Countries › Panama › Guide › 14. Disputes › Debt collection in Panama: executive titles, payment orders, attachment, 8 day defences and judicial auction under the Código Procesal Civil

Debt collection in Panama: executive titles, payment orders, attachment, 8 day defences and judicial auction under the Código Procesal Civil

Last verified: 2026-10-29 · Status: Changing

A creditor holding an executive title, such as a public deed, a bounced cheque, a negotiable instrument, a bank balance certificate or an arbitral award, can skip the ordinary trial and ask the court for a payment order. The debtor has 5 days to pay or disclose assets and 8 days to raise defences, while attachment continues up to the auction stage. Debts in foreign currency may be enforced in that currency or in balboas at the agreed rate or the Banco Nacional rate.

Panama's currency, the balboa (B/.), is at par with the US dollar, which circulates as legal tender; the Superintendencia de Bancos states that the balboa's value is on a par with the US dollar (checked 29 October 2026). USD figures therefore equal the balboa figures.

Key facts

Days for the debtor to pay or disclose assets after the payment order	5 daysCódigo Procesal Civil art. 741, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Days to raise defences against a payment order	8 daysCódigo Procesal Civil art. 763, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Days to convert into an ordinary process after the payment order is revoked	5 daysCódigo Procesal Civil art. 742, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Debtor must disclose assets on pain of contempt	Yes textCódigo Procesal Civil art. 741, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Limitation for actions on cheques, promissory notes and bills of exchange	3 yearsCódigo de Comercio art. 1652 as amended by Ley 60 de 2008, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Exchange rate used for USD conversions	1 PAB per USDBalboa at par with the US dollar (Superintendencia de Bancos), as of 2026-10-29 · in force

The rule

1. Executive proceedings lie for clear and enforceable obligations in documents from the debtor that are full proof against it, in final money judgments of any jurisdiction, and in other documents the law treats as executive.Ley 402 de 2023 (Código Procesal Civil), art. 731, 2023-10-11 official text · verified 2026-10-29

2. Executive titles include final judgments and approved settlements, arbitral awards, public deeds, private documents whose signature was recognised before a judge or certified by a notary, unpaid rent with a qualifying lease, cheques dishonoured for lack of funds or account, negotiable instruments against all signatories, bonds and coupons, bank balance certificates reviewed by an authorised public accountant, joint and several guarantees, and certificates for book entry securities.Ley 402 de 2023 (Código Procesal Civil), art. 732, 2023-10-11 official text · verified 2026-10-29

3. The obligation must be clear, due and for a liquid or calculable sum. A debt in foreign currency may be enforced in that currency or in the Panamanian legal tender equivalent at the agreed exchange rate or, without agreement, at the rate certified by the Banco Nacional de Panamá on the filing date.Ley 402 de 2023 (Código Procesal Civil), art. 733, 2023-10-11 official text · verified 2026-10-29

4. The judge issues a payment order that requires the debtor to appear within 5 days of notice to pay or disclose assets; failing to disclose is contempt and false statements are referred to prosecutors. The order is appealable within 5 days with devolutive effect, but no auction date is set until the appeal is decided.Ley 402 de 2023 (Código Procesal Civil), arts. 740, 741 and 742, 2023-10-11 official text · verified 2026-10-29

5. The debtor has 8 days from notice of the payment order to raise defences, which do not stop enforcement steps up to the point of setting the auction. When the title is a judgment or an arbitral award, defences must rest on facts after the decision.Ley 402 de 2023 (Código Procesal Civil), arts. 763 and 764, 2023-10-11 official text · verified 2026-10-29

6. If the payment order is revoked because the document is not an executive title, the creditor may within 5 days convert the case into an ordinary process in the same file.Ley 402 de 2023 (Código Procesal Civil), art. 742, 2023-10-11 official text · verified 2026-10-29

7. Separate executive processes exist for mortgages and pledges, with auction of the charged asset and payment of the secured creditor first from the proceeds.Ley 402 de 2023 (Código Procesal Civil), arts. 775 to 784, 2023-10-11 official text · verified 2026-10-29

Step	Time limit	Source
Filing with the dishonoured cheque	Within 3 years for cheque actions	Código de Comercio art. 1652 (Ley 60 de 2008)
Payment order and attachment of disclosed assets	On filing	Código Procesal Civil art. 740
Debtor pays or discloses assets	5 days from notice	Código Procesal Civil art. 741
Appeal against the payment order	5 days	Código Procesal Civil art. 742
Defences	8 days from notice	Código Procesal Civil art. 763
Auction	After defences are decided	Código Procesal Civil arts. 765 to 770

Timeline of an executive claim on a dishonoured cheque.

Worked example

A distributor receives a B/.35,000 (US$35,000) cheque that bounces for lack of funds.
It files an executive claim with the cheque; the court issues the payment order and attaches the debtor's disclosed receivables.
The debtor has 8 days to raise defences; if none succeeds, the attached assets are auctioned and costs are added to the debt.

Step by step

Check the document qualifies under art. 732; if it is a private document, have the signature recognised before a judge or certified by a notary first (art. 734 preparatory measures).
Calculate the liquid amount and, for foreign currency debts, decide whether to enforce in that currency.
Identify assets of the debtor to attach when filing.
Serve the payment order and diary the 5 day and 8 day periods.
Ask for the auction date once defences are decided.

Common traps

Simple private documents without recognised or notarised signatures are not executive titles.
Bank balance certificates must be reviewed by an authorised public accountant.
Actions on negotiable instruments prescribe in 3 years, not 5.
Once insolvency proceedings open, new executions are barred and pending ones go to the insolvency judge (Ley 12 de 2016 arts. 39 and 41).

Sources

← Commercial litigation in Panama under the Código Procesal Civil: courts by amount, ordinary and summary processes, hearings, appeals, cassation and costsCommercial arbitration seated in Panama under Ley 131 de 2013: the agreement, the tribunal, interim measures, the award and annulment →

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