La Compañía de Panamá

the panama company

A Panama Company is the ideal vehicle for a number of activities, ranging from property ownership to the management of investment holding activities and financial services provision. Ownership through a corporation allows one to have flexibility in areas ranging from estate planning (if share ownership is properly structured the investor can avoid his heirs a painful and lengthy probate procedure), tax management (as an example, roles on corporate expenses are more flexible than the ones on personal ones), asset protection and representation (shareholders meetings can facilitate granting special powers of attorney or other types of authorizations for many actions thus not requiring local presence in the country).

 

Incorporating a company in Panama is relatively easy and only takes about a week. While it is based on the civil law pattern of continental Europe, most administrative and fiscal legislation is constructed on the US model. This offers Panama a particular advantage in company formation as practitioners have a cultural affinity with both systems and can easily bridge the gap between continental European and Anglo (UK-US) legal frameworks.

Key Features of a Panama Company

    • Sin restricciones de nacionalidad
    • No requirements to disclose ownership
    • No restrictions on foreign owned investments (with few exceptions)
    • No restrictions concerning ownership of shares
    • No residence requirements for Directors/Officers
    • Sin requisitos de capital desembolsado
    • No income tax, if income is produced outside Panama
    • Exención total de impuestos sobre todas y cada una de las actividades empresariales u operaciones realizadas fuera de la jurisdicción
    • Sin control de cambios
    • No hay restricciones a las fusiones, adquisiciones o empresas conjuntas
    • No requirements to file annual Financial Statements
    • No es obligatorio celebrar Juntas Generales anuales de Accionistas o Administradores
    • Total Secrecy and Anonymity
    • Impuesto anual de matriculación y tasas de agente residente razonables
    • La escritura de constitución puede realizarse en cualquier parte del mundo y en cualquier idioma.
    • Los libros contables de la empresa pueden llevarse en cualquier parte del mundo y en cualquier idioma.
    • Los representantes legales (que pueden ser nuestros abogados) con poderes para actuar en nombre de la empresa son responsables de cualquier acción emprendida en contra de los intereses de la empresa y/o de sus accionistas.
    • Estabilidad política gracias a un gobierno constitucional elegido.

Corporate Names

    • Name Restrictions: Names identical or similar enough to create confusion, offensive or otherwise undesirable
    • Endings and Abbreviations Required: “SA, Incorporated or its abbreviation Inc., Corporation its abbreviation Corp., and others. The word Limited its abbreviation Ltd. Is not accepted.
    • Length of Time to Verify Name Availability: Less than 24 hours depending on name similarity
    • Reservation of Names Permitted: Yes
    • Language of Name: Any language using the Latin alphabet

Capital and Shareholders

    • Minimum Number of Shareholders: 1
    • Corporate Shareholders Permitted: Yes
    • Local Shareholders required: No
    • Disclosure of Shareholders: No
    • Minimum Authorized Capital: US$10,000 or 500 no par value shares
    • Bearer Shares Permitted: Yes but subject to custody by a licensed custodian
    • Registered Shares Permitted: Yes

Directors and Company Secretary

    • Minimum Number of Directors: 3
    • Corporate Directors Permitted: Yes
    • Corporate Company Secretary Permitted: Yes
    • Local Directors/ Company Secretary Required: No
    • Disclosure of Directors / Company Secretary: Yes
    • Appointment of Subsequent Directors /Officers: Yes

Meetings

    • Annual General Meeting of Shareholders Required: Yes – notice to be given to every member of the company
    • Annual General Meeting of Directors Required: No
    • Location of Directors and Shareholders Meetings: No requirement
    • Adoption by Consent Permitted: Yes
    • Quorum Required for Purposes of Meetings: 2 members personally present shall be a quorum in so far as the articles of the company do not contain other provisions.

Local Requirements

    • Registered Office: Yes
    • Register of Directors / Officers to be kept at Registered Office: Yes
    • Company Seal Required: No
    • Copy of Minutes to be kept at Registered Office: Yes, or at any such place as may be specified in the memorandum of articles
    • Copy of Share Register to be kept at Registered Office: Yes, or at any such place as may be specified in the memorandum and articles.

Annual Requirements

    • Minimum Annual Fee or Franchise Tax: Registration of an annual return, US$350
    • Requirement to File Annual Return: No
    • Requirement for Financial Audited Accounts: No
    • Requirement to file Financial Statements: No
    • Requirement to file Tax Return: Yes if income is from Panama source.

Fiscalidad

The income tax of Panama is levied only upon net income derived from operations within the territory of the country. Income obtained from operations consummated outside Panama is not income obtained from “sources within the jurisdiction” and, therefore, is not taxable under local law.

El Grupo BusinessPanama es una ventanilla única que le ofrece los siguientes servicios:

    • Incorporation of companies, trusts and foundations
    • Gestión fiduciaria y administración de empresas, fideicomisos y fundaciones
    • Cuentas bancarias y comerciales
    • Constitución de fondos de inversión, sociedades, SRL
    • Inmigración y residencia
    • Oficina familiar
    • Servicios de gestión patrimonial

Si desea más información, póngase en contacto con nosotros.

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