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The Executive Decree No. 188 of October 3rd, 2024 (hereinafter referred to
as the “Decree”), published in the Official Gazette on October 3rd,
2024, establishes temporary measures to recognize the validity of passports
of Venezuelan citizens residing in the territory of Panama and provides the
following:
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The use of expired passports of Venezuelan citizens in the territory of the Republic of Panama will be accepted as valid and current identification documents. These passports may be used for any type of immigration, labor, tax, educational, commercial procedures, as well as for obtaining driver’s licenses from Panamanian public entities.
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Expired passports of Venezuelan citizens will be accepted as valid in the private sector for Venezuelan nationals in the territory of the Republic of Panama.
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Public institutions of the Panamanian State and the private sector will consider valid, for a period of six (6) months from the entry into force of this Executive Decree, the passports of Venezuelan nationals that have expired since September 1st, 2023.
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The Executive Decree will come into effect the day after its promulgation in the Official Gazette and will remain in force for a period of six (6) months.
Comments:
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This Decree establishes that Venezuelan citizens may use their expired passports as valid identification documents, both in public and private entities, representing a significant temporary advancement in Panama’s migration policy.
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The six (6) month period during which passports expired since September 1st, 2023, will be considered valid introduces a temporality in the application of the rule, reflecting a functional approach to addressing the migration situation of Venezuelans.
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This Decree will take effect on October 4th, 2024.