Countries › Panama › Guide › 11. Real estate and land › Title registration and due diligence in Panama: the Registro Público, priority by presentation, registry fees and the checks before closing

Title registration and due diligence in Panama: the Registro Público, priority by presentation, registry fees and the checks before closing

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

Real estate ownership and mortgages are recorded in the Registro Público, an autonomous public registry that anyone may consult. An unregistered title does not affect third parties until presented, and a buyer who registers in good faith on the strength of the register is protected even if the seller's title is later annulled for causes not on the register. Registry fees are B/.10 per property plus B/.3 per B/.1,000 for transfers and mortgages.

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

Registro Público registration fee on a transfer, per B/.1,000 of value	3 PABRegistro Público tariff schedule (Ley 3 de 1999 art. 7 numeral 4), as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Registro Público qualification fee per property on a transfer	10 PABRegistro Público tariff schedule, 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. The Registro Público serves to constitute and transfer ownership of real estate and other real rights, to give effect and publicity to liens and limitations, and to give more security to registered documents; it has property, mortgage, persons and commercial sections and is open to public consultation.Código Civil, arts. 1753, 1754 (as worded by Ley 43 de 1925) and 1755, 1916-08-22 official text · verified 2026-10-29

2. Only titles in a public deed, a final judgment or order, or another authentic document determined by law can be registered; registration may be requested by the notary or anyone with an interest, and real rights may be created only by whoever has their right registered or acquires it in the same instrument.Código Civil, arts. 1756 to 1758, 1916-08-22 official text · verified 2026-10-29

3. Titles subject to registration that are not registered do not prejudice third parties until the date they are presented to the registry; a third party is anyone who was not a party to the act. Registration does not validate void acts, but acts by a person who appears in the register with the right to make them, once registered, are not invalidated as to third parties even if the grantor's right is later annulled for causes not shown in the register.Código Civil, arts. 1761 and 1762, 1916-08-22 official text · verified 2026-10-29

4. Rescission or resolution actions do not prejudice a third party who has registered its right, except, among others, where the causes were expressly agreed and appear in the register.Código Civil, art. 1763, 1916-08-22 official text · verified 2026-10-29

5. The registry board fixes registry fees. The current tariff charges B/.10 per property to qualify and B/.3 per B/.1,000 of value or fraction to register a transfer, payment in kind, auction award, donation, inheritance or exchange; B/.10 to register a promise of sale; B/.25 per property plus B/.3 per B/.1,000 for an original title (título constitutivo); and B/.10 plus B/.3 per B/.1,000 for a mortgage. The registry publishes an online fee calculator.
Cost to do it: Transfer: B/.10 plus B/.3 per B/.1,000; promise of sale: B/.10 plus B/.10.
Example: A B/.450,000 office: B/.10 plus B/.1,350, total B/.1,360. / US$450,000 office, US$1,360 registry fees.Ley 3 de 1999 art. 7 numeral 4; Registro Público tariff schedule, art. 7 numeral 4, 1999-01-06 official text · verified 2026-10-29

6. Transfer deeds must split the value between land and improvements, and the registry will not record a transfer without that breakdown where it applies.Ley 66 de 2017, arts. 16 and 17, 2017-10-17 official text · verified 2026-10-29

7. To transfer a unit in a horizontal property, the notary must require a certificate that the unit is up to date (paz y salvo) with its common expense fees, signed by the person authorised under the law or the co ownership rules; it is also needed for court auctions. Common expense fees attach to the unit whoever owns it.Ley 284 de 2022, arts. 23 and 114, 2022-02-14 official text · verified 2026-10-29

Worked example

A buyer pays B/.450,000 (US$450,000) for an office registered as a separate finca.
Registry cost: B/.10 qualification plus B/.3 for each of 450 thousands, B/.1,350, so B/.1,360 (US$1,360).
If the seller had previously signed an unregistered sale of the same office to someone else, the buyer who presents first is protected under Código Civil art. 1761.

Step by step

Obtain a registry certificate of the finca showing owner, mortgages, attachments, marginal notes and restrictions.
Check property tax arrears with the DGI and, for units in a building, obtain the paz y salvo from the condominium administration.
Compare the cadastral plan and area with the registry description; resolve differences before closing.
Close by public deed and present it to the registry the same day where possible to secure priority.
Keep the registry presentation entry; priority runs from the presentation date and time.

Common traps

Possession or a private contract gives no protection against a registered buyer or creditor.
Marginal notes (for example limitations in favour of the State on titled State land) can block a resale.
An apartment cannot be transferred without the condominium paz y salvo, and unpaid fees follow the unit.

Sources

← Foreign ownership of land in Panama: open market, the ten kilometre border ban, island land and the ban on foreign governmentsProperty tax in Panama (impuesto de inmuebles): 0.6 to 1 percent on investment property, up to 0.7 percent on a registered home, exemptions and payment dates →

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