Trademark protection across the Republic of Panama is governed by Industrial Property Law No.35 of 1996, amended by Law No.61 of 2012 and Executive Decree No.85 of 2017. The exclusive authority administering all trademark filings, examinations, publications and registrations is DIGERPI (Dirección General del Registro de la Propiedad Industrial) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (MICI). Panama adopts a hybrid priority regime distinct from EU, Russian and Nordic trademark systems:
1. Hybrid use-plus-filing priority under Article 97 Law 35: Prior continuous commercial use grants superior rights over later identical applications; if no party holds prior use evidence, the first filed application prevails (modified first-to-file rule)docs.panam.... Unregistered prior users may file oppositions or invalidation against later registered marks without holding a registration certificate.
2. All foreign applicants without a physical business domicile inside Panama must retain a locally licensed Panamanian industrial property attorney as exclusive legal representative for all DIGERPI formalitiesMinisterio.... A fully notarized, apostilled Spanish-English power of attorney is mandatory for filing, substantive replies, oppositions, renewals and appeals; unrepresented foreign applications are automatically suspended and abandoned.
3. Strict Spanish-language requirement: All petitions, declarations and supporting evidence submitted to DIGERPI must be translated into certified Spanish; no English-only filings are accepted. Applicants must designate a domestic legal notification address within Panama for all administrative and judicial communications.
4. Non-use cancellation threshold: Any registered mark becomes subject to full or partial revocation if absent genuine commercial use within five consecutive calendar years post-registration, with the trademark owner bearing the full burden of supplying use proof before commercial courts.
Article 96 of Law 35 defines registrable distinctive signs: word marks, figurative logos, combined word-image marks, 3D product shapes, single/multiple colour marks, sound marks and holograms. Signs lacking inherent distinctiveness, purely descriptive terminology, misleading geographical indications, national emblems, religious symbols or content violating Panamanian public morality constitute absolute grounds for substantive rejection.
Before submitting a national trademark application for cross-border sales on Panamanian marketplaces (Mercado Libre Panama, local retail chains), applicants must conduct a full clearance search via DIGERPI’s public online database to identify conflicting registered marks, pending applications and well-known marks with prior commercial use. Panama applies the 11th Nice Classification (45 total classes: Classes 1–34 goods, Classes 35–45 services) and permits multi-class filings in one single application. Non-negotiable filing materials:
1. Full corporate legal identity documents: home-country business registry extract with certified Spanish translation, plus full contact details of the appointed Panamanian licensed IP attorney;
2. Standardised trademark visual files (minimum 300 DPI resolution); 3D/sound marks require supplementary technical descriptive statements and audio attachments;
3. Signed sworn affidavit stating either current active commercial use or bona fide intent to use the mark within the statutory five-year window;
4. Apostilled bilingual power of attorney executed by the applicant’s legal representative;
5. Official Pantone colour references if exclusive colour protection is claimed for figurative or single-colour marks.
2026 DIGERPI electronic filing official fees (Balboas, 1 B/. = 1 USD fixed parity, VAT exempt): Base one Nice class registration package (10-year protection): B/.140.50 (includes filing, formal exam, publication and initial registration inscription fee); each additional Nice class: +B/.50; trademark renewal fee per class: B/.134.00; opposition filing fee: B/.98; appeal fee against substantive rejection: B/.112. All administrative fees are fully non-refundable upon application rejection, voluntary withdrawal or procedural abandonment mid-process.zf.mici.go...
After DIGERPI confirms full payment of all filing fees within 30 calendar days of receiving the application, the file enters four binding procedural phases with rigid statutory time limits that cannot be extended by simple applicant request:
DIGERPI examiners verify document completeness, trademark media compliance, Nice Classification standardisation, full fee payment and valid local legal representation. If formal defects are identified, applicants receive a one-time 3-month correction deadline; failure to submit fully revised compliant materials results in automatic abandonment of the trademark application with zero fee reimbursementMinisterio....
Examiners simultaneously review inherent distinctiveness and conflicts with prior Panamanian national trademarks, well-known marks and unregistered prior-use works. If a preliminary refusal communication is issued, applicants hold up to two months to submit nationwide Panamanian sales records, multi-channel advertising materials and market survey data proving acquired distinctiveness through genuine domestic commercial use to overcome refusal under Article 96(3) Law 35. Unsuccessful applicants may file an appeal with the Commercial Courts within two months of receiving the final refusal decision.
Applications passing substantive review are published in DIGERPI’s monthly Industrial Property Bulletin, disclosing complete trademark visuals, applicant information and designated goods/services. The statutory opposition window lasts two full calendar months from publication date, during which any interested third party with prior use or registered rights may file a formal opposition with supporting evidence. Examiners weigh opposition arguments before issuing a final registration resolution.
If no oppositions are filed or opposition rulings favour the applicant, DIGERPI issues a registration resolution; the trademark is entered into the National Trademark Register, and an official dual-format (digital + physical) registration certificate is issued to the applicant’s Panamanian legal representative. A Panamanian national trademark remains valid for 10 years calculated strictly from the official application filing date, renewable infinitely for successive 10-year nationwide protection terms covering all Panamanian provinces and special economic zones including Colon Free Zone.
Article 138 Law 35 stipulates that any registered Panamanian trademark must undergo genuine commercial use within five consecutive years following registration publication; continuous five-year non-use enables any interested third party to file a full or partial revocation cancellation directly with Panama’s Commercial Courts. Mere offshore manufacturing, cross-border online listings without physical Panamanian warehousing, or branded goods lacking Spanish-language marketing and local retail distribution cannot satisfy the legal definition of genuine domestic use; admissible evidence includes Colon Free Zone import customs records, local distributor contracts, national marketplace sales invoices and nationwide offline advertising campaigns.
Renewal applications must be submitted via the appointed Panamanian attorney up to one year prior to expiry; a six-month post-expiry grace period applies with mandatory late surcharges matching base filing fee rates. The base B/.134.00 renewal fee per class covers all originally registered Nice classes for full nationwide Panamanian trademark protection.
Panamanian trademark proprietors hold exclusive nationwide rights to block identical or confusingly similar mark usage on matching goods and services across all provincial territories, with two core enforcement channels under Panamanian Federal Customs Law and the Industrial Property Code:
1. Pre-litigation cease-and-desist notices sent to infringing offline retailers, cross-border marketplace sellers and importers operating within Colon Free Zone or mainland Panama; formal civil lawsuits filed with regional Commercial Courts or the central Panama City Commercial Tribunal to seize infringing goods, suspend all infringing commercial activities and claim monetary damage compensation;
2. National Customs Intellectual Property Registry registration: trademark owners may record valid Panamanian national trademark certificates into the national customs IP database, enabling coordinated automatic detention of counterfeit goods at all Panamanian border entry points (ports, airports, land crossings). Standard administrative sanctions include full confiscation and mandatory destruction of seized counterfeit merchandise at the infringer’s expense; customs registry protection remains valid for three years with unlimited renewal options.
A registered Panamanian national trademark can be declared invalid at any time if filed in bad faith, copies internationally well-known marks or infringes established third-party prior commercial use rights. All full/partial trademark assignments, exclusive commercial licences and security pledges must be formally recorded with DIGERPI to generate legal binding effect against third-party competitors operating anywhere in Panama; unrecorded transfers only create private contractual obligations between transferor and transferee and cannot be enforced against nationwide market rivals.
1. Direct DIGERPI National Trademark Single Application: Optimised for enterprises selling goods/services exclusively within Panama’s national territory, including Colon Free Zone wholesale trade. One registration delivers uniform nationwide protection across all 10 Panamanian provinces, with lower cumulative administrative costs compared to alternative regional union filings.
2. Madrid International Registration Note: Panama does NOT accede to the Madrid Protocol or Madrid Agreement; global brands cannot designate Panama via WIPO Madrid filings, so standalone national DIGERPI applications are the only viable route for foreign applicants.
3. EAEU Unified Eurasian Trademark Filing Irrelevance: The EAEU Eurasian trademark system has zero territorial effect within Panama and provides no cross-recognition with DIGERPI registrations, making EAEU filings redundant for brands operating solely in Central America.
For foreign manufacturers exporting FMCG, apparel, home appliances and consumer electronics to Panamanian e-commerce and retail channels, the direct DIGERPI national trademark filing route delivers the most cost-effective, streamlined nationwide brand protection without redundant cross-regional trademark management procedures.
1. Failure to retain a licensed Panamanian IP attorney: DIGERPI fully rejects all initial applications and post-registration modification filings submitted by foreign corporate entities without an apostilled bilingual power of attorney, delaying brand protection schedules by multiple months.
2. Overly vague, broad Nice Classification terminology: DIGERPI examiners and Panamanian Commercial Courts strictly reject generic ambiguous category descriptions; overexpansive classification scope will trigger partial trademark cancellation during five-year non-use revocation proceedings.
3. Neglect of continuous genuine domestic Panamanian commercial use: Many foreign brand owners only complete offshore product manufacturing without formal multi-province Panamanian sales channels, leading to full trademark cancellation once the five-year non-use statutory threshold expires.
4. Omission of national customs IP database registration: Unrecorded Panamanian national trademarks cannot trigger coordinated nationwide automatic customs detention, exposing brands to mass parallel imports and counterfeit flooding across all Panamanian single-market online marketplaces and free trade zones.
1.IPcrossark：https://www.ipcrossark.com/en/trademark.html?cid=13
2.DIGERPI Official English Trademark Legal Guidance Portal (MICI Panama): https://mici.gob.pa/requisitos-marcas/
3.DIGERPI 2026 Full Official Fee Schedule (Spanish with English annotations): https://zf.mici.gob.pa/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Instructivo-Registro-de-Marcas-1.pdf
4.Public DIGERPI Trademark Search Database Portal: https://mici.gob.pa/inicio-digerpi/
5.Full Official Text of Panama Industrial Property Law No.35 of 1996 (WIPO WIPOLEX English Translation): https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text/129260
