Major changes have just been announced to Panama’s tourism visas!! So if you’re coming here for a visit or if you’re an “expat” living here who has not applied for residency and has just been doing border runs…this affects YOU!
If you want to discuss these changes or have any other questions, join me at the I Go Panama facebook group!
Thank you to Marcos Kraemer at for the information! He’s our attorney and we recommend him 1000% for ALL of your legal needs in Panama (residency, real estate, estate planning, business issues, etc…).
Here is a copy of the actual decree:
Searching the Panamanian government website is difficult, but if you want to search for the exact link to it, go to
If you want to view last week’s video on driving laws and bribery/corruption, it’s at
source
If you want to discuss this issue or any others, join me at my I Go Panama facebook group! http://www.facebook.com/groups/igopanama
Please put student visa details
If your a panama resident can you travel to panama with a passport 2 months from expired?
General information here I was sponsoring somebody from Africa he is stranded in Panama City cannot get to the US because my employment has changed I can no longer sponsor him he is supposedly on a work visa and been stranded in Columbia for 8 months he now wants to go back to Africa it's out of my hands $14,000 later is there anywhere he can go in Panama to get his questions answered and get help
Thanks for the info !
Thanks for the info
I've just been talking to the Embassy, they have put forth another resolution that will change it back to 180 days.
Finally. I think it use to be 90 days way back in the day anyways. I could be wrong,but I don’t remember 6 months when I first started going… anyways this really only should be affecting a small chunk of ACTUAL TOURISTS…. You can do panama in 90 days just fine. This is a lot of things. Cracking down on low hanging fruit and a quasi stimulus plan. I wonder how chill they will be with people leaving and coming right back…
My understanding is that you have to leave after 90 days but can not do a 'border run' and come back immediately, you have to be out of the country for at least 30 days. Correct?
Thanks, L.
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No more snowbirds (North Americans fleeing the winter).
How stupid is that?
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I like the fact that they made the driver's license and the visa match.
I just wish they had gone the other direction and made it so you could drive for 6 months instead of chopping the visa time to just 90 days.
But–do you still have to be away 30 days before coming back.
Is there an upper limit on how many times one can renew a tourist visa? I'd be interested in 'testing' living there for a year to see if I want to do PR but not if I cannot test for a year minimum.
wow,.. thanks for the info!
Just to make it clear for me.. I arrived in August, can I still stay till January? Thanks
do you have the decree?
God, get to it!!!!
I'm in Panama for a house sitting assignment since May. It does not end until Oct. 15 which was within the 6 month window. Do we know if this is for people entering on Oct 1 or are they expecting everyone already here to vacate before Oct. 1? Very confusing.
Spot on
Thank you
Remember, expats don't only come from North America. Some of these laws are made with expats from the so-called third-world countries in mind. Go to Panama City and sometimes you'll get the impression only Venezuelans and Colombians live there. Many if them are "perpetual tourists" who work illegally in Panama to send money back home and go back home to visit family every six months then comeback to Panama to restart the cycle.
I usually visit Panama for 3months but maybe I should start to thing about applying for the pensionado card.
It is a very strange ad self-destructive decision by Panama, just at the time they are trying to re-boot the economy after a COVID disruption. It will lock them out of the snowbird market: I know many North Americans who come for the North American winter. Now they my look elsewhere.
Wow, we were thinking of moving from Costa Rica because if the six months. Now we will not bother.
Good thing👍
Man, Panama is truly shooting itself in the dick with all these STUPID and ILLOGICAL changes.
They're going to realize soon enough just how much they've hurt themselves.
Wow not good for a lot of folks. This happened in Roatan and a lot of ex-pats left.
I was hopeful for six months but oh well. Thank you for the update !!
Hi, do you know for how long will be necessary to leave the country so you can have 90 days again?
I'm glad I went ahead and applied for my Pensionado even though I go back and forth from Panama to the U.S. I'll be back to Panama in a couple of weeks to pick up my permanent card. Looking forward to coming back. I like Panama.