|
Property is property -- it doesn't matter if it's land or an apartment. However, get over that "same rights as a Panamanian citizen" part. You are not going to have the same rights as a Panamanian citizen until you ARE a citizen (and that's a long process). Getting a visa does not make you a citizen.
To buy the property, you do not need a visa; lots of people do it when they're visiting Panama on their 90-day turista tarjeta (which is free or $5, depending on what country you're coming from). You can apply for your visa at any future point -- or never. There are many people here who own property and simply enter and re-enter the country as tourists; you can "recharge" your tourist card with a 72-hour hop over to Costa Rica, for example. (However, the government is trying to crack down on these permanent tourists; this has been discussed elsewhere in this forum.) Basically, you should start the visa application process when you are certain you want to live here, or spend more than 90 days here every year.
As far as type of visa: That's impossible to say without knowing your individual circumstances and desires. Do you have a lifetime pension? Do you have $40K to invest in a reforestation project? Do you plan to invest at least $200K in your property?
|