Frequently Asked Questions

Naturgy's regular rate will vary according to consumption and is approximately between $ 0.16 / Kwh to $ 0.18 / Kwh.

The rate for low voltage consumption (from 10,000 Kw / h to 50,000 Kw / h) will fluctuate approximately between $ 0.15 / kwh and $ 0.18 / kwh.

The rate for medium voltage consumption (greater than 15KW) is approximately $ 0.15Kw / h.

The current capacity of the power line is 44KV, however, in 2022 it will be reinforced with an additional 115KV power line ensuring that we can surpass the power supply to the area.

The electric power capacity of the industrial park exceeds the demand.

Within Panama Pacifico we currently have 3 operating substations. A new substation located in Burunga will strengthen the existing substation (Dugan) in Panama Pacifico, with a new 115V high voltage line. Therefore, there will be a lot of energy once the project ends in 2022.

Panama is one of the countries with the lowest crime rate in the Region. In 2019, the crime rate indicators (common offences and organized crime) in Panama showed a decline compared to previous years, while in other countries of the Region it is increasing.

This is associated with social, economic and political stability, the low unemployment and poverty rates (compared to Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala) and the absence of a Guerrilla Movement (as can be found in Colombia and Peru).

Panama Pacifico is considered one of the safest areas of Panama Oeste, the province where it's found, and the Capital City of Panama as shown in the graphs below. All the National Security Forces have an office within Panama Pacifico:

• POLICE FORCE
• AIR AND SEA SERVICE
• NATIONAL AIR AND SEA SERVICE
• CUSTOMS
• IMMIGRATION

Response to an emergency
The Civil Protection Agency, International Red Cross (Panamanian Red Cross), a 911 ambulance station and a Fire Department.

Comprehensive Security Center
Panama Pacifico has its own Security Center (or CSC), a platform that provides a link between government entities to coordinate security throughout the area.

Presence of a workforce including Prevention Agents, Motorcycle Security, a supervising team that provides immediate response, regular cameras, thermal cameras, monitoring and fire detection.

The residential community of Panama Pacifico is made up of the following projects:

• Soleo, at 2.8 km with approximately 74 residential units.
• Mosaico, at 2.6 km with approximately 214 residential units.
• River Valley, 3.1 km away with approximately 465 residential units.
• Explora, at 3.4 km with approximately 64 residential units in its current phase.
• Nativa, at 3.2 km with approximately 112 residential units.
• Woodlands, 3.1 km away with approximately 1,010 residential units.

* Distances from the International Business Park.

In Panama Pacifico, all activities that are not legally prohibited or restricted can be carried out except: showrooms for products that are marketed internationally at wholesale in other free zones.

It is an agency made up of representatives of various government agencies (Immigration, Ministry of Labor, Customs, the Social Security Fund, Municipality, the Environmental Authority, etc.), who will process and resolve the procedures of the companies in the area on-site, under new and expedited processes.

• Taxes on earnings, which are: income, dividend and complementary tax and tax on remittances or transfers abroad.
• Personal property and services transfer tax for services received from people or companies that are not established in Panama Pacifico (duly registered) or in a Free Zone (all goods acquired are exempt from the personal property and services transfer tax)
• Import tax and personal property and services transfer tax for the sale of goods within the national territory.
• Import tax and personal property and services transfer tax for the provision of services related to liberal professions.
• Import tax for retail sales.
• The annual tax resulting from the Notice of Operation (capital tax) at 0.5% per year for the capital of the company, with a minimum of $ 100.00 and a maximum of $ 50,000.00, except for companies established before January 1, 2017.
• Selective Consumption Tax: only applies to imported vehicles free of import tax, in which case the SCT is applied at a rate of 5%.
• Property and property transfer tax: Applicable from the year 2030. (2040 for the developer)

* Transitional provisions apply for the personal property and services transfer tax for office administration and foreign service companies, established before Law 66 of 2018.

• Alienation of shares between companies in the area.
• Sale of goods or provision of services to:
  1. (a) visitors, passengers or crew in transit
  2. (b) ships that cross the Panama Canal with destination abroad or that navigate between authorized ports in the country and ports abroad,
  3. (c) aircraft that use authorized ports in Panama with destination abroad, unless the sale is made by the manufacturers themselves or by a company in their economic group.
• Aviation and airport related services, including: cargo transportation, handling and storage; maintenance, repair, conversion and reconversion of aircraft; the distribution, maintenance, conversion, reconversion and manufacture of aircraft parts and/or components.
• Manufacturing of high-tech products, as well as the processing, building, assembly or manufacturing of components and parts whose manufacturing process involves high-tech.
• Call center *. (subject to substance requirements)
• Collection, processing, storage, switching, transmission and retransmission of digital data and information *. (subject to substance requirements)
• Radio, television, audio, video and/or data signal links*. (subject to substance requirements)
• Research and development of digital resources and applications for use in networks *. (subject to substance requirements).
  In the case of income derived from the transfer or exploitation of intangible assets protected by copyright, the tax incentive is conditioned on compliance with Law 69 of 2018.

• Exemption from income tax* (subject to substance) and tax on remittances or transfers abroad withheld from payments of commissions, royalties, payments for technical assistance services or for any other activity.
• Companies established since 2017 are subject to tax on dividends for profits to their shareholders (at 5%) and complementary tax; in case of not distributing dividends, or that the total amount distributed is less than 20% of net profits for the fiscal period, ten percent (10%) of the difference must be covered.

Import, export and re-export activities of goods, as well as foreign sales transactions of merchandise not manufactured in Panama Pacifico:

• Exemption from income taxes and tax on remittances or transfers abroad withheld from payments of commissions, royalties, payments for technical assistance services or for any other activity.
• Companies established since 2017 are subject to tax on dividends for profits to their shareholders (at 5%) and complementary tax; in case no dividends are distributed, or that the total amount distributed is less than 20% of the net earnings for the fiscal period, ten percent (10%) of the difference must be covered.

• Exempt from tax on dividends, complementary tax and tax on remittances or transfers abroad withheld from payments of commissions, royalties, payments for technical assistance services or for any other activity.
• Subject to income tax at 5% on taxable net income*. (subject to substance requirement)
• Apply, as income tax credit, the amount that has been paid for this or similar category abroad, as well as the amounts withheld by taxpayers of Panama, for income tax. In any case, a minimum of 2% of the taxable net income is to be paid.
• Companies established in Panama that receive services from your PP Companies dedicated to these activities, must retain 5% as income tax on the respective billing, provided that the services offered affect the generation of income from Panamanian source or the conservation of it and its value is considered as a deductible expense by the recipient.

* Transitional treatment of the income tax and personal property and services transfer tax applies for office administration companies established before Law 66 of 2018.

The Labor Code (LC) applies, except for matters regulated in a special way for the area, which are:

• 25% fixed surcharge for overtime, subject to limitations of the Labor Code (LC) regarding the amount of overtime.
• The employment contracts must be in writing.
• Mixed and night shift work paid for hours worked.
• Possibility of agreeing to rotating shifts setting a maximum of days and weekly hours of work under this modality, with prior notice from the employer of at least 48 hours and without exceeding the limits set in the LC. Possibility of operating on Sundays and agreeing on the weekly rest day on a day other than Sunday.
• Possibility of negotiating in collective agreement how to use vacation time.
• Possibility of agreeing in a collective agreement the productivity regulation, in which case the approval of MITRADEL will not be needed to use it as grounds for dismissal due to poor performance.
• The decline in sales, demand for services due to fluctuations in the markets served by the company, will be considered justified reason for dismissal.
• In the event of dismissal of an economic nature, the labor authority will have 15 days to issue a statement. In the absence of a statement, the dismissal will be considered well-founded.
• You can hire foreign personnel up to 10% of the number of regular workers and for technically or administratively specialized personnel, up to 15%.
• With the authorization of MITRADEL, the 15% may be exceeded, for specialists or technicians hired for training purposes due to lack of qualified labor.
• The percentage does not apply to companies dedicated to offshore services.
• The percentage does not apply to companies with less than 10 workers.
• The parties may jointly prepare the Company Work Regulations, in which case it is adopted by minutes and is understood to be in force without further processing, and will be subsequently reviewed by MITRADEL to ratify or reject it.

• Special visas for workers in the area and for investors, who invest no less than B /. 250,000.00 in risk capital in the companies.
• Workers within the 10%: It gives the right to permanent stay in Panama and to an ID card after 2 years.
• Workers within the 15%: It gives the right to permanent stay in Panama and to an ID card after 2 years.
• Workers over 15%: Visa for up to 3 years.
• Investors: Right to permanent permanence and ID card after 2 years.
• Extensive visas to minor children and children up to 25 years of age who are unmarried and dependent on the beneficiary and to parents over 62 years of age.
• Beneficiaries of technician or specialist visas and investor visas can import household items up to B /. 100,000.00.

• Automated merchandise movement control system, based on inventory audits and not on physical controls.
• There are no limitations on the importation of goods subject to a license and/or tariff quota, as long as they do not enter the national fiscal territory.
• Every good that has been entered into the APP and then sold within the national fiscal territory will be subject to the payment of import tax and personal property and services transfer tax.
• To introduce into the fiscal territory (sell or transfer) products manufactured or assembled in the area, customs duties or taxes will be paid, only on the value of raw materials and foreign components incorporated in the product, based on the applicable tariff for each raw material or component incorporated in the final product. The importer must submit to the customs authority the material-product ratio sheet, previously verified by Customs.
• For the calculation of import duties, the following will be excluded:
  • The value of foreign materials or goods that have been incorporated into the finished product, which can be imported tax-free by virtue of international treaties or agreements
  • The value of national or nationalized components used for manufacturing, processing or assembly purposes
  • The national added value incorporated into the finished product during its manufacturing, processing or assembly process in Panama Pacifico.
• For products finished, manufactured, assembled or manufactured in Panama Pacifico, which are free of tariffs, taxes and import duties to the country by virtue of international agreements, the import of said products built, assembled or manufactured in Panama Pacifico to the national territory or to any zone or area within the country, it will not be subject to tax, tariff, or import duty.
• Possibility of temporarily transferring, outside the area, raw materials and semi-finished products to subject them to manufacturing, assembly, processing or treatment processes. Their entry into the national fiscal territory does not result in an import tax or levy for up to 6 months, extendable for the same period, at the request of a party. If the re-entry is not recorded in its original condition or transformed into a finished product or with the added value for which it exited, the applicable import taxes are to be paid, without prejudice to the applicable sanctions. This mechanism is controlled according to the merchandise dispatch system with guaranteed payment, with a simplified entry and exit registration system.

• Public Transport TRAVERSA
• Howard Taxi
• Collective Transportation for Employees
• Uber
• Internal mobility: Scooters

• Celero Network, Corp
• Trans Ocean Networks
• Ufinet Panama
• Cable & Wireless
• Metro MPLS
• Cable Onda / Telecarrier
• Gold Data

• Technological University of Panama
• INADEH
• Trail School
• Howard Academy
• Liceo French International
• St. Mary School
• Magen David Academy