Work Permit for a foreigner as a Dependent of a Permanent Resident or as a Dependent of a Headquarter of Multinational Companies’ (SEM) Employee

According to the current labor legislation, a dependent of a resident cannot opt for a work permit because he/she is considered to be economically dependent, either on his/her spouse or parents, except in those cases specified by law.

This being the case, we have that a dependent of a permanent resident who has permanent residence may opt for any of the following work permits:

• Indefinite work permit for a foreign worker with ten (10) or more years of residence in Panama.  The term of ten (10) years will be counted from the first resolution that authorizes the provisional permit of permanence in Panamanian territory.  In case of minors, all the time they have remained (as minors) in the Republic of Panama will be recognized.

• Work permit as a permanent resident. In order to opt for this residence permit it is not necessary that the dependent has resided more than ten (10) years in Panamanian national territory.  It is enough that he/she has his/her permanent resident card issued by the Electoral Tribunal. This work permit is granted for a term of three (3) years, which are extendable for the same term, for which the payment of nine (9) quotas to the Social Security Fund or the presentation of the income tax return together with the respective payment must be accredited.

On the other hand, the dependents of permanent personnel of Headquarters of Multinational Companies (SEM), in accordance with the provisions of Executive Decree 33 of February 4, 2021, may request before the one-stop shop of the SEM Directorate of the Ministry of Commerce and Industries, on the dates previously established by the said directorate, the application for a work permit accompanied by the requirements established in the current regulations of the Labor Code for the category under which it applies, that is to say, if the dependent is going to be hired by a company under 10% of the ordinary personnel, it must be accredited that it complies with the percentage of labor hiring in accordance with the stipulations of article 17 of the Labor Code. The Ministry of Labor and Labor Development will be in charge of approving the request and informing the foreign worker of the approval or not of the requested permit.

With these three (3) options provided by the Panamanian labor immigration law, the foreigner in any of the conditions described above may obtain a work permit without the need to change his or her immigration status at the National Immigration Service.