{"id":14550,"date":"2017-10-05T02:07:01","date_gmt":"2017-10-05T06:07:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.escapeartist.com\/?p=14550"},"modified":"2020-11-04T11:02:16","modified_gmt":"2020-11-04T16:02:16","slug":"panama-special-nations-visa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapeartist.com\/blog\/panama-special-nations-visa\/","title":{"rendered":"Panama and the Special Nations Visa"},"content":{"rendered":"

Panama and the Special Nations Visa<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Panama remains a powerhouse in the offshore world. The top reasons are:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Panama is safe, with crime rates lower than most major U.S. cities.<\/li>\n
  2. Panama is close to the U.S. \u00a0Airlift is excellent from both North and South America. \u00a0It is also an excellent hub for European travelers and a perfect gateway to the Americas. \u00a0\u00a0Flights to Los Angeles, New York City, Toronto, Buenos Aires, and Santiago, Chile, are all equidistant at just 6 hours each.<\/li>\n
  3. Panama\u2019s IBC and LLC laws are basically the same now, merged in terms of format and requirements, making corporate formation and the compliance rules generally consistent.<\/li>\n
  4. Banking is possible for U.S. Citizens, albeit more challenging in a post-FATCA world, but still possible. Some, but not all, banks offer accounts to U.S. citizens.<\/li>\n
  5. And perhaps, finally, Panama\u2019s Special Nations Visa makes gaining and maintaining a residency there simple, easy, and affordable. \u00a0For the Escape Artist 2nd Residency Through Teak Ownership guide, Click Here<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Despite the bad press and impact on people who were bobbing, weaving, and hiding from their home jurisdictions, Panama remains popular as an offshore jurisdiction. Please note, there were important changes to the IBC and LLC laws recently, so please see the important update later in this article on a new law, active this year, that impacts corporate structures. \u00a0If you have a Panamanian corporation, you\u2019ll want to stay in compliance. \u00a0Also, look for a brief update on the Special Nations Visa below and a video challenge you may enjoy.<\/p>\n

    Having lived in Managua for 14 years, I traveled the route to Panama frequently. \u00a0I always asked for a window seat, because the views are spectacular. \u00a0Flying into Panama from Managua is an hour and 10-minute direct flight on Copa Airlines. \u00a0Depending on the time of year, the views from the plane are spectacular, especially if you sit on the right-hand side.<\/p>\n

    As soon as you are airborne out of Managua, you receive impressive views of the smoke-spewing Volc\u00e1n Masaya. \u00a0Then you fly just to the east of the 490-year-old colonial city of Granada with its many cathedrals visible from the air, followed by 120 miles of lake Nicaragua with the figure 8 shaped Ometepe Island and the two volcanoes anchoring the \u201c8s\u201d. \u00a0Then you pass over Nicaragua\u2019s border with its southern neighbor Costa Rica, the Rio San Juan.<\/p>\n

    \"Granada,<\/p>\n

    Granada, Nicaragua founded in 1524 <\/em><\/p>\n

    \"Ometepe<\/p>\n

    Ometepe Island in Lake Nicaragua<\/em><\/p>\n

    An interesting aside about the Rio San Juan. \u00a0In the 1850s, the river was the primary route for U.S. Mail going from the east coast of the United States to California. \u00a0Because Vanderbilt\u2019s captains feared his wrath, no one would be the first to run a steam ship up the river through the rapids, so the old man traveled down to Nicaragua and piloted the first ship up the river himself.<\/p>\n

    Cornelius Vanderbilt\u2019s steamships would ferry the mail from NYC to Greytown at the mouth of the Rio San Juan River, pause briefly to re-supply, then run the rapids up the river and into Lake Nicaragua. They would port in San Jorge on the lake\u2019s west coast and passengers headed for the California gold fields – and the mail would travel by foot, horse, carriage, and wagon to the small harbor town of San Juan del Sur and board another of Vanderbilt\u2019s steam ships for the passage north to San Francisco. \u00a0The entire journey took only 35 days.<\/p>\n

    \"Old<\/p>\n

    When the Nicaraguans had trouble with the renegade William Walker who took over the country for a couple years, and actually declared Nicaragua one of the slave states of the United States, it was Cornelius Vanderbilt\u2019s ships and men that ferried supplies to the Nicaraguan army. \u00a0\u00a0This logistical support helped to drive William Walker out of Granada and put him on the run, to eventually be set up against a tree in Trujillo, Honduras, and shot. \u00a0Friends of mine, Bill and Penny, lovingly restored and now actually live in one of the few homes spared from William Walker\u2019s ravages in Granada because his girlfriend lived there. \u00a0\u00a0It is a spectacular home rehabilitated to its 1800s glory.<\/p>\n

    Vanderbilt went on to build Grand Central Station in New York City, railroads across the United States, and controlled a lion\u2019s share of the transportation links for the country in the 1880s. \u00a0But he also decided to build his major university namesake in the home of William Walker, Vanderbilt in Memphis Tennessee, just to spite him.<\/p>\n

    Even Mark Twain took one of Vanderbilt\u2019s steamships back from California to New York across Nicaragua in 1866. \u00a0His travels are preserved in a 1940 compilation of letters called, \u201cTravels with Mr. Brown.\u201d \u00a0These letters describe the journey, including outbreaks of Cholera, crossing the lake, and the ride down river to Greytown.<\/p>\n

    \"newspaper<\/p>\n

    Mark Twain at 30 when he visited Nicaragua<\/em><\/p>\n

    \"Mike<\/a><\/p>\n

    Vanderbilt\u2019s Grand Central Station and my 20-second video<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

    As the plane flies south out of Nicaraguan airspace, you pass over a lot of jungle and see the port city of Limon in Costa Rica. \u00a0The lowlands of Costa Rica are covered with miles and miles of banana, citrus, and pineapple production, ending in the town of Cahuita on Costa Rica\u2019s southeastern border. \u00a0It is there that Panama starts with a view of the magnificent islands that make up the Bocas del Toro archipelago.<\/p>\n

    The island region consists of nine principal islands, Colon with the airport and major town, and Bastimentos a short boat ride away, are central for residential development and the resort of Red Frog. \u00a0The resort is named for a tiny red frog, imagine that, which lives under the leaf litter of the lowland island rainforest. \u00a0A host of 300 other tiny islands dot the seas, those on the Atlantic side creating the waves famous for surfing in Bocas del Toro, and those on the inside nesting hidden coves and jungle beaches perfect as private getaway spots.<\/p>\n

    \"plot<\/p>\n

    One of the 300+ Islands in Bocas Del Toro <\/em><\/p>\n

    \"Red<\/p>\n

    Red Frog on my Popular Science Magazine<\/em><\/p>\n

    In the distance beyond the islands, is the ridge of volcanoes on Panama\u2019s border with Costa Rica, including the only active crater in Panama, Baru. \u00a0On the other side of these tropical volcanic highlands are the expat havens of Boquete and Volcan. \u00a0Nestled in high cloud forest valleys amidst coffee plantations, these two towns have become Panama\u2019s springtime-all-the-time retirement locations with average daytime temps hovering just over 75 degrees Fahrenheit year-round.<\/p>\n

    The first thing that many may notice flying over the region is the vast stretches of jungle and forest. \u00a0It\u2019s incredible and truly a treasure of biological diversity. \u00a0The ecosystems remain largely untouched by human hands, and this is a result of forward-thinking policies that promote an active and engaged economy. \u00a0And they should stay that way.<\/p>\n

    I enjoyed the opportunity to explore the Atlantic coastline a few years back by helicopter and see what opportunities for tourist development were possible. \u00a0Having been criticized over the years for \u201cdestroying the pristine beaches\u201d by eco-extremists, it is important to know that poverty is the single largest degrader of the environment. \u00a0The preservation of the natural world is critically important. \u00a0But population pressures demand resources, and the poor with few skills other than subsistence farming put the greatest pressures on the land and environment.<\/p>\n

    Madagascar is a horrible example of what happens to a country when poverty and population pressures overrun a country and destroy the natural state. \u00a0When families have jobs in a service industrial and postindustrial society, the need to slash and burn virgin jungle to feed your family is removed. \u00a0Panama has taken another tract, a far more progressive path toward prosperity and the preservation of its wild lands.<\/p>\n

    \"Panama<\/p>\n

    Gold Mine: \u00a0Carving out a small piece of jungle, Panama protects large areas for biodiversity and preservation of native habitat.<\/p>\n

    Panama\u2019s path is one of planned, focused economic development. \u00a0Within the bounty of economic growth are the foundations of sustainability without the ongoing and perpetual need to depend on donations and the good will of outsiders for the protection of the environment. \u00a0\u00a0Concentrated development of industry, tourism, and mineral extraction permit the larger parts of the land to remain undisturbed. \u00a0Why bother the poisonous snakes, spiders, and large cats of the jungle if you don\u2019t have to?<\/p>\n

    As one gets closer to Panama City, the signs of life are easier to see. \u00a0Slowly, the jungle gives way to cattle pasture and small farms spread out in the rolling hills. \u00a0Eventually villages cluster homes around a small square or fields where you can see the paths of footfalls tracing out a baseball field and the distance between the bases. \u00a0There are poultry farms and highly defined agriculture, specialty products such as sugar and coffee.<\/p>\n

    The Panamanians have made huge investments into infrastructure during the past 2 decades. \u00a0\u00a0And not just the $5.4 billion widening of the canal with a 3rd lane. \u00a0Subway systems, multi-lane highway systems, and bridge building have all been at the forefront of development and infrastructure improvement. \u00a0To see the payoff, one only needs to look at Europe as a great example of sunken cost and the long-term benefit of investments into infrastructure.<\/p>\n

    Riding the train from Rome to Siena this summer, I marveled at how many tunnels exist in this 3-hour train ride. \u00a0Building these holes through hills required huge one-time costs, with required upkeep, of course, but the investment to flatten and straighten the rail lines took billions of dollars and decades of time. \u00a0But this investment will pay off for centuries. \u00a0I\u2019m not smart enough to figure out how to amortize this, but I\u2019m guessing it\u2019s pennies per person on the 150-year life cycle (so far) and number of consumers who benefit from the faster, cheaper, and more efficient transportation of people and goods.<\/p>\n

    I also remember flying out of Madrid a few years ago. \u00a0Spain is a very dry country, but looking down you could see that just about every farm has built a pond or lake to store water. \u00a0Here was a way to catch water in the rainy season and save it for as long as it lasts. \u00a0Yes, a moderate upfront cost per farm, but collectively millions, if not billions, of euros in the making. \u00a0But once made, the payoff continues for generations.<\/p>\n

    This type of investment is exactly what Panama has done, is doing, and will continue to do, ensuring the viability of the economy – and with a strong middle class, the political stability that come with it.<\/p>\n

    \"cargo<\/p>\n

    Panama Canal First Transit of New Locks <\/em><\/p>\n

    \"Panama<\/p>\n

    Panama City New Subway with More Lines to Come<\/em><\/p>\n

    Certainly, the Canal is a large factor in the economic success of this country. \u00a0It generates annual gross revenues of $2.4 billion, with a net of approximately $1.8 billion. \u00a0Prior to the opening of the 3rd lane, designed to accommodate far larger ships, the net revenues annually were $1.3 billion. \u00a0This annuity of income into the country was put to good use in the construction of roads, bridges, airports, and a subway system. \u00a0Infrastructure projects that pay dividends in efficiency and logistical support for centuries.<\/p>\n

    But additionally, and perhaps even more importantly is that Panama embraced the forward-thinking notion of open immigration. \u00a0It passed a law in 2012 called the Friendly Nations Visa Program. \u00a0This law allows citizens of 47 countries to enter Panama and obtain a permanent residency and a work permit. It includes countries like the U.S., Canada, and the EU – but also includes Hong Kong, Monaco, and South Africa. \u00a0While roads, bridges, ports, and canals are important, people are the key and utilize these \u201cthings\u201d to add value and create new wealth for a nation.<\/p>\n

    Panama recognized that with a population of only 4 million people, it needed more human infrastructure to capitalize on these timely opportunities. \u00a0They opened the doors for others to come work, live, spend money, invest money, and yes, even take jobs from locals…. for a while. \u00a0\u00a0But the wheel spins, and what is a tough time for a few in the short term, becomes wealth for many in the long term, as investment flows in and even more jobs are created in the free market system with open immigration policies.<\/p>\n

    Panama really did its homework on the special Nations Visa program. \u00a0They looked around the world and took the best from various countries and crafted perhaps the best residency law in the world. \u00a0Its primary purpose is to attract skilled workers, investors, and retirees to aid in the economic expansion of the country. \u00a0However, the policymakers were smart in how they designed the law. \u00a0It also works extremely well for people not yet ready to move and those who have concerns about political or economic instabilities in their home countries. \u00a0The residency is easy to get and simple to maintain. \u00a0It requires only 1 day every two years in-country to keep it active. \u00a0And it\u2019s a permanent residency, just like a green card in the U.S.<\/p>\n

    To obtain a residency permit in Panama, the law stipulates that you must:<\/p>\n