Lawyers and other experienced travelers!

Oh -- sorry it's so long.

Has your residency been approved yet? Either way, you haven't changed your address so maybe this applies:

Special Cases: Retirees and Residents Abroad As more days pass, specific exceptions have been clarified:

Residents currently living abroad: If your registered address is still valid in Panama, you don’t need to do anything. However, if you return and live at a different address, you must report the change within 30 days to avoid penalties.

Thanks, R2!! And that's my lawyers website!

So when I move there, all I need to do is go to Immigration (surrounded by creepy looking guards, BTW) and report my change of address as soon as I find a permanent place to live. And they'll know when I get there because of the date of the passport stamp.

I hope you're right, because that's kinda what I thought as well.

Why in the world would anyone want to live in Panama?

Because Trump's not there?

JFC not every goddamn thing is about Trump.

Not yet!

Plus, it's been one of my life's goals to be fluent in Spanish (I know enough to get by from four years of Spanish in high school 5 million years ago), and this will be my big chance.

R4 - there are tons of ex-pat retirees in Panama.

Luckily, this is only a $100 fine - but I would be concerned if it increases with second or third penalty.

Oh -- I have R6 blocked. Just sayin'.

And R8, it does.

[quote]a fine of B/. 100.00 for the first offense; cancellation of immigration status for the second offense; and deportation for the third.

Plus, it's actually hotter here in Deplorable Haven, FL, than it is in Las Tablas, Panama, the town I plan to live in.

r9 thank you for alerting us to who is on your blocked list. We were all waiting to hear.

[quote] and deportation for the third.

Only if you're from the U.S. lol.

Well, the Panamanian president has been co-operating with Trump. They held some "illegal immigrants" ICE picked up in the hotel I stayed in the first time I went there. Those folks weren't allowed to leave their hotel rooms and food was brought to them.

China owned some of the ports adjoining the canal, and (I believe) Blackstone was allowed to purchase them from China so Trump didn't have a hissy fit.

And there are American troops there, again. I heard 200 last time I checked, but that was some months ago. I have (sadly) heard MAGAts preach to me that Trump will take over in Panama and make it the 51st state. And, they told me excitedly, then, as a veteran, I'll be able to get my health care free again.

So Trump's visage looms large in Panama, believe me.

If I were you, I would immediately report whatever your first address will be there when you arrive. Maybe that would happen using the Customs and Immigration form they collect on the plane before you land. And then report the new address once you have found a place to live more permanently.

If you have any other concerns, contact the Panamanian embassy/consulate in your home country.

My niece has lived in Costa Rica for over 20 years. Have stopped contact with her, but she used to return to the US annually and stay with me until she arranged some sort of work visa as a teacher and had to report her new address, which seemed to change each time she returned because she would find some gig house sitting for rich people with second homes there. I used to get her mail and have to deal with this because she'd always be traveling on return to the US.

She's been fluent in Spanish since she was a teenager, which made things easier for her to deal with customs, employment, etc..

r4, because Panama is beautiful and cheap. Like Costa Rica, quality health care is affordable and the country is stable relative to other Latin American nations. The wildlife is absolutely incredible. Plenty of cons: Not sure where she is now, but my niece lived in a rural area in Costa Rica that was subject to washed out roads and bridges, and unreliable electricity. Even when the electricity worked it was cut off every evening. Amazingly, during the day she had pretty good internet service. Cell phones were rare last time I visited, but I would imagine that service would be spotty in the middle of the rain forest. I had some harrowing adventures driving around in her old Toyota Landcruiser even in dry season.

I don't know where I'll be living, R14, but thanks for your insights.

And I thought about going to the Tampa consulate -- maybe I will. It's a 2-hour drive (in the blazing Florida sun); I'll have to make an appointment, and it's almost impossible to get someone to answer the phone there. So it's not as easy as it sounds. I'll do more research first.

R15 - I think that sounds the best - go directly to the consulate. But even those can be flakey and some consulates have weird office hours, IMO.

Sorry -- I was wrong at R13; it's BlackRock and Swiss shipping firm MSC. And the deal still hasn't gone through as of 7.31.25. China is fighting to keep its ports.

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