Panama · Retirement
Pensionado (Retired Persons) Visa
Open
Last verified July 2026
One of the oldest and most stable retirement programmes in the world; the Law 6 discount schedule is statutory, not discretionary.
The cheapest permanent residency in the Americas for anyone with a qualifying pension, and the statutory discounts — 25% off restaurants, 20% off medical consultations, 25% off utilities — are real money over a retirement. It is rarely the right tool for a UHNW family, because the income must be a genuine lifetime pension.
Qualifying routes
$1k
Lifetime pension
per month, guaranteed for life; add USD 250/month per dependant
$750
Reduced pension with Panamanian property
per month, where the applicant owns Panamanian real estate worth over USD 100,000
The facts
- Qualifying figure
- $1k
- Total landed cost
- roughly USD 3–5k in legal and government fees for a couple; no investment required
- Timeline
- 3–6 months — permanent residency is granted from the outset
- Physical presence
- Enter Panama at least once every two years; no annual stay requirement
- Family
- spousedependent children
- Permanent residency
- immediate — permanent from grant
- Citizenship
- 5 years of permanent residency
- Language test
- Spanish plus Panamanian history and civics examination
- Dual citizenship
- Not permitted — you would have to renounce
- Requirements
- certified proof of a lifetime pension of at least USD 1,000/monthclean criminal record, apostilledhealth certificate issued in Panamafiled through a Panamanian lawyer
What can go wrong
- The pension must be guaranteed for life from a foreign government, an international organisation, or a legally-established private company. Income from your own bank accounts, foundations, trusts or investment portfolios does not qualify and the application will be refused — this catches wealthy applicants constantly, because portfolio income is exactly what they have.
- A private-company pension requires proof the payer is solvent and legally established, which is a documentation burden most applicants underestimate.
- Permanent residency is not citizenship and Panama's naturalisation practice is slow and discretionary.