Panama property glossary
The Spanish words that decide what you are actually buying, defined plainly.
28 terms
Documents and contracts
- ArrasAlso called Earnest money, deposit
- The deposit that makes a promesa de compraventa binding. What it is called matters less than who holds it and what has to happen before it is released.
- AvalúoAlso called Appraisal
- An independent valuation of a property. A mortgage lender requires one; a cash buyer is the only person who can decide to skip it, which is why cash buyers overpay.
- Certificado del Registro PúblicoAlso called Registry certificate
- The document that shows a finca's registered owner, area and encumbrances on the day it was issued. Ask to read it rather than to be told what it said.
- Condición suspensivaAlso called Condition precedent
- A condition that has to be met before the obligation to buy bites. A clean registry certificate and mortgage approval are the two worth writing in.
- Escritura públicaAlso called Public deed, escritura
- The deed a notary authorises to move ownership from seller to buyer. Signing it does not transfer the property; recording it at the Registro Público does.
- Paz y salvoAlso called Certificate of good standing
- A certificate saying an account is settled and nothing is owed. Utilities and property tax each issue their own, and a transfer expects them.
- PlanoAlso called Survey plan
- The registered survey plan showing a parcel's boundaries and area. It is what a surveyor checks the physical land against.
- Promesa de compraventaAlso called Promise-to-purchase agreement, promise-to-buy
- The contract that commits buyer and seller before the deed exists. It sets the price, the deposit, the deadline and the conditions you can walk away on.
Ownership and land
- Derecho posesorioAlso called Rights of possession, ROP
- Permission to occupy land the state still owns. It is not ownership, it cannot be mortgaged, and in an advert it looks identical to titled land.
- FincaAlso called Property folio number
- A property's identity at the Registro Público. Every titled property in Panama has a finca number, and it is how you look a property up rather than by address.
- GravamenAlso called Lien, encumbrance
- Anything registered against a property that limits it: a mortgage, an embargo, an unpaid tax. It travels with the property rather than with the seller.
- Planos sobrepuestosAlso called Overlapping survey plans, overlapping plans
- Two survey plans covering the same ground. The plan you bought was drawn on top of one that already existed, and both are on record.
- Propiedad horizontalAlso called PH, condominium regime
- The regime that lets a building be owned unit by unit, with the common areas held jointly. Panamanians call a condo building a PH.
- Propiedad tituladaAlso called Titled property
- Land recorded at the Registro Público under a finca number, owned outright. It can be sold, mortgaged and insured, which is what separates it from rights of possession.
- ServidumbreAlso called Easement, right of way
- A registered right for someone else to use part of your land, most often to cross it. Buyers are sometimes sold the access strip rather than the parcel.
Taxes and costs
- Adelanto de ganancia de capitalAlso called 3% capital gains advance
- 3% of the sale price, withheld from the seller as an advance against capital gains tax. It is an advance, not the tax, and a seller with a small gain can reclaim the difference.
- Cuota de mantenimientoAlso called Maintenance fee, HOA fee
- The monthly charge for a building's common areas and services. Arrears attach to the unit, so an unpaid balance becomes the new owner's problem.
- HipotecaAlso called Mortgage
- A loan secured against a registered property. It only works on titled land, which is why rights of possession cannot be financed.
- Impuesto de inmuebleAlso called Property tax
- Panama's annual tax on registered property value. Rates and exemptions turn on whether the property is your primary residence, so two identical units can pay differently.
- ITBIAlso called Impuesto de transferencia de bienes inmuebles, transfer tax
- The 2% tax charged on the transfer of Panamanian real estate. It is the seller's to pay, not the buyer's.
Institutions
- ANATIAlso called Autoridad Nacional de Administración de Tierras
- The national land authority. It administers state land and the process by which rights of possession can become title.
- DGIAlso called Dirección General de Ingresos
- Panama's tax authority. It collects the transfer tax and the capital gains advance, and issues the paz y salvo a transfer needs.
- NotaríaAlso called Notary office
- The office that authorises the deed. A Panamanian notary is a public official whose authorisation the registry requires, not a witness who stamps a signature.
- Registro PúblicoAlso called Public Registry
- Panama's property register. It records who owns each finca and what is charged against it, and an entry there is what makes ownership real.
Residency
- Inversionista CalificadoAlso called Qualified Investor residence, qualified investor visa
- Permanent residence granted on a qualifying investment, most often titled real estate. Created by Decreto Ejecutivo 722 of 2020; Decreto Ejecutivo 193 of 2024 holds the real estate threshold at $300,000.
- Naciones AmigasAlso called Friendly Nations visa
- A residence route for nationals of listed countries. Since it was rewritten in 2021 it also requires a real economic tie: a job offer, a company, or a qualifying property purchase.
- Pensión vitaliciaAlso called Lifetime pension
- A pension paid for life, from a government or a solvent private source. A drawdown from an account you could exhaust does not qualify, however large the balance.
- PensionadoAlso called Retiree residence
- Panama's retiree residence, open to any nationality with a lifetime pension. It carries a schedule of statutory discounts that are rights rather than courtesies.