panama, you must submit additional documentation such as employment contract, letter of employment offer or company documents if you are an investor.

Essential pre-validations

One of the most common mistakes made by those who want moving to Panama without legal support is to assume that any foreign document is automatically valid. Before submitting your papers to the National Migration Service, make sure that:

• The documents are well translated by an authorized translator (if they are not in Spanish).
• Have a valid apostille or consular legalization.
• Don't be defeated. Many papers are valid for 30, 60, or 90 days.

Request an appointment or start the process online

In many cases, the procedure can begin through the web portal of the National Migration Service of Panama. Depending on the type of visa, you can upload documentation digitally or schedule an in-person appointment. If you manage your procedure with a legal firm, they will represent you directly during the process, which dramatically speeds up the procedure.

Legal support: simplifying the process

Although carrying out the procedure on your own is possible, in practice errors are common because you don't understand the updated migratory requirements. Un immigration legal advisory service in Panama can help you with:

• Review and preparation of your complete file.
• Coordination of translations, apostilles and legalizations.
• Representation before Panamanian institutions.
• Time savings and reduced risk of rejection.

In addition, lawyers specializing in migration are aware of the regulatory changes that occur year after year, including new resolutions for the 2025.

Estimated time of the procedure

The length of the process depends on the type of permit. La Visa Friendly Countries, for example, it can take between 3 and 6 months, including approval times for the residence permit and eventually Panamanian ID. In the case of work or marriage visas, the times vary depending on the documentary complexity.

Final Tip: Plan Ahead

Don't wait until the last minute to get organized. Choosing the right visa and preparing the requirements several months in advance will allow you to live in Panama legally without setbacks or additional stress.

If you feel that the process is overwhelming, have experts in personalized immigration legal advice can make the difference between a smooth experience and one full of unnecessary obstacles.