Panama Citizenship-The Panama second passport

  • 11 years ago
The jurisdiction of Panama has no citizenship program in place but has a few residency programs which come with many benefits. The Panama residency programs are the Panama Instant Passport Program, the Panama Reforestation program, the pensionado Visa program and the Agricultural Investment residency program. Of all the above mentioned residency programs of Panama only one offers a second passport; the Panama Instant Passport program.

The Panama second passport program which has legislation in place to support it involves making a deposit at the National Bank of Panama for a minimum period of five (5) years. The bank deposit must be able to earn the investor an interest rate of US$850 on a monthly basis to be able to qualify for Panama residency and a special panama passport. The residency permitted which is granted under this panama citizenship program is good for five years. The special passport is also granted for five years and can be used for travel around the world. The person holding Panama residency status under this program can bring their family or dependents into the country. After five years the Residency permit expires and can be renewed by going through the process of making a new deposit.

The Panama Pensiondo program has been made very popular by retirees from the United States, Canaada and some European countries. This program does not grant a Panama Second passport but gives temporary residents status to retirees. This program has many benefits. The Panama retirement program or pensionado program has been rated the best of its kind in the world. The retired person must be able to prove to the Panamanian authorities that they will be receiving a retirement income of US1000 or more. Persons with dependents must prove than an additional US$250 monthly income can be obtained for each dependent. Valid documents for this must be provided along with a Police Record. Qualifying persons to this program will receive residency status in Panama and tax exemptions and other significant discounts.

The Panama Solvencia Economia Propia or person of means visa is granted to those persons who can prove that they can live in the country on their own means. This means living in the country without taking on a job or getting involved in business. The process for applying for this visa involves depositing a total of US$200,000 in a bank account or splitting this amount between a home purchase and a bank deposit. A temporary residency visa is issued by the Panamanian authorities which must be renewed within one year. Upon renewal the applicant can opt for a local identity card. The applicant to this program can apply for Panama Nationality after a period of five years has passed making them eligible for a panama Second Passport.

Persons wishing to invest in business in panama can apply for an Investor's Visa. This can be obtained .