The full guide, section by section
Read the first part free right here. The rest is in the PDF.
- 01The quarter in numbers Free preview below
- 02Decree 17: why new builds matter Free preview below
- 03How we built this, and its limits Free preview below
- 04Who is building: developer companies In the free PDF
- 05Filing to approval: how long it takes In the free PDF
- 06Every coastal area, in one table In the free PDF
The quarter in numbers
Every project in Panama must file an environmental impact study with the Ministry of Environment before it can build. We read the public register and kept the 144 filings from 2025 and 2026 that sit on the coast or close to it. 51 are approved, 83 are still in review and 10 were withdrawn, rejected or not admitted.
58 on the shoreline
Filed in a corregimiento whose centre is within 1.5 km of the coastline.
86 a short drive inland
Within about 10 minutes of the coast: an estimate from straight-line distance (6 km or less), not a routed drive time.
45 homes and hotels
Residential and hotel or tourism projects, as classified from the project's name and sector. The rest are commercial, mixed or other.
The ten busiest coastal areas
| Area (corregimientos) | Filings | Approved | In review | Homes & hotels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panama City (coastal corregimientos)Panamá · Bella Vista, Betania, Calidonia, Don Bosco, El Chorrillo, Juan Díaz, Parque Lefevre, Río Abajo, San Felipe, San Francisco | 36 | 11 | 23 | 10 |
| Bocas del Toro islandsBocas Del Toro · Bastimentos, Bocas Del Toro, Tierra Oscura | 23 | 4 | 19 | 11 |
| Colón & the Caribbean coastColón · Barrio Norte, Barrio Sur, Cativá, Colón, Cristóbal, Cristóbal Este, Puerto Pilón, Sabanitas | 16 | 7 | 7 | 2 |
| Río Hato & Playa Blanca (Antón)Coclé · Río Hato | 10 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| ChepoPanamá · Chepo | 7 | 4 | 3 | 1 |
| Santa Catalina & Soná coastVeraguas · Hicaco, Río Grande | 7 | 0 | 7 | 3 |
| ChitréHerrera · Chitré (Cab.), Llano Bonito, Monagrillo, San Juan Bautista | 6 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| Chiriquí Grande (Bocas mainland)Bocas Del Toro · Chiriquí Grande, Miramar, Punta Robalo | 5 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| Portobelo (María Chiquita)Colón · María Chiquita | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Puerto Caimito (La Chorrera)Panamá Oeste · Puerto Caimito | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Counts by corregimiento, the smallest area the register publishes. The full table of every area is in the PDF.
Decree 17: why new builds matter
Why new coastal projects matter for residency. Under Panama's Executive Decree No. 17 (in force 16 September 2026), the Qualified Investor visa's real-estate route needs $300,000 for a new property bought first-hand from the developer and $500,000 for resale (Decree 17). A home in a project that is still being approved or built is, by definition, a first sale.
A filing on this list is not a promise that a project will be built, sold to foreigners or qualify for anything. Whether a specific purchase qualifies is a question for a Panama-licensed immigration attorney, before you sign.
How we built this, and its limits
- SourceMiAmbiente e-SEVIA, Consulta Externa de Estudios de Impacto Ambiental (https://e-sevia.miambiente.gob.pa/estudios/consultaExterna/), the Ministry of Environment's public register. Read on 30 September 2026; 691 filings from 2025 and 2026 scanned.
- Location is the corregimiento, not the siteThe register names the province, district and corregimiento, not an address. Each filing is placed at its corregimiento's centre, so "on the shoreline" means the corregimiento is, not necessarily the lot.
- Drive time is an estimate"About 10 minutes" means 6 km or less in a straight line from the corregimiento's centre to the coastline. It is not a routed time.
- Coverage is partialThe register's search returns a capped number of rows; 4 of our searches hit that cap, so some filings in the busiest provinces may be missing. Infrastructure works are left out.
- Only companies are namedPrivate individuals building a house are public record, but we count them and never name them. Ministries are listed as public bodies, not developers.
- No pricesThis report is about what is being built. It quotes no listing or sale prices.
3 more sections are in the full guide. It's free: first name and email.
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The PDF includes everything above, plus:
- Who is building: developer companies
- Filing to approval: how long it takes
- Every coastal area, in one table
More free Panama guides
Source: MiAmbiente e-SEVIA, Consulta Externa de Estudios de Impacto Ambiental (https://e-sevia.miambiente.gob.pa/estudios/consultaExterna/), read 30 September 2026. Locations are corregimiento-level; drive times are estimates. Residency figures: Executive Decree No. 17 of 8 September 2026 (Official Digital Gazette No. 30613). Immigration rules change: confirm your case with a Panama-licensed attorney.