Immigration Law

Employees of Headquarters of Multinational Company Visa

Employee of Headquarters of Multinational Company Visa

I am a foreigner and got a job offer from a Multinational Company Headquarters (SEM) in Panama. How do I obtain my residency and work permit?

In Panama, there are about 186 headquarters of multinational companies (SEM) that always require human capital to develop and execute their commercial activities. For such purposes, the government of Panama enacted legislation that creates this special regime describing the requirements that every worker hired by the Multinational Headquarters must comply with:

Letter of employment and responsibility of the SEM company signed by its legal representative or special proxy
Three (3) passport-size photographs of the applicant
Complete photocopy of the applicant’s passport duly authenticated by a Notary Public
Certificate of criminal record of the applicant from his/her country of origin or last residence
Certificate of health of the applicant issued by a qualified physician in Panama
Criminal record of the applicant
Certificate of individual or collective medical insurance policy of the applicant
Certification issued by the Technical Secretariat of the Headquarters Licensing Commission of multinational companies

This migratory category offers the following benefits:

The visa is granted for a term of five (5) years extendable
The applicant may include his/her spouse and children as dependents until they reach 25 years of age if they are pursuing their higher studies regularly and under conditions of economic dependency
No work permit is required
Income tax exemption if the salary comes from a foreign source
Exemption of taxes on the introduction of household goods and vehicles for the personal use of permanent workers
Exemption from income tax, Social Security, and Educational Insurance contributions

If you have a job offer from a multinational company in Panama and require counseling on this type of immigration visa, contact us at info@jquijano.com