Beta
The Panama City skyline

Photo: Adobe Stock, for illustration; any people shown are models.

🇵🇦  Retiring in Panama from New Zealand

What New Zealanders need to know: the visa, how your pensions are taxed, what to do before you leave and every year after.

By the retireacross editorial team · Last reviewed

Visa for New Zealanders

Check the visa-free stay for your passport with the consulate before a trial stay. To live there you need a residence route:

  • Permanent residence for retirees (pensionado / jubilado): income from 1,000 USD a month. Official page
  • Residence through economic solvency (US$300,000 deposit or property): savings from 300,000 USD. Official page
  • Friendly Nations residence (nationals of listed countries). Official page
  • Retired rentier (interest from a deposit). Official page

Check your figures in the visa checker

Sources: Servicio Nacional de Migración: permanent residence for retirees (Article 200) (checked 2026-10-23) · LexLatin: Panama pensionado visa (checked 2026-10-22) · Servicio Nacional de Migración: economic solvency, fixed deposit (checked 2026-10-25) · Servicio Nacional de Migración: economic solvency, real estate (checked 2026-10-25) · Servicio Nacional de Migración: Friendly Nations (países específicos) (checked 2026-10-25) · Servicio Nacional de Migración: rentista retirado (checked 2026-10-25)

How your pensions are taxed

No tax treaty between New Zealand and Panama: New Zealand can keep taxing New Zealand-sourced income (and you stay tax resident while you keep a permanent place of abode there); Panama does not tax most foreign pensions (see its tax rules), so in practice only New Zealand taxes them.

  • State pensions: taxable in the paying country.
  • Private pensions: possibly taxed in both countries, without treaty relief.

Sources: Inland Revenue Tax Policy: New Zealand tax treaties (checked 2026-10-26)

New Zealand: You stay New Zealand tax resident while you keep a permanent place of abode there (a home you go back to), even if you are away more than 325 days; NZ Super paid abroad under general portability is paid gross. Official page

Panama's own rules: Panama taxes only Panamanian-source income: foreign pensions and investment income are not taxed. There is no wealth tax and no inheritance tax; property tax applies above exemption thresholds.

Before you leave New Zealand

  1. Check NZ Super before you go (New Zealand): To get NZ Super you must be ordinarily resident in New Zealand when you apply at 65, and meet the residence rule (10 to 20 years since age 20, rising with your birth date). If you plan to leave before 65, check how and when you can apply first. Official page
  2. Call International Services at least 6 weeks before leaving: NZ Super does not follow you automatically: apply to keep it going by calling Work and Income's International Services at least 6 weeks before you leave. It cannot be paid if you move to the United Kingdom. Official page

More for New Zealanders

Rules and figures change and we can make mistakes: confirm with the official source or a licensed advisor before acting.