# Panama Expat Life

> Practical, local guidance for moving to and living in Panama. General information, last checked October 2026; not legal, tax, immigration or medical advice.

Run by a team affiliated with Panama Properties, a licensed Panamanian real estate brokerage.

## Guides

- [Moving to Panama: where to begin](https://panamaexpatlife.com/start-here/): Most successful moves to Panama follow the same order: visit first, choose a region, pick a residency route, sort out healthcare and banking, then rent for six to twelve months before you buy anything. Doing it in that order saves people the most money and the most regret.
- [Panama residency visas explained](https://panamaexpatlife.com/residency/): Most people moving to Panama use one of three routes. Retirees with a lifetime pension of at least US$1,000 a month usually choose the Pensionado visa. Citizens of eligible countries with a qualifying job offer or a US$200,000 property or bank deposit often use Friendly Nations. Larger investors can use the Qualified Investor programme, whose rules were overhauled in September 2026.
- [The real cost of living in Panama](https://panamaexpatlife.com/cost-of-living/): Panama is cheaper than most of North America and Western Europe, but not as cheap as its reputation. Your biggest variables are where you live, how much you use air conditioning, and whether you shop like a local or buy imported brands. A household that rents outside Panama City, eats local produce and uses little air conditioning spends far less than one living in a city tower on imported groceries.
- [Healthcare in Panama for expats](https://panamaexpatlife.com/healthcare/): Most expats in Panama use private hospitals and clinics, paid for with either a local Panamanian insurance plan or an international plan. Panama City has the country's largest and best-equipped private hospitals; regional cities such as David and Chitré cover most everyday needs, and complex or specialist care usually means a trip to the capital.
- [Banking and money in Panama](https://panamaexpatlife.com/money/): Panama uses the US dollar as its everyday currency, alongside its own balboa coins, so there's no exchange rate to worry about if you earn in US dollars. Opening a local bank account is slower than most people expect: banks usually want reference letters, proof of income and an in-person visit, so start early and keep your home-country accounts open.
- [Moving your life to Panama](https://panamaexpatlife.com/moving/): The three big logistics questions are your pets, your belongings and your car. Pets can come with an endorsed health certificate, up-to-date rabies vaccination and advance notice to Panama's health ministry. Most people ship far less than they expect, because shipping, import paperwork and Panama's climate make many household items a poor fit.
- [Where to live in Panama](https://panamaexpatlife.com/where-to-live/): Expats in Panama mostly settle in nine regions. Panama City offers convenience and healthcare; the Pacific beaches around Coronado offer easy access to the city; Boquete and Volcán offer a cool mountain climate; the Azuero Peninsula offers authentic small-town life and surf; and Bocas del Toro offers Caribbean island living. The right choice depends mostly on climate, how close you want to be to a major hospital, and how much you want an established expat community.
- [Renting and buying a home in Panama](https://panamaexpatlife.com/housing/): Rent for six to twelve months before you buy. When you do buy, foreigners can generally own property in Panama with the same rights as Panamanians, with some restrictions near borders and on certain coastal and island land. Always use your own independent lawyer to check the title, and know whether a property is titled land or rights-of-possession land.

## Other

- [Free Panama move checklist](https://panamaexpatlife.com/free-checklist/): month-by-month moving timeline
- [About and disclosure](https://panamaexpatlife.com/about/)