Why Families Are Choosing Panama as a Plan B

You insure your home, your car and your health. More families are asking a bigger question: what insures our freedom to choose where we live?

The answer many of them land on is a second residency, a legal right to live somewhere else if life at home ever stops working. And one country keeps rising to the top of the list: Panama.

It’s not the obvious pick, but it might be the smartest. Here are six reasons families are choosing Panama as their Plan B, and what to know before you commit.

What a Plan B really is, and why more families want one

A Plan B isn’t about leaving. It’s about having the option to leave, already in place, before you ever need it. You keep your home, your career and your kids’ schools. You simply hold a second door, open and ready at any time.

During the past year, demand for that door has gained momentum. Inquiries from wealthy Americans about residency or citizenship abroad rose 183% between early 2024 and early 2025. With everything happening in North America, Americans have found themselves interested in pursuing dual citizenship.

Meanwhile, the options are shrinking. Spain closed its Golden Visa in 2025, and Portugal and Greece have both raised the bar. Panama, by contrast, is moving fast and keeping its door wide open.

Reason 1: It’s ready in weeks, not years

A Plan B only helps if it’s in place before you need it. That’s where Panama pulls ahead of almost everyone.

Under the Qualified Investor Program, the government rules on a complete application in about 30 business days, and what you get is permanent residency from the start. There’s no temporary visa to upgrade later.

Add document prep, a single trip for biometrics and card delivery, and most families go from first call to residency cards in roughly three months. Compare that with 18 to 24 months for Portugal’s Golden Visa, per Mercan.

Reason 2: One investment covers three generations

A Plan B that leaves someone behind isn’t much of a plan. With Panama, a single qualifying investment brings the whole family along and everyone gets the same permanent residency on the same timeline.

• Your spouse
• Unmarried children under 18, or up to 25 if they’re studying full time.
• Parents of the main applicant

Reason 3: You keep your life at home, and Panama is close to it

The best Plan B costs you nothing day to day. Panama requires just one visit every two years to maintain your residency. There is no language test, no mandatory relocation, and no disruption to work or school. And when you do visit, it’s easy. Panama City runs on Eastern Standard Time all year, the same clock as Toronto and New York in winter, so a call home never means a 3 a.m. alarm. Nonstop flights reach Panama City in about three hours from Miami and about five from Toronto, and Tocumen International Airport connects to cities across the Americas.

With Panama so close to North America, you don’t have to worry about long transatlantic flights or significant time differences. It’s just a short trip away.

Reason 4: Your money stays in dollars, and your foreign income stays yours

No currency gamble. Panama has used the US dollar as legal tender since 1904. For families who earn and save in dollars, there’s no exchange-rate risk on the investment.

A territorial tax system. Panama taxes only income earned inside Panama. Foreign salaries, business profits, investment returns and pensions are exempt from Panamanian tax, and the country has no wealth tax and no estate tax. Simply holding residency doesn’t make you a Panamanian tax resident either.

Serious banking. Panama has one of Latin America’s most sophisticated banking systems, with 70+ international banks. A local account gives your family a financial foothold outside your home country.

As always, talk to your own tax adviser about how these considerations fit with the rules at home.

Reason 5: It’s a place you’d actually want to live

A Plan B should be somewhere you’d be glad to land, and expats agree Panama is. In the InterNations Expat Insider 2026 survey of 31 destinations, Panama ranked #1 in the world for expats:

• 87% of expats say they’re happy there, versus 70% globally
• #1 for personal finance, with 90% saying their income goes far enough
• #2 worldwide for cost of living

Panama City pairs a glittering modern skyline with the colonial charm of its old quarter, beaches on two oceans within easy reach, and warm weather all year. Private hospitals in the capital are well regarded, and international schools serve a large English-speaking expat community.

Reason 6: A passport option in five years

After 5 years of permanent residency, you can apply for Panamanian citizenship. A Panamanian passport offers visa-free access to 142 countries, including the Schengen Area and the UK. For families who want the option, the road is shorter than almost anywhere else.

How Panama compares as a Plan B

Portugal and Greece are the names most families hear first. Here’s how the three programs Mercan offers line up side by side:

	Panama	Portugal	Greece
Investment amount	Starts at US$300,000 for new property	€500,000 hospitality fund	Starts at €250,000 for the commercial-to-residential conversion property route
Time to residency	About 30 business days for approval	18–24 months	6–8 months
Residence permit and renewal	PR within 30 business days; no renewal; restrictions apply during the first 5 years.	Renewable every 2 years; eligible to apply for permanent residence after 5 years, subject to requirements	Renewable every 5 years
Time you must spend there	1 visit every 2 years	7 days a year on average	None
Citizenship option	After 5 years	After 10 years	After 7 years, living there 183+ days a year
Currency	US dollar	Euro	Euro
Time difference from Toronto	0–1 hour	4–5 hours	7 hours

Overall

Families aren’t choosing Panama because they want to leave. They’re choosing it because it’s the fastest, simplest way to make sure they can. Permanent residency in weeks. Three generations on one investment. One visit every two years. Dollars, not euros. A time zone that matches home. And a passport option down the road.

The best time to build a Plan B is before you need one. If you want a Plan B that’s fast, close to home and priced in dollars, Panama is hard to beat.