Panama Residence by Investment

What Is Panama Residence by Investment?

Panama grants residence permits to non-citizens through several routes administered by the Servicio Nacional de Migración (SNM) and, for the Qualified Investor programme, the Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias (MICI). Routes include a forestry investment, the Qualified Investor programme (a real estate purchase or a state-bank deposit), an Economic Solvency route (real estate or a fixed-term deposit), a route limited to nationals of specific countries, and a Pensioner route based on a lifetime monthly pension.

This page covers five routes: Forestry Investment, the Qualified Investor programme, Economic Solvency, the Specific Countries route, and the Pensioner route. Executive Decree 17 of 8 September 2026, published in the Gaceta Oficial No. 30613 on 16 September 2026, replaced the Qualified Investor programme's 2020 rules (Executive Decree 722 of 2020).

Five Ways to Qualify

Forestry Investment (PAB 100,000) is the lowest-amount nationwide investment route to permanent residence open to any applicant; the SNM also lists a temporary forestry-investment permit from PAB 80,000, not covered on this page. The Pensioner route is income-based rather than an investment, and the Specific Countries route is limited to nationals of Panama's list of specific nations. Sources: gacetaoficial.gob.pa, mici.gob.pa and migracion.gob.pa (checked on 24 September 2026).

Who Can Apply?

To apply for a Panamanian residence permit, you must:

• Meet your chosen route's investment or income threshold: PAB 100,000 for Forestry Investment (PAB 350,000 for automatic permanent residence), PAB 300,000 for the Qualified Investor programme's new-property option or the Economic Solvency route, PAB 500,000 for the Qualified Investor programme's resale-property, securities or state-bank-deposit option (PAB 750,000 for a private-bank deposit), PAB 200,000 for the Specific Countries route (nationals of listed countries only), or a lifetime pension of at least PAB 1,000 a month for the Pensioner route.
• Apply to the Servicio Nacional de Migración (SNM) for the Forestry Investment, Economic Solvency, Specific Countries and Pensioner routes; for the Qualified Investor programme, first obtain an investment certification from the Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias (MICI), then file with the SNM's special Qualified Investor desk.
• Hold your qualifying investment for the period your route requires: at least 5 years for Forestry Investment and for the Qualified Investor programme (both with yearly proof), and a minimum 3-year term for the Economic Solvency or Specific Countries fixed-term deposit.
• Pay the applicable government fees: SNM's Forestry Investment, Economic Solvency and Specific Countries requirement sheets list a PAB 250 Treasury fee plus a PAB 800 SNM fee; the Qualified Investor programme charges PAB 5,000 to the Treasury plus a PAB 5,000 SNM repatriation deposit, and PAB 1,000 plus PAB 1,000 per dependant.

Who Can Be Included?

Family inclusion differs by route:

• SNM's requirement sheets for Economic Solvency and Specific Countries cover dependants including children aged 18 up to 25 who are single and in full-time education; on the Pensioner route, add PAB 250 a month per dependant, and dependent children hold a temporary permit until 25 while studying.
• On the Qualified Investor programme, dependants can be included in the application (PAB 1,000 Treasury fee plus PAB 1,000 SNM repatriation deposit each), and a spouse or children added after approval can be included directly while the investment is maintained.
• On the Forestry Investment route, add PAB 2,000 to your investment per dependant.

Fees

Costs on top of your chosen route's investment or income requirement:

• SNM's Forestry Investment, Economic Solvency and Specific Countries requirement sheets list a PAB 250 Treasury fee plus a PAB 800 SNM fee; the Pensioner requirement sheet lists no such fee.
• The Qualified Investor programme charges a PAB 5,000 Treasury fee plus a PAB 5,000 SNM repatriation deposit, and PAB 1,000 plus PAB 1,000 for each dependant.
• A real estate purchase carries its own notarial, registration and other transaction costs, which are not listed on the SNM or MICI portals.

Application Process

1. Choose your route (Forestry Investment, Qualified Investor, Economic Solvency, Specific Countries or Pensioner). For the Qualified Investor programme, first request an investment certification from the Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias (MICI); all routes are then filed with the Servicio Nacional de Migración (SNM).
2. Make your qualifying investment — for example a forestry plantation, a real estate purchase or a fixed-term bank deposit — or gather proof of your lifetime pension.
3. Submit your application and supporting documents to the responsible agency, and pay the applicable government fees.
4. Receive your residence permit: provisional for 2 years on the Specific Countries route, or, on other routes, subject to your route's conditions — for example the option of automatic permanent residence on a PAB 350,000 forestry investment.
5. Meet any ongoing condition your route requires, such as holding a fixed-term deposit for its minimum term, to keep your permit valid.

For the Qualified Investor programme, Executive Decree 17 sets maximum times of 15 business days for MICI's investment certification and 30 business days for the SNM's decision once the file is complete. Trem Global has not found a published overall processing time for the other routes on an official source — contact us for a current estimate. Sources: gacetaoficial.gob.pa, migracion.gob.pa and mici.gob.pa (checked on 24 September 2026).

Why Panama?

Official source: Gaceta Oficial No. 30613 — Executive Decree 17 of 2026, Panama

This page follows Executive Decree 17 of 2026 in the Gaceta Oficial No. 30613, the MICI release on the Qualified Investor programme and the SNM's permisos migratorios pages, read on 24 September 2026. Investment amounts, fees and conditions are set by the Panamanian authorities and can change.