Panama: Transport
From Handelswijzer Midden-Amerika
The main laws relating to maritime transport are Law No. 8 of 12 August 1925 and amendments thereto. The AMP, an autonomous State body, was established by Decree Law No. 7 of 10 February 1998 and is responsible for maritime transport services in Panama. It is entrusted with administering, promoting and implementing the strategies and rules relating to the operation and development of the maritime transport sector and for administering Panama's ship register. The AMP also proposes and coordinates development plans for the national port system, exploits and operates port services and oversees those which it does not operate directly.
Panama has the largest and oldest open register of ships in the world (national merchant navy). There are no restrictions on nationality for registration, including cabotage services, and it is open to Panamanian nationals and foreigners without distinction. Decree Law No. 8 of 26 February 1998, however, provides that, to the extent possible, Panamanian nationals should be recruited for the crew of Panamanian-registered vessels. A ship-owner must have an attorney or legal representative in Panama in order to register a vessel under the Panamanian flag.
Law No. 4 of 24 February 1983 and amendments thereto regulate the taxation regime to which Panamanian-registered ships are subject. Any Panamanian-registered ship to be used for service abroad must pay an annual tax of B 0.10 per registered tonne; this does not apply to ships only engaged in cabotage. They must also pay an annual consular fee determined pursuant to Law No. 44 of 9 October 1979 and amendments thereto depending on the type of vessel and rising in proportion to the tonnage; it ranges from B 850 to B 3,000. In addition, there is an annual inspection tax, which ranges from B 500 to B 1,800, and an annual tax for accident investigation and participation by the administration in international conferences and treaties, which ranges from B 300 to B 850.
Registration confers fiscal benefits such as exemption from tax on profits earned from the activity carried out. Law No. 25 of 3 June 2002 allows an additional rebate of up to 25 per cent on the annual tax per tonne and 50 per cent on the annual consular fee for a period of four years for registered entities that operate at least four newly-built vessels with a minimum of over 50,000 GRT up to 100,000 GRT; for groups of four ships exceeding 100,000 GRT, the additional annual tax rebate is up to 35 per cent. In order to obtain these advantages, the owners must undertake to keep the vessels under Panamanian registration for a period of four years. Law No. 36 of 6 July 1995 also allows reductions for the registration of groups of ships (at least three) or for large vessels, which may be 20 or 50 per cent depending on the tonnage.
Panama is a member of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and is party to 64 international maritime transport conventions.82 It has agreements on recognizing the measurement of ships' tonnage with Russia, Ukraine and the United States of America, and on trade and navigation with France, Italy and Spain.
Bron: Organization of American State's Foreign Trade Information System (SICE)
