Country topic
Visas in Panama
US and Canadian citizens need no visa for a tourist stay of up to 180 days (Resolution 22706 of 1 October 2021, as Panama's embassies describe it). Canada's government adds that you need a passport valid for at least three months beyond the date you expect to leave, the equivalent of about US$500 or a credit card (to be safe, hold more than US$600), and an entry stamp, with a US$1,000 fine if you do not get one. Officers may ask for a return or onward ticket and proof of funds. [V1] [V2] [V3] Panama's embassy in Washington lists Australia and New Zealand among the nationalities that need no visa, with a maximum stay of three months, and says the 180-day stay is for US and Canadian citizens only. The page is undated, and Resolution 41029 of 19 August 2024 left Resolution 22068 of 2021 without effect without saying which stay now applies, so the three-month figure may be out of date. Treat the stay for Australian and New Zealand passports as unconfirmed and check before you book. [V1] [V4]
What we found
The research, with its sources.
Research information, not advice. Rules change, so check the source before you act on one.
- US and Canadian citizens need no visa for a tourist stay of up to 180 days (Resolution 22706 of 1 October 2021, as Panama's embassies describe it). Canada's government adds that you need a passport valid for at least three months beyond the date you expect to leave, the equivalent of about US$500 or a credit card (to be safe, hold more than US$600), and an entry stamp, with a US$1,000 fine if you do not get one. Officers may ask for a return or onward ticket and proof of funds. [V1] [V2] [V3]
- Panama's embassy in Washington lists Australia and New Zealand among the nationalities that need no visa, with a maximum stay of three months, and says the 180-day stay is for US and Canadian citizens only. The page is undated, and Resolution 41029 of 19 August 2024 left Resolution 22068 of 2021 without effect without saying which stay now applies, so the three-month figure may be out of date. Treat the stay for Australian and New Zealand passports as unconfirmed and check before you book. [V1] [V4]
- The Short Stay Visa for Remote Workers (Decree 198 of 7 May 2021) is a non-resident visa for a foreign employee in teleworking mode or a self-employed worker whose income comes from abroad. The income test is about B/.36,000 a year (to be safe, more than B/.37,000), and the employer letter must show at least B/.3,000 a month (more than B/.3,100). The balboa is used at par with the US dollar. It lasts nine months and can be renewed once for nine more, so up to 18 months. [V5] [V6] [V2]
- The remote-worker visa lets you work remotely in Panama without a separate work or residence permit, but you sign a sworn statement that you accept no work or service offer in Panama, and the visa is cancelled if you come to represent the foreign company for local activities. The payment to Migración is B/.250 and the card is B/.50. Documents include a health certificate, a police record, health insurance valid in Panama for the whole stay, and bank certification or authenticated foreign statements proving the foreign source. We found no published processing time, so it is unknown. [V5] [V6] [V3]
- The remote-worker visa is requested in person at Migración's Department of Special Procedures through a legal representative, not at a Panamanian embassy or consulate, and you must already be in Panama. Migración's checklists open with a notarised power of attorney, so a Panamanian lawyer normally files. A tourist who needs more time to complete a change of category can ask, through a lawyer and ten working days before the stay ends, for an extension of up to 60 days, with B/.250 paid and a B/.500 guarantee deposit. [V3] [V7] [V8]
- The friendly-nations route (Decree 416 of 2012, as amended by Decree 226 of 2021) names the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and Decree 16 of 31 August 2026, which added Ecuador, left it in force. You get two years of provisional residence, then permanent residence, on the basis of a job with a Panamanian company (the employer must also get a work permit from MITRADEL), property worth at least B/.200,000, or a fixed-term deposit of at least B/.200,000 held free of liens for three years. To be safe, plan on more than B/.210,000. Migración's checklist asks for certified cheques of B/.250 and B/.800. [V9] [V10]
- The pensionado permit (jubilado pensionado) asks for a lifetime pension of at least B/.1,000 a month from a foreign government, an international body or a private company (to be safe, more than B/.1,100). The checklist lowers this to about B/.800 a month if you buy property in your own name worth more than B/.100,000 (to be safe, buy for more than B/.110,000). Spouses can combine pensions, each dependant adds about B/.300 a month (to be safe, show more than B/.300), and the permit has no end date. The checklist states no age minimum, and we found nothing on whether a state pension or retirement account counts. [V11]
- Decree 17 of 8 September 2026, in force from its publication on 16 September 2026, sets a qualified-investor permanent residence with its own minimums: a first-sale (new) property of about B/.300,000 (to be safe, more than B/.310,000), a resale property of about B/.500,000 (more than B/.510,000), about B/.500,000 in securities held five years, or a five-year fixed deposit of about B/.750,000 in a private bank or about B/.500,000 in Banco Nacional or Caja de Ahorros. The funds must come from abroad. It replaces Decree 722 of 2020. [V12]
The Fernshore Index
How the Index grades visas, by passport.
Each grade is against a published measure, with its source and the date we checked it. It is research information, not advice. Where we have no figure, the row says Unknown.
Visa, United States passport
Unknown
Research for US passports is being checked
Visa, Canada passport
Unknown
Research for CA passports is being checked
Visa, Australia passport
Unknown
Research for AU passports is being checked
Visa, New Zealand passport
Unknown
Research for NZ passports is being checked
The country
More on Panama.
Topics
More about Panama.
Questions about Visas in Panama.
Do I need a visa to visit Panama as a US, Canadian, Australian or New Zealand citizen?
No visa for a tourist stay. US and Canadian citizens may stay up to 180 days. Panama's embassy in Washington lists up to three months for Australians and New Zealanders, but the page is undated and a 2024 resolution left an earlier rule without effect, so confirm the stay before you book.
What is Panama's remote worker visa and what income does it need?
A non-resident visa for people paid from abroad. There are two tests: to be safe, more than B/.37,000 a year, and a letter showing more than B/.3,100 a month. It lasts nine months and renews once. You cannot take local work, and you apply in person in Panama through a lawyer.
What is the income test for Panama's Pensionado visa?
A lifetime pension (to be safe, more than B/.1,100 a month), or less if you buy property above a set value (more than B/.800 a month with property over B/.110,000). Each dependant adds a monthly amount (more than B/.300). The permit has no end date. Whether a state pension counts is not stated, so ask Migración.
Can I use Panama's Friendly Nations visa with a US, Canadian, Australian or New Zealand passport?
All four are on the list. You get two years of provisional residence, then permanent residence, based on a job with a Panamanian company, property, or a three-year fixed deposit (to be safe, more than B/.210,000 for either). A work permit is still needed for the job basis.
Can I work remotely in Panama on a tourist stay?
We found no source saying a tourist may work remotely. The remote worker visa is the route that lets you work remotely without another work permit. A tourist who needs more time to change category can ask a lawyer for up to 60 days, with B/.250 paid and a B/.500 guarantee deposit.
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.
- [V1] Visas (Panama's visa-exemption list and tourist stay lengths), Embassy of Panama in the United States (Panamanian government mission). Checked 15 October 2026. Undated page. Says Resolution 22706 of September 2021 lets citizens of the United States and Canada stay up to 180 days as tourists, and lists Australia and New Zealand among the visa-exempt nationalities with a maximum of three months.
- [V2] Panama travel advice and advisories, Government of Canada (travel.gc.ca). Checked 15 October 2026. Written for Canadian travellers: tourist visa not required for stays up to 180 days, passport valid three months beyond departure, US$500 or a credit card, entry stamp (US$1,000 fine), return or onward ticket may be asked for, currency is the balboa used with the US dollar.
- [V3] Visas: visa exemption, the remote worker visa and countries that do not need a visa, Embassy of Panama in Canada, Ottawa (the embassy's own website). Checked 15 October 2026. Undated page. Says Resolution 22706 lets US and Canadian citizens stay up to 180 days as tourists since 1 October 2021; for the remote worker visa, says it is requested in person at the Department of Special Procedures at Migración through a legal representative, not through embassies or consulates, and that the applicant must already be in Panama.
- [V4] Resolution 41029 of 19 August 2024: Resolution 22068 of 1 September 2021 is left without effect (Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 30115, 10 September 2024), Servicio Nacional de Migración de Panamá (official; Internet Archive copy). Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 3 December 2024; the live link now returns 404. A two-page resolution whose only operative line is that Resolution 22068 of 2021 (the three-month tourist limit) is left without effect. It does not say what stay length applies now.
- [V5] Executive Decree 198 of 7 May 2021, creating the Short Stay Visa as a Remote Worker, Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 29290-A, 20 May 2021, as published by Servicio Nacional de Migración (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Scanned Gaceta pages, read from page images: income of B/.36,000 a year, B/.3,000 a month in the employer letter, nine months renewable once, B/.250 payment, B/.50 card, sworn statement, cancellation if you represent the foreign company locally. Later changes were not checked.
- [V6] Requirements for the Short Stay Visa as a Remote Worker (Visa de Corta Estancia como Trabajador Remoto), Servicio Nacional de Migración de Panamá (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Checklist PDF on Migración's permits page (uploaded April 2026), in Spanish. Cites Executive Decree 198 of 7 May 2021.
- [V7] Checklist: extension of a tourist stay to change migratory category, Servicio Nacional de Migración de Panamá (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Checklist PDF (uploaded April 2026), in Spanish: up to 60 days, requested through a lawyer ten working days before the stay ends, B/.250 and a B/.500 guarantee deposit.
- [V8] Checklist: provisional residence for nationals of specific friendly countries (PPT-PE), Servicio Nacional de Migración de Panamá (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Checklist PDF (uploaded April 2026), in Spanish: two years provisional, a notarised power of attorney and application, certified cheques of B/.250 (Tesoro Nacional) and B/.800 (Migración), documents for the job, property (B/.200,000) and fixed-deposit (B/.200,000, three years) bases.
- [V9] Executive Decree 226 of 20 July 2021: permanent residence for nationals of specific friendly countries (job, B/.200,000 property or B/.200,000 deposit), Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 29335, 21 July 2021, as published by Servicio Nacional de Migración (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Scanned Gaceta pages, read from page images. Article 1 lists Australia, Canada, the United States and New Zealand among the eligible nationalities; the new article 3 sets the two-year provisional phase and the three bases (job with a MITRADEL work permit, property of at least B/.200,000, fixed deposit of at least B/.200,000 for three years). Also cited for the property value of at least B/.200,000 (which may be bank-financed) and the deposit of at least B/.200,000 held free of liens for at least three years.
- [V10] Executive Decree 16 of 31 August 2026, adding Ecuador to the friendly-countries list, Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 30601-B, 31 August 2026, as published by Servicio Nacional de Migración (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Scanned Gaceta pages (the second page is scanned upside down). Amends article 2 of Decree 416 of 2012 only to add Ecuador and keeps the other provisions, requirements and fees of Decree 226 of 2021 in force; says residence under this route does not remove the duty to get a MITRADEL work permit.
- [V11] Checklist: retired or pensioned person (Jubilado Pensionado, PRP-JP), Servicio Nacional de Migración de Panamá (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Checklist PDF (uploaded April 2026), in Spanish: lifetime pension of at least B/.1,000 a month from a foreign government, international body or private company; B/.750 with property over B/.100,000; spouses may combine; B/.250 a month for each dependant; indefinite permit. It cites Decree 320 of 2008 articles 200 to 203 as amended by Decree 26 of 2009.
- [V12] Executive Decree 17 of 8 September 2026: permanent residence as a Qualified Investor, Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 30613, 16 September 2026, as published by Servicio Nacional de Migración (official). Checked 15 October 2026. Gaceta text. Articles 2, 4 and 8 read: B/.300,000 minimum from foreign-source funds; first-sale property B/.300,000, resale B/.500,000; B/.500,000 in securities through a licensed broker for five years; five-year fixed deposit of B/.750,000 in a private bank or B/.500,000 in Banco Nacional or Caja de Ahorros. Replaces Decree 722 of 2020.