Who licenses online gambling in Panama?

The Junta de Control de Juegos, the gaming control board inside the Ministry of Economy and Finance, under Decree Law 2 of 1998 and Resolution 65 of 25 October 2002.

What changed with Panama Law 527 of 2026?

It recognises problem gambling as a public health matter, requires biometric identity and age verification on betting platforms, requires facial recognition in casinos, and lets the JCJ order internet providers to block unlicensed gambling sites.

Sovereign state

Latin America

ISO PA

Review due

Panama: gambling regulation and licensing

Republic of Panama

Online casinoRegulated
Online sports bettingRegulated
Online pokerRegulated
Land-based (reference)Regulated

Regulator: Gaming Control Board
Headline tax: Not yet verified
Licence required: Yes
Last verified: 30 Aug 2026

Summary

Panama has licensed online gambling for longer than almost anywhere in Latin America. The Junta de Control de Juegos, the executive secretariat inside the Ministry of Economy and Finance, has run games of chance and betting since Decree Law 2 of 10 February 1998, and Resolution 65 of 25 October 2002 brought juegos de suerte y azar a traves de Internet inside that framework. The JCJ authorises full casinos, Type A slot halls, bingo, sports betting agencies and racetracks alongside the internet licence, and the National Lottery sits outside its remit. The 2026 change is Law 527, promulgated on 23 May 2026, which recognises problem gambling as a public health issue, mandates biometric age verification on platforms and facial recognition in casinos, and gives the JCJ power to order internet service providers to block unlicensed sites. Law 527 marks a shift in what the JCJ is for, from an authorising body to a supervisory one with enforcement reach over the wider internet. Biometric age verification is an unusually demanding requirement to impose on licensees in the region and will bear on platform costs as much as on compliance.

Key facts

Regulator: Gaming Control Board (JCJ)
Regulator type: Gaming board
Headline tax: Not yet verified
Licence required: Yes
Minimum age: Not yet verified
Tax base: Recorded only where it could be verified. Pardini states that an internet gaming operator pays a right of key of USD 40,000 and an annual state tax of USD 20,000, and that Resolution 65 applies the territoriality principle so that income and revenues produced in Panama are subject to Panamanian tax. The MEF publishes land-based percentages instead: a full casino pays 1,000,000 balboas key money plus 12 to 18 per cent of gross revenues, a Type A slot hall 500,000 balboas plus 18 per cent, and a bingo hall 15 per cent of gross revenues. A 10 per cent gross-gaming-revenue rate for online is widely quoted by commercial licence brokers but was not verified against the JCJ or the resolution, so no ggrTaxRate is recorded.
Capital: Panama City
Currency: PAB
Official languages: Spanish

Legal framework

Primary statutes

Decree Law 2 of 10 February 1998
Decreto Ley N 2 de 10 de febrero de 1998
Year
1998
In force
Yes
Summary
The founding instrument of the modern Panamanian regime. It restructured the Junta de Control de Juegos and assigned it the exploitation, control, authorisation, supervision and oversight of games of chance and betting. Regulation, authorisation and supervision of all gaming activity other than the National Lottery sits with the JCJ under this decree law.

Secondary instruments

Resolution 65 of 25 October 2002, regulating games of chance and betting conducted through electronic communication gaming systems
Resolucion N 65 de 25 de octubre de 2002
Year
2002
In force
Yes
Summary
The instrument that makes online gambling possible in Panama. The MEF lists it as the governing resolution for juegos de suerte y azar a traves de Internet. Pardini describes it as applying the territoriality principle, so that income and revenues produced in Panama are subject to Panamanian tax, requiring a JCJ licence to operate a remote gaming system, requiring registration rather than authorisation for equipment, and permitting the Director to authorise administration and operation contracts with entities wholly owned by an already-licensed administrator or operator.

Key amendments

23 May 2026Law 527, promulgated 23 May 2026 and published in the Gaceta Oficial on 28 May 2026, recognises problem gambling as a public health matter for the first time and tightens control of online betting. It requires platforms to offer voluntary spending and time limits, requires biometric identity and age verification to keep under-18s out, requires facial recognition in casinos and Type A halls to identify excluded persons, and empowers the JCJ to order the blocking, suspension or restriction of websites, applications, domains and IP addresses linked to unlicensed betting, with telecommunications and internet providers obliged to comply immediately. Reported fines run from 25,000 to 100,000 balboas for operators, doubling on repeat with suspension or cancellation of the licence, and up to one million balboas for failing to comply with a blocking order. The Executive has six months to issue implementing regulations.

Licensing

Licence required: Yes
Application window: Not yet verified
Local establishment required: Not yet verified
Local server required: Not yet verified
Barriers to entry: Panama is one of the few genuinely open licensing routes in Latin America, which is both its attraction and its reputational problem: it has long been used as a base for operators serving markets other than Panama. Pardini records a right-of-key payment of USD 40,000 and an annual state tax of USD 20,000 for an internet gaming licence. Commercial licence-broker sites additionally quote a seven-year term and a 10 per cent tax on gross gaming revenue; neither figure could be confirmed against the JCJ or the resolution text at review and neither is asserted here. Law 527 of 2026 is the first real tightening in years and adds biometric verification and blocking powers.

Licence types

Internet gaming licence (juegos de suerte y azar a traves de Internet)
Scope
Operation of a remote gaming system offering games of chance and betting through electronic communication, licensed by the Junta de Control de Juegos under Resolution 65 of 2002.
Land-based authorisations
Scope
Full casinos, Type A slot-machine halls, bingo halls, sports betting agencies, racetracks, raffles, tombolas, commercial promotions and transitory games, all authorised by the JCJ.

Taxation

Headline GGR tax: Not yet verified
Effective date: Not yet verified
Tax base: Recorded only where it could be verified. Pardini states that an internet gaming operator pays a right of key of USD 40,000 and an annual state tax of USD 20,000, and that Resolution 65 applies the territoriality principle so that income and revenues produced in Panama are subject to Panamanian tax. The MEF publishes land-based percentages instead: a full casino pays 1,000,000 balboas key money plus 12 to 18 per cent of gross revenues, a Type A slot hall 500,000 balboas plus 18 per cent, and a bingo hall 15 per cent of gross revenues. A 10 per cent gross-gaming-revenue rate for online is widely quoted by commercial licence brokers but was not verified against the JCJ or the resolution, so no ggrTaxRate is recorded.

Compliance

Minimum age: Not yet verified
National self-exclusion: Not yet verified
Session limits: Law 527 of 2026 requires platforms to provide tools letting users set voluntary spending and time limits.
KYC requirements: Law 527 of 2026 requires online betting platforms to incorporate biometric identity and age verification systems to prevent access by minors under 18, and requires casinos and Type A gaming halls to integrate facial recognition into their surveillance to identify excluded persons.
Stake limits: Not yet verified

Advertising

Advertising permitted: Yes
Affiliate rules: Affiliates are not separately licensed. Only operators holding a JCJ authorisation may be promoted, and unlicensed sites are subject to blocking orders.
Penalties for breach: The Junta de Control de Juegos supervises licensees and can order internet service providers to block unlicensed sites.

Restrictions

The Junta de Control de Juegos authorises games of chance including internet gambling, and only authorised operators may be promoted.
Law 527, promulgated on 23 May 2026, recognises problem gambling as a public health issue and reshapes the supervisory framework accordingly.
Law 527 mandates biometric age verification on platforms and facial recognition in casinos, which changes how operators must control access rather than only how they advertise.
The JCJ can order internet service providers to block unlicensed sites, so promotion of unlicensed offers is met with access blocking.

Enforcement

ISP blocking: Yes
DNS blocking: Not yet verified
Payment blocking: Not yet verified
App store takedowns: Not yet verified
Operator liability: Under Law 527 of 2026 the Junta de Control de Juegos may order the blocking, suspension or restriction of access to websites, applications, domains and IP addresses linked to betting or gambling operated without a current Panamanian licence, and telecommunications operators and internet service providers must execute those orders immediately. Reported fines run from 25,000 to 100,000 balboas, doubling for repeat breaches and carrying temporary suspension or permanent cancellation of the licence, with up to one million balboas for failing to comply with a blocking order.

Outlook

Two things to watch. First, the implementing regulations for Law 527, which the Executive has six months to issue and which will determine whether the biometric and blocking obligations are real or nominal. Second, whether Panama tightens the internet licence itself. The licence has historically been an inexpensive, lightly conditioned route used to serve markets elsewhere, and as more Latin American countries build their own regimes, the value of a Panamanian licence to a serious operator depends increasingly on how seriously Panama supervises it.

Frequently asked questions

Who licenses online gambling in Panama?: The Junta de Control de Juegos, the gaming control board inside the Ministry of Economy and Finance, under Decree Law 2 of 1998 and Resolution 65 of 25 October 2002.
What changed with Panama Law 527 of 2026?: It recognises problem gambling as a public health matter, requires biometric identity and age verification on betting platforms, requires facial recognition in casinos, and lets the JCJ order internet providers to block unlicensed gambling sites.

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Sources

Secretaria Ejecutiva Junta de Control de Juegos
Ministerio de Economia y Finanzas de Panama
Tier 1Accessed 5 Aug 2026
Internet gaming in Panama
Pardini and Asociados
Tier 3Accessed 5 Aug 2026
Panama endurece controles sobre apuestas digitales
La Estrella de Panama
Tier 4Accessed 5 Aug 2026
Panama aprueba una nueva ley para reforzar la prevencion de la ludopatia y el control del juego online
SoloAzar Latinoamerica
Surfaced through search results rather than read in full. Reporting of the Law 527 penalty range differs: this source and La Estrella give 25,000 to 100,000 balboas for operators with up to one million balboas for ignoring a blocking order, while other trade reporting quotes a flat ceiling of one million balboas. The narrower range is recorded because two sources support it; the text of Law 527 itself was not obtained.
Tier 3Accessed 5 Aug 2026