Permanent residency

Document translations for permanent residency in Panama

Almost every residency route in Panama runs on Decree Law 3 of 2008 and is filed with the National Immigration Service. The financial requirements change from one category to the next — Friendly Nations, Pensionado, Qualified Investor, marriage — but the document core repeats: birth certificate, background check and, where relevant, marriage certificate. Anything issued in English must be apostilled at origin and translated into Spanish by a Certified Public Translator registered with MIRE.

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From $20–45 per document
Delivery 24–72 business hours
Legal basis: Decree Law 3 of 2008

Which documents need translation?

Birth certificate

The base identity document in every route, and proof of relationship in family reunification cases. Translated in full, apostille and margin notes included.

Background check

FBI, ACRO, RCMP or your home country's equivalent — and sometimes one from each country you lived in recently. Apostilled at origin before translating.

Marriage certificate and financial proof

Required in spouse-based routes, plus the economic evidence your category calls for: pension letters, bank references or investment records.

How much does it cost?

From $20 per document of up to 275 words, plus $0.07 per additional word, plus 7% ITBMS tax. A typical core set — birth certificate, background check and marriage certificate — usually lands between $60 and $120 with tax included, depending on length and source language. English carries no surcharge. We quote each document separately from your PDFs so you see the full breakdown before paying.

How long does it take?

Standard delivery is 48–72 business hours per document. Residency files are normally assembled over weeks with an immigration attorney, so Standard is usually enough and costs less. If your filing date moves up, Express delivers in 24 hours (+50%) and Same-day in under 8 hours (+100%) when you pay before 11:00 a.m.

How does it work?

  1. 1Confirm with your attorney or Immigration which category applies and exactly which documents it requires.
  2. 2Apostille each foreign document in its country of origin, or have it legalised through consular channels.
  3. 3Send the apostilled PDFs on WhatsApp or through the online quoter — in English.
  4. 4Pay with the exact quote; a MIRE-registered Certified Public Translator signs and seals each translation.
  5. 5Receive the signed PDFs and free delivery in Panama City, ready to file with Immigration.

Frequently asked questions

Do all residency routes require the same documents?
The core — birth certificate and background check — repeats in nearly all of them. What changes is the economic evidence: a pension letter for Pensionado, investment records for Qualified Investor, an employment contract in others. Every foreign-language document in the file gets translated into Spanish by a TPA.
Is permanent residency granted immediately?
Usually not. Several routes grant a provisional residence permit first, for one or two years, and the permanent status follows once the complete file is presented. Timelines and conditions are set by the National Immigration Service for each category — we make no promises about immigration timing, we only deliver the translations your file needs.
My documents are already in Spanish. Do I still need a translation?
No, not for a Panamanian filing. If your certificates come from Colombia, Venezuela, Spain or another Spanish-speaking country, they only need an apostille — no translation. You would only translate them into English if you later use them to emigrate to an English-speaking country.
Do you give immigration advice?
No. Choosing a category and filing the application are matters for an immigration attorney or the National Immigration Service itself. Our role is the certified translations your file requires, signed and sealed by a TPA registered with MIRE, plus telling you the right order of apostille and translation.
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Send your documents on WhatsApp and get the exact quote in under a minute — in English.

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