If the property is your declared primary residence, the first $120,000 of its cadastral value is tax-free, and the excess pays 0.5% a year up to $700,000 and 0.7% above that. Any other property (rentals, second homes, land) gets only a $30,000 exemption, then pays 0.6% to 1.0%. That is the direct answer, taken from the DGI's own rate table (checked October 16, 2026). What changes your bill is whether the property is registered for the exemption you qualify for, and that step is easy to miss.
Updated October 16, 2026: payment dates and the early-payment discount corrected against the DGI, official sources added, and the construction-exemption terms we could not confirm were removed.
The rate brackets, in full
Panama's property tax (impuesto de inmueble) is governed by Law 66 of 2017 (published in the Gaceta Oficial of October 17, 2017, in force from January 1, 2019), which amended the Fiscal Code, and it treats primary residences differently from everything else.
| Primary residence (patrimonio familiar tributario) | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $120,000 | Exempt |
| $120,001 – $700,000 | 0.5% |
| $700,001+ | 0.7% |
| All other properties (rentals, land, second homes) | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $30,000 | Exempt |
| $30,001 – $250,000 | 0.6% |
| $250,001 – $500,000 | 0.8% |
| $500,001+ | 1.0% |
The tax base is the cadastral value the DGI has on file — land plus construction plus improvements — not necessarily your purchase price, though the two are usually close for a recent transaction.
The exemption you have to ask for
The $120,000 exemption isn't automatic. The owner must file a sworn declaration and a simple request with the DGI (Fiscal Code art. 764-A, as amended by Law 66), and the DGI has three months from filing to answer. It also reaches a home held through a company, if the beneficial owners are natural persons who hold 100% of the shares, certified by a licensed public accountant, and every shareholder swears it is their primary residence; private-interest foundations and trusts have their own sworn-declaration rule. Owners who bought through a company, or who never knew the step existed, can end up paying the non-primary rate on a home they live in. The law also commits the State to review the exempt $120,000 every five years.
First-time buyers: the same law says a first home that is declared as primary residence, with a cadastral value between $120,000 and $300,000, is exempt for three years counted from the occupancy permit or the Public Registry date, whichever comes first (Law 66, art. 766, paragraph 1, per the consolidated text we read). Confirm with the DGI that this applies to your purchase before relying on it.
Older exemptions on new construction
Law 66 recognizes exemptions on improvements that were in force on December 31, 2018 for projects whose construction permit was issued before January 1, 2019, until the term granted by the law that created each one. Condominium (horizontal property) units whose improvements are still exempt pay 1% a year on the land value only; when the exemption ends, the standard tables above apply (DGI). How long an exemption lasts depends on the permit date and the project, so confirm yours with the DGI instead of assuming.
How and when you pay
Property tax can be paid in three installments, due by April 30, August 31 and December 31 (Fiscal Code art. 786, as amended by Law 66; DGI). The DGI says that paying the full annual amount before April 30 earns a 10% discount if the account has no arrears (Law 208 of April 6, 2021, art. 9, which the DGI repeated for the 2026 tax in January 2026). You pay 90% of the annual amount, and any arrears must be paid first, on a separate slip. Late payment carries a 10% surcharge plus interest. Older sources, including the original text of Law 66 and some DGI documents, still say the discount ends in February, so check your balance in e-Tax 2.0 before you pay. A property whose registered value is within its exemption owes nothing.
The bottom line
The brackets above are public information. What actually determines your bill is whether your specific property is registered correctly — as a primary residence, under an exemption that is still running, or neither — and that's a five-minute check worth doing before you assume you know what you'll owe.
Sources (checked October 16, 2026): DGI, Property tax page (rates, installments, exceptions, discount); Law 66 of 2017, consolidated text (vLex), arts. 764, 764-A, 766, 766-A and 786 of the Fiscal Code (we have not compared it with the Gaceta page by page); Law 208 of 2021 on the DGI's laws page; DGI post of January 27, 2026 on the 10% discount. This is general information, not legal or tax advice.