Panama residency by buying property: 300,000 new, 500,000 resale, five years held.

Can you get residency in Panama by buying property?

Yes. The Qualified Investor route grants permanent residency to a foreigner who invests in Panama, and buying property is one of the ways to do it. Executive Decree 17 of 8 September 2026, published in the Gaceta Oficial on 16 September 2026, replaced the earlier Decree 722 of 2020 and set the current rules.

The decree's base rule (Article 2) is an investment of at least B/.300,000 from a foreign source, made with the applicant's own funds and traceable. Money received as a gift or donation from someone else does not count towards the minimum. The investment can be held personally or through a company or private-interest foundation, as long as the applicant is shown to be its final beneficiary.

The balboa is pegged to the US dollar, so the figures read the same in dollars. The other routes in the decree, a securities portfolio and a fixed-term deposit, are not property and are not covered here.

How much property do you have to buy for Panama residency?

B/.300,000 for a first-sale property: new, never occupied, and transferred by the developer. B/.500,000 for a secondary-market property: anything previously sold, occupied, rented or transferred to an unrelated third party. Article 4 sets both.

The difference matters more than it looks. A resale home needs two-thirds more money to qualify. A new unit bought from the developer qualifies at the lower figure, and the decree lists what does not take away first-sale status: segregation, a declaration of improvements, contribution to a trust, or a merger or reorganisation that does not sell the unit to an unrelated third party. First-sale status is shown with a Public Registry certification and, where relevant, construction or occupancy permits.

Can you use a mortgage for a Panama residency property?

Only above the minimum. The decree counts the property's NET value: the lower of the price actually paid and its reasonably supported commercial value, minus every lien on it. Financing is allowed for the part above the minimum, as long as no lien pulls the net value below B/.300,000 or B/.500,000.

Article 6 adds a value check. The authority can ask for an independent commercial appraisal when the price looks out of line with the market: issued within the six months before filing, by a professional recognised by the Banco Nacional de Panama and the Caja de Ahorros, independent of the seller, developer, broker and lender, and paid for by the applicant. The value counted is the lower of what you paid and that commercial value.

In plain terms: an overpriced unit can fail the test even when the contract says B/.300,000. Check what comparable units actually sell for before you sign. What a buyer pays on top of the price: Panama property buying costs.

Can you qualify with an off-plan property in Panama?

Yes, under conditions. A promise-to-purchase contract of at least B/.300,000 qualifies if the money sits in a trust run by a licensed bank or fiduciary, or if you pay the developer 100% and hold an irrevocable bank guarantee, standby letter of credit or performance guarantee covering it until the unit is registered in your name.

Article 7 also caps the time. Residency resting only on a promise contract may not exceed three years in total. If the developer fails to deliver, you have 180 business days to substitute another qualifying investment, and you may switch to a second promise contract only once. The guarantee must be renewed and filed every year until the property is registered.

How long do you have to keep the property?

At least five years. If the property is sold or the investment ends sooner, you must notify the Ministry of Commerce and Industries within 30 days, and you then have 90 days to show an equivalent reinvestment, or the permanent residency is cancelled.

Proof is annual: through your legal representative, you show the investment is still in place every year until the five years are complete (Article 12). Plan the purchase as a five-year hold from the start. A forced sale inside that window costs the residency, not only the transaction fees.

What are the government fees, and does it lead to citizenship?

The application carries B/.5,000 to the National Treasury plus a B/.5,000 repatriation deposit to the National Migration Service, and B/.1,000 plus B/.1,000 for each dependent. Article 14 lets qualified investors and their dependents apply for naturalisation after five consecutive years of residence.

Those are the government's charges in the decree, not the full cost: lawyer, apostilles, translations and the purchase costs themselves come on top. Naturalisation is a separate application with its own constitutional and legal requirements; the decree opens the door, it does not grant citizenship.

If you signed a binding contract before the decree came into force, Article 19 lets you apply under the old rules if you file within six months of its entry into force. Ask your lawyer which regime your file falls under. Buying in Panama as a foreigner, step by step: can foreigners buy property in Panama.

Header photo: 123Hollic, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. All credits: image credits.