COSUSA is the legal employer of your staff in Panama: we sign the employment contracts in Spanish, register them with the Ministry of Labor (MITRADEL), enroll every employee in the Social Security Fund (CSS), run payroll and answer for every labor obligation. Your company directs the day-to-day work.
It’s the fastest and safest way to operate in Panama — for foreign companies without a local entity, and for companies that simply don’t want to carry payroll or labor risk. You receive one monthly invoice with full backup.
What’s included
Global EOR platforms can put your hire on a payroll. What they can’t do is walk your job site, sit across the desk at MITRADEL, or staff a construction crew. COSUSA is the legal employer figure under Panamanian law — not a reseller of one.
Panama’s Business Investor Visa requires a minimum investment of US$160,000 — and your company must employ at least five Panamanian workers, registered with the Social Security Fund (CSS). That requirement is exactly what we do: COSUSA recruits, hires and manages those employees for you, fully compliant with MITRADEL and the CSS, so your visa file is solid from day one and stays that way.
Talk to us about your visa requirementPanamanian labor law protects the employee heavily, and the details catch foreign companies off guard. These are the questions we answer every week — and everything an EOR takes off your plate.
Only within strict limits. Panamanian law requires that at least 90% of a company’s workforce be Panamanian (or foreigners married to a Panamanian, or with 10+ years of residence). Foreign staff are generally capped at 10% — up to 15% for technical or specialist roles — and every foreign employee needs a work permit from MITRADEL. As your EOR, COSUSA keeps the ratio in order and processes the work permits.
Before they start working. Enrolling an employee late in the Caja de Seguro Social exposes the employer to fines and surcharges — and leaves you liable if anything happens to the worker on day one. COSUSA enrolls every employee before their first day, no exceptions.
Yes. Employment contracts in Panama must be written in Spanish and filed with the Ministry of Labor (MITRADEL). If there is no registered written contract, the law presumes the worker’s version of the terms to be true in any dispute. We draft, sign and file every contract correctly.
A mandatory extra month of salary every year, paid in three installments: April 15, August 15 and December 15. It isn’t optional and it isn’t a “bonus” in the discretionary sense — plan for roughly 8.33% on top of every salary.
30 days of paid vacation for every 11 months of continuous work — one of the most generous entitlements in the region. Vacation accrues month by month and is owed as money if the relationship ends.
No. Panama does not have at-will employment. Dismissal requires a justified cause recognized by the Labor Code, or payment of severance — and after two years of service the rules tighten further. On top of severance, every indefinite-term employee accrues a seniority premium (prima de antigüedad) of one week’s pay per year worked, owed whenever the contract ends. Terminations are where foreign employers lose the most money in Panama; as the legal employer, COSUSA calculates and handles every exit correctly.
Rule of thumb: 125–140% of gross salary. The mandatory employer costs stack up:
| Mandatory employer cost | Approx. rate |
|---|---|
| Social Security — employer share (CSS) | 13.25% |
| Educational insurance — employer share | 1.50% |
| Professional risk insurance (by activity) | 0.56%–5.6% |
| 13th-month bonus (décimo tercer mes) | ~8.33% |
| Paid vacation accrual (30 days / 11 months) | ~9.09% |
| Seniority premium (prima de antigüedad) | ~1.92% |
Under Law 462 of 2025, the employer CSS contribution is scheduled to rise to 15.25% by 2029. Add paid absences the law requires you to cover and the administrative load, and the realistic total is 125–140% of gross salary. We quote it precisely for your case before you hire.
Typically 8–15 business days from profile to first day: recruitment (if you need it — included at no extra cost), contract drafting and signature, MITRADEL filing and CSS enrollment. If you already have the person identified, it’s faster.
No — that is exactly what the Employer of Record is for. Your team is legally employed by COSUSA under Panamanian law while working under your direction, and you receive one monthly invoice. If you later incorporate in Panama, your staff can transfer to your own entity in an orderly way.
Whether it’s three customer-service seats, an office team, or two hundred workers on a job site — we reply the same business day with a tailored proposal at local rates.
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