Civil Proceedings

I want somebody else to conduct a proceeding for me, what should I do?

In Panama, a lawyer is needed for legal procedures and requests to the State (Legal Representation). However, in other cases, you can give authorization to another person to do daily proceedings. On certain instances, such as retrieving documents, presenting information, billing and any other proceeding, these authorizations required a notarized authorization. In this sense, you can go to the First Notary to authenticate the signature and do your proceedings.

I want somebody else to do a procedure for me, what should I do?

It is a special moment and we recommend contacting us to know the requirements needed to take that important step in your life. In Panama, it is possible to celebrate marriages between Panamanian citizens, and foreign citizens. The requirements can be verified on our service section.

You can get married at the First Notary or a Notary to go to a private ceremony through an appointment. We know that getting married is a very special moment, to do it according to the Panamanian laws, the marrying couple must fulfill the following requirements:

Birth certificate of the bride and the groom (Can be requested at the Civil Registration Office for free)

Certificate of unmarried status issued by the Civil Registration Office – original and copy – (valid for 60 days)

Medical pre-nuptial certificate, issued by a licensed doctor fifteen (15) days prior to the wedding date

Medical tests: (valid for two months)

V.D.R.L
Blood biometry
Hemoglobin electrophoresis
Urinalysis
HIV test or medical certification that states that an HIV/STD test has been done

Make sure that the medical tests are signed and stamped by a medical technologist or a lab technician.

Two (2) witnesses who are 18 years old or older and are not related to the marrying couple within the fourth degree of consanguinity and or adoption and the second grade of affinity. (Parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, children, grandchildren, siblings, uncles, cousins, step-parents, in-laws).

Birth certificate of the child(ren), if they belong to the marrying couple and is (are) not registered.

Complete the request form

In case of divorce, provide divorce certificate

In case the bride had been married before, she can get new nuptials once the divorced sentence had been issued prior to confirmation of the bride being or not pregnant, which validation must accredited at the moment of the subsequent marriage is this one is effective before the three hundred (300) days following the dissolution of the marriage link (Article 219) of the Family Code.

Copy of the witnesses and marrying couple I.D.s

IF YOU ARE A FOREIGN CITIZEN YOU SHOULD KEEP IN MIND THESE REQUIREMENTS:

Birth certificate and certificate of unmarried status issued by the country of origin, which must me apostilled in case the country of origin is subscribed to the Agreement of The Hague , otherwise the documents must be authenticated by the Consulate of Panama in the country of origin. Then the documents must be taken to the Ministry of Foreign Relations here in Panama, (Department of Legalization and Authentication) in order for the signature of the Panama Consul in the country of origin to be authenticated. In case that the birth certificate and the certificate of unmarried status are in a language other than Spanish, these must be translated by an authorized public translator in this country.

Valid passport

Migration ID if the person has been in the country for more than 60 days.

Where do I get a birth certificate issued?

Birth certificates can be requested at the Electoral Tribunal or at authorized issuing centers

My child was born outside of the country and I want to register him as a Panamanian citizen.

Registration is done at the Panama Electoral Tribunal, Civil Registration Office. For this you need to provide an affidavit which state that the he or she is biological father or mother of the child and the birth certificate they present to document the registration is not the product of an adoption process. This affidavit an be done at the First Notary Public of the Circuit of Panama.

Otorgar testamento y certificación de existencia de testamento

In Panama, many people choose to grant testament to express their last wills. At the First Notary you can schedule an appointment to declare your will and what your wishes related to your assets, properties and whishes are.

The Granter or person who goes to manifest their will must go with thee (3) witnesses who must be residents of the District of Panama and know the testator.

It is important to mention that these people cannot be dependents or relatives of the Granter’s testator, his heirs, witnesses and the Notary.

The witnesses cannot be people who have been prosecuted for false testimony or documents falsification.

In case that the Granter does not speak Spanish, he or she must go with two authorized public interpreters.

Contact the First Notary of the Panama Circuit to schedule an appointment.

A relative died and I would like to know if he or she left a testament. Who can certify the existence or a testament?

At the First Notary Public you can request a certification to determine if the deceased left a testament in our notary. This requirement is asked at the moment of processing an inheritance.

I want to process a contract or private agreement, is it enough on simple paper?

You must bring your document to the First Notary Public of the Circuit of Panama so you can register it to public inscription. For example: A loan contract between individuals is required to be registered to public inscription for higher security of creditor and/or debtor.