Everything You Need To Know About Panama Qualified Investor Immigration Program

• Published date: 23 November 2021
• Subject Matter: Real Estate and Construction, Immigration, Real Estate, Investment Immigration
• Law Firm: Harvey Law Group
• Author: Polly Ho

Panama has already been attracting retirees and businessmen for many years, due to its advantageous tax system. Notably, the absence of taxes on wealth, succession, gifts, and foreign sourced incomes.

Since the launch of the Panama Qualified Investor Immigration Program ("QIIP") in October 15, 2020, we have seen new investors now looking to take advantage of the perks that Panama offers, by securing permanent residency in Panama via a qualified investment in the country.

What is unique about the QIIP?

Unlike most immigration programs in Panama or permanent residency opportunities worldwide, investors can apply and complete the entire QIIP application remotely, from anywhere in the world and with just one short visit to Panama at the end process to activate the permanent residency.

There is no minimum physical residency requirement to maintain permanent residency - other than having to set foot in Panama at least once every 2 years.

Applications are processed on an expedited basis. In most cases, applicants will receive their permanent residency within 30 days from submission, which makes this one of the fastest pathways to permanent residency worldwide.

Varied investment options

The QIIP requires the investor to make and maintain a qualifying investment in Panama for at least five years. There are several types of investments that the investors may choose from:

1. USD 300,000 real estate (which will be increased to USD 500,000 from October 15, 2022); or
2. USD 500,000 in Panama securities; or
3. USD 750,000 deposit in an approved Panama bank.

At the moment, the real estate option is by far the most popular investment option for QIIP applicants. Investors are free to opt for commercial or residential real estate at their discretion.

The popularity of this option may stem from several reasons, including that as of today it is the option that requires the lowest investment amount, and it permits investors to make a different kind of investment in the local real estate market and bet on for future gains.

However, we expect that increasing the minimum real estate investment amount from USD 300,000 to USD 500,000 may make the wheel turn in favour of the securities options. Our experience in other jurisdictions has indeed shown that if the investment amounts are the same, investors tend to favour securities options over real estate options - usually because real estate requires more time to complete the process (due to the time required to find and purchase the...