1. Are there any restrictions on gun parts importation and exports ? What is permissible and what is not?
Panama's legal regulations on exporting and importing Gun parts and (firearms later on)
Panama has very strict legal regulations on exporting and importing Gun parts and firearms - definitely more strict than the US - which make ownership almost impossible. Prevalence of firearms during the Central American civil wars and the Colombian guerrillas has forced the government to impose strict controls. Law 57 of 2011 regulates holding, carrying, exporting, importing, marketing, storage, brokerage, transportation and trafficking of firearms, ammunition and related materials by individuals and companies pursuant to article 312 of the Constitution.i
Individuals and companies are prohibited from
1. Carrying or having firearms and war elements such as the AK-47 and AKM.
2. Carrying or having fragmentation grenades, grases of mechanisms for release of biological, toxic, corrosive or narcotic substances.
3. Carrying or having offensive or defensive elements, devices, equipment and instruments for exclusively military not considered firearms, nor weapons of mass destruction which are similar to these.
4. Importing, manufacturing, marketing or installing accessories or modifying weapons of private use in order to silence their detonation upon their being fired.
5. Collecting weapons or elements of war, even when deactivating them or having one or more of their parts been extracted to make their working impossible.
6. Modify the firing mechanism of a private weapon transforming it into an automatic firearm, able to fire as a machine gun.ii
2. Are special permits / licenses required for us in order to do transactions with this type of goods ( military supplies, gun parts and firearms later on)
Only companies of Panamanian capital (owned by Panamanians) with registered shares (no bearer shares) may import firearms, their accessories, ammunitions, cartridges, and related materials, upon previous authorization by resolution of the Institutional Directorate of Public Safety Affairs (DIASP) of the Ministry of Security. Importation of weapons prohibited under Article 14 will not be authorized. Authorized shipments may only be destined for sale within the territory of the Republic of Panama. Therefore, subsequent exportation of the shipments imported is also prohibited.iii
In addition the importer must send all weapons imported to DIASP for ballistic testing and when possible must have the serial number engraved with the letters PTY.iv
Requirements for a distributor license include among others:
1. Filing an application through an attorney before DIASP.
2. Be Panamanian by birth or naturalization.
3. Certification by Treasurer showing names of all shareholders.
4. Certification by accountant showing names of all shareholders and percentage of ownership.
5. Civil liability insurance from Panama insurer for at least $40,000.
6. Background police report of all shareholders and directors.
7. Not having been condemned by a tribunal for crimes against life and safety, freedom, family, economy, collective safety, State or humanity.v
Requirements for the brokerage license are:
1. Filing an application through an attorney before DIASP.
2. Be Panamanian by birth or naturalization.
3. Not having been condemned by a tribunal for crimes against life and individual safety, freedom, family, economy, collective safety, State or humanity.
Fines for importing or selling firearms or related material without complying with Law 57 are of between $1000 to $20,000, plus imprisonment when provisions of the Criminal Code are infringed.vii
Companies involved in this business must also comply with all Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF-DGI) taxation, Municipal tax, Ministry of Labor and Social Security regulations described in our Doing Business in Panama brochure, like any other business.
Please also note that all applications are subject to the regulatory bodies' approval. While we are diligent in following regulations in force, government officials may arbitrarily change rules and demand additional documents at any time during the application process.
3. Tax regulations on importing Gun parts? Import and export duty?
The regulations and permits above mentioned are applicable for importation of gun parts and accessories. Each shipment imported or exported must be previously authorized by DIASP.viii
All imports are subject to a 7% value added tax (ITBMS). An import duty is also levied depending on the item. Customs brokers handle said information and they would require the Brussels item number in order to look up the rate in the government computer or manually which can take more than 1 week.
iArt. 1, Law 57 of 2011.
iiArt,14, Id.
iiiArt. 53, Id.
ivArt. 64, Id.
vArt. 26, Id.
viArt. 70-71, Id.
viiArt. 91. Id.
viiiArt. 65, Id.
