From 2017, offshore corporations and foundations in Panama must keep accounting records and control of their documentation.

1. PANAMÁ
ACCOUNTING RECORDS FOR OFFSHORE CORPORATIONS

2. Casin & Asociados
BACKGROUND
 The Panamanian Government has enacted Law number 52 dated
October 27th, requiring the "offshore" companies and private interest
foundations, which do not carry out operations with effects in the
Republic of Panama, to keep accounting records and maintain
documents confirming their activities as of January 1st 2017.
 The documentation must be kept and be available for a period of five
(5) years at the legal entity's Registered Agent's office or in any other
place in the Republic of Panama or abroad.
 Information will be confidential and may not be considered as public
information.

3. Casin & Asociados
BACKGROUND
 The legal entity is obliged to provide the information to its Registered
Agent following the request received from the Dirección General de
Ingresos (DGI), within a period of fifteen (15) labor days, counted as of
the date on which the request of this information is notified.
 In the event the legal entity does not provide the accounting records
and the support documentation, the Registered Agent is obliged to
present its resignation.
 If the legal entity that does not appoint a Registered Agent within a
period of ninety (90) calendar days, will have its corporate rights
suspended.

4. Casin & Asociados
BACKGROUND
 The non-compliance of these requirements will be sanctioned with a
fine of US$1,000.00 plus US$100.00 daily, counted as of the moment
this situation occurs until the moment it is corrected.
 This requirement does not affect in any way the offshore operations of
these legal entities nor the way in which they operate.
 They will not be obliged to fill in IncomeTax, or pay taxes for offshore
operations.

5. Casin & Asociados
OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
 The Public Registry will suspend the legal entity's corporate rights when it
has not completed the payment of its annual tax (Tasa Única) for a period
of three (3) consecutive years.
 While this suspension is in place, the legal entity may not:
• Initiate legal processes, carry out businesses or dispose of its assets;
• Present claims or exercise any right;
• Execute any binding corporate act;
 After two (2) years without the legal entity's reactivation, the Panama
Public Registry will cancel its registration definitively and thus this legal
entity will be considered as dissolved definitively with all the legal effects
relating thereto.

6. Casin & Asociados
DEFINITIONS
 ACCOUNTING RECORDS: information that clearly and precisely states the
legal entities' commercial operations, assets, passives and their patrimony,
allowing the validation of their financial status as well as the preparation of
financial statements for said legal entities.
 SUPPORT DOCUMENTATION: include the contracts, titles, statements of
account, invoices, receipts or any other document that validates the
transactions and operations executed by a legal entity.