Panama digital nomad visa is known short term remote work visa one the great option for remote workers, Panama is a unique country in North America which connects north and south America.
Who won’t work from a place with sunshine and tropical weather, a modern country in the middle of north and south America?
Most of digital nomads and remote workers were in Panama with short stay tourist visa which has limited stay duration but with digital nomad visa they are now Abel to stay in this beautiful country for 18 months.
What’s Panama digital nomad visa?
Panama’s digital nomad visa, officially known as the “Short Stay Visa for Remote Workers,” allows foreign nationals who are employed by a company abroad or who are self-employed to live and work remotely in Panama.
This visa aims to attract digital nomads and remote workers to the country by providing a legal framework for their stay.
The Panama digital nomad visa has 9 months validity, means you can stay for 9 months in Panama with this visa, after 9 months the visa will be expired but if you want to more time it’s possible to apply for visa extension before the expiry of current visa.
If you are apply for digital nomad visa extension before you visa got expire and still meet the requirements than it’s possible to extend your digital nomad visa for another 9 months. Panama digital nomad visa will totally grant you up to 18 months stay within Panama.
This visa can be extended only one time, so after 18 months this visa will not be extendable and the visa holder will need to leave Panama, it’s possible to apply for Panama digital nomad visa again.
Panama digital nomad visa requirements
To apply for Panama digital nomad visa there are some specific requirements, if you are interested to apply for Panama digital nomad visa than you need to meet these requirements:
Passport: you need to have a passport of any country, the passport should be valid at least for 6 months during entry to Panama.
Proof of remote work: it’s necessary that you prove by some documents that you really have a remote work or remote job.
To prove this you can present a work contract, job letter, business ownership or a partnership agreement, it’s not necessary to only work for a company, you can be a business man or freelancer.
This is important that the company should be outside of Panama and your clients shouldn’t be Panamanians.
Income requirement: to be eligible for Panama digital nomad visa you need to earn at least 3,000 usd per month. But it’s advised that when you apply it’s always better to have a little more income than exact minimum requirement.
You will need to prove that you have a minimum 3,000 USD income per month, you can present a Bank statement which show your bank records or some payslips that prove you get paid minimum $3,000 monthly.
Read more: How to apply for Costa Rica digital nomad visa?
Health insurance: when you are submitting your visa application for Panama digital nomad visa you need to have a health insurance which should protect you against all possible risks during your stay in Panama.
Police clearance certificate: a police clearance certificate is required for Panama digital nomad visa application, you need to get a police clearance certificate from local police.
If you are outside your home country you can request it from your country’s embassy, it’s necessary that you have a clean criminal record any criminal history will harm your visa application.
How to apply for Panama digital nomad visa?
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The way you could apply for Panama digital nomad visa is different from other digital nomad visas, in most cases when you apply for other countries digital nomad visas it’s completely online or via embassy.
But the process for Panama digital nomad is completely different, you will need a lawyer in Panama and he/she should submit for you a visa application in Panama immigration authority .
Follow these Steps to apply for Panama digital nomad visa:
Step 1: employ a lawyer
The first thing you need to do is to employ a lawyer for your visa application, in Panama he/she will need to file for you a visa application and submit it to the immigration department.
Step 2: Gather all documents
Now it’s time to collect all the required documents such as:
- Passport
- Bank statement
- Job letter or partnership agreement
- Passport sized photo
- Health insurance
- Police clearance certificate
- Sworn letter that you will not involve in local businesses
Step 3: pay visas fee
When you collected all the documents, these documents should be submitted for visa approval in Panama to immigration department by your lawyer.
Your lawyer should pay Thier your visa fee which is around $250, after complete approval you need to pay additional $50 for visa approval letter.
Step 4: get your visa
When your lawyer pay the visa fee it will take a few weeks to get a news about your visa, in most case it will be resulted within 2 to 3 weeks but will not exceed from 4 weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I bring my family to Panama with digital nomad visa?
Yes, fortunately the Panama digital nomad visa program allows you to bring your family with you to Panama.
First you should apply for Panama digital nomad visa when your visa approved than you can apply for your family members, they will need to submit family reunion visa.
Is there any nationality restrictions in Panama digital nomad visa?
No, there is no restriction on any nationality, if you meet the requirements, and have clean criminal record you can apply with any passport.
You need minimum a 6 months valid passport, it can be passport of any country that you are citizen of that.
Do digital nomads pay tax in Panama?
No, digital nomads are exempt from tax in Panama, according to Forbes foreigners don’t need to pay income tax in Panama when their income is come outside of Panama.
This the best point in Panama digital nomad visa, most countries are tax digital nomads after 6 months of stay but in Panama they don’t have to pay any income tax.
