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Roger B

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Everything posted by Roger B

  1. Roger B
    Bonnie You are right. I seem to forgot the difference of TOURIST and IMMIGRANT.
  2. Roger B
    Sorry. But it is only that hearsay. Not a formal information. If something like that happened in the airport for sure the local newspaper and TV News would be presenting in all the TV channels. It would be a real problem of the airport being very congested, the airlines will be having a lot of trouble with the people rejected and sending them back, So I suggest to rely only on formal information.
  3. Roger B
    There are special considerations in the immigration laws for professionals and multinational companies workers in Panama. Looks like the problem now is that some people took advantage of the situation and started doing things that were not according to what some laws and decrees states. The law states that a company could and may have foreign persons working in a relation of 1 foreign for every 10 panamanians citizens. It is a 10%. but the problem is that there are some companies that abused the law and this proportion is higher.
  4. Roger B
    I dont know but I think that most of that kind of paperwork could be done without the need of a lawyer. Most people in Panama doesnt have enough money and we do it as much as possible without using a lawyer for simple paperwork.
  5. Roger B
    Good. It is the best thing you can do. I am sure you will find better places to live.
  6. Roger B
    MarieElaine If you travel to another country to visit and enjoy a few days overseas for sure it wont be considered a border hop. Going to Colombia or other country in South America and taking an airplane at the Tocumen airport wont be considered like a border hop.
  7. Roger B
    I would think that if that is the case of that person she should explain that to the authorities and something they should do regarding that. Or take the fingerprints as they are now and show it. It is what they want...it is what they will get.
  8. Roger B
    Penny That is a good question. In my opinion I think you are right. Borders hopers are not being looked for at the airport as much as I know. That is because people that travels via air usually goes to places and stay more than a couple of days out of the country and the immigration oficials are not looking for border hopers there.
  9. Roger B
    That is correct. In my several post at the old BN and others I have expressed my "special love" to lawyers here. I havent used them in a long time and when I did, I just only used them for small things that I am closely supervising. Lawyers knows how to twist the law in their favor. For me they are in the second position to politicians as the most criticized people in a society. Panama is a difficult place to live and it is not made for everyone. Some of us have learned to live here and defend ourselves the best ways and be happy. Other people dont have the patience, willingness, time, etc. So, this new measure will bring some consecuences but as usual it will pass over time and the water will level itself and everything will return to normal. It is not the first time bad things happened in the country and people survived. Sometimes the best way to learn something is the hard way.
  10. Roger B
    Sure. It is the best they can do. Thing down here are not good and it will take some time to clean this stuff and get people doing the right way. So, why have this kind of problem in a Thirld World Country with corrupt government officials and lousy changing laws.
  11. Roger B
    Many year ago, in the old BN, when Lee Zeltzer managed it there were several threads and discussions about border hoping and people who where taking this risk to this. Lee and other people at BN gave good advices of how to do things right. There were heated debates about this issue and the advice was always. Do what it is right. I do remember that the first two waves of immigrants that arrived Boquete and Chiriqui areas did everything as was stated and required. They processed their visas, got their ID, others got their residency and were given an E-Cedula. Something happened that the other waves of people coming to Boquete and Chiriqui started to skip some process and looking for shortcuts that the loophole in the law was giving them. A lot of people complained about the cost of the visas and some inmoral and bad lawyers that scam the money of some people and didnt do their job in getting all the stuff done in time, at a normal cost and less traumatic. Other people gave testimonials of the lawyers they used that they recommended because they did a good job and did all the paperwork correctly, in very short time and at a reasonable cost. This lead to the creation of a list of attorneys or lawyers that were recommended by those expats that got their immigration status done. I do remember that everytime a person asked for an immigration lawyer references at least 4 to 5 names were repeatedly given. So that means that a person thinking seriously in living in Panama could have this done with the help of those lawyers that were recommended by a large number of expat that used their services and were totally satisfied. Border hoping is not "illegal" but it is not legal also. It is a black hole in the law for tourist that some immigrants are taking advantage. Thanks to the extensive and exagerated use of this shortcut by expats from Venezuela and Colombia this loophole in the law came into the direct attention of the immigration authorities and for sure they will legislated on that. I know a lot of expats of the first two generations that have the legal immigration status on rule that are now in peace and happy seeing this situation without fear. They did it right. I got a slogan I told my family, friends and colleagues. If you are going to do something... do it the right way from the beggining and dont take any shortcut or skip things. It will save you from problems in the future. Nothing is more important than peace of mind.
  12. Roger B
    Sorry for sounding a little bit rude with my reply but investors will be well advised by their lawyers and will do the things as it should be and wont be relying on "practices" that are not illegal but is a loophole in the law. I have given advise to several US companies and individuals who wanted to invest in some business in Panama.... and they were well prepared and well informed about doing the things right. It is the best way to do the things.
  13. Roger B
    Bud: The cedula is a document to prove our identity and our legal status in Panama. Everybody should carry the cedula when transiting in Panama. It could be requested by the police authorities at any specific time. There are some fines that the local authorities could place to the person who does not carry their cedula.
  14. Roger B
    Hil The problem started when a large amount of people from Venezuela came to Panama flying away from their economic and social problem their country is having. So they are leaving their country with nothing in their hands and only hopes to get a better life. But Panama is a very little country and couldnt have space and jobs for those large amount of "refugees". If we have actually a lot of problems to solve for our own people regarding housing, transportation, education, jobs, cost of living, healthcare and so on. Imagine having increased this problems with new people coming from other country. Lets remember that all of those immigrants from Venezuela are not rich. Some of them are living in small neighborhoods and some of them are renting an apartment and there are more than 8 people living in the apartment and paying together the cost of the monthly rental. They need to make a living and get a job for paying all their bills, food and also send money to their family back in Venezuela. It is a socioeconomic problem Panama is having. Regarding the prominent panamanian you were talking about this issue. We all blame and criticize President Varela's government but most of us because of their very soft immigration policy and lack of controls and also for the economic situation the country have right now. I have to admit very sadly that some prominent panamanian businessmen are taking advantage of this large amount of expats because they are cheap labor not protected by labor laws. They are being underpaid and exploited. Businessmen did not pay them all the stuff that by law should be paid to any legal worker such as overtime, XIII month, vacations, working on a holyday, social security, etc. The foreign people will accept this bad working conditions because they need the money to survive. They are in disadvantage because being illegal makes them fearfull of claiming workers rights. It is a double shame. First they are not giving jobs to their own people and they are hiring people with needs and taking advantage of their needs. Yes. You are safe watching all the news in your living room without any problem. Why? Because you did it right. You are a legal resident and have rights in this country and your are protected by our laws and constitution. They wouldnt have any problem if they did it right in the beginning.
  15. Roger B
    According to the latest report given to the news media looks like the driver fell asleep while driving
  16. Roger B
    Unfortunatelly it is something that will be left to lawyers. This is the result of the laws that sometimes seems to protect the criminals instead of the honest and correct citizens. It is the result of the failure of the authorities to solve a problem of a continue action of the thief in the community. This lead people to take justice by their own hands. I have wrote about this subject in other local medias and twitter and there is a great concern of people in Panama. We feel unprotected in some moments against the maleantes and people will be taking the law in their hand. I have seen videos of maleantes caught in fraganti and people angry just very close to lynch the maleantes. Regarding the man owner of the house who cut the maleante with the machete.... it will depend on his lawyer and how he presents the case in order to get rid of any legal responsibility
  17. Roger B
    Alison Having your E cedula means that you are legally a resident in Panama. So I guess that the only thing you have to do is going to the Tribunal Electoral with your old cedula and apply for a new one. Just as any other panamanian do. I investigate and found in the Panama Tramita Web page: http://www.panamatramita.gob.pa/tramite/renovación-de-cédulas-de-extranjeros, that your have to go to the Tribunal Electoral with the old Cedula and pay a fee of about $4.00. They will take the picture and you have to return back in 3 days to pick up the new cedula.
  18. Roger B
    Jim and Judy The border hoping is not "illegal". It is a "hole" in the law. Again. Remember that one thing is a tourist and another thing is a Resident or immigrant. For a normal tourist 90 - 180 days is enough time to be a TOURIST in a country. But living in a country is another subject. You are not a tourist anymore. You are a resident or immigrant. Them there are laws and regulations for immigrants. I think that it is a fault that the legislators did when they create and wrote the law. They left some things not covered and subject to interpretation. But what it is clear is the definition that some people seem to forget about what is a TOURIST and what is a RESIDENT or IMMIGRANT. They are not the same. They dont mean the same thing. There is a huge difference in those individuals according to the law.
  19. Roger B
    Panama Bill You are right. That is the way it should be.
  20. Roger B
    Honest and correct people will do everything the right way. As it should be. So when you do things accordingly there wont be any problem. Legally you will be protected.
  21. Roger B
    Marie Elaine First we should diferentiate tourist from immigrants. They are not the same. Tourist definition is of a person who visit a country or place for leisure in a limited amount of time to know interesting places, cultural expresions and other stuff and return back to their place of origin in a short period of time. It differs mostly from what some foreign people are doing. Most of them are immigrants not tourist. Language and definitions are clear. It is ok that foreign people will bring some money from their places to their economy they are living. Some immigrants are making money in the country and sending them back to their country of origin. But regarding immigrants leaving in a country my question would be why dont do the correct thing and get their legal status as resident in the country they are living and having a nice time. By doing this they will enjoy all the benefits that being a legal resident will bring and will not have any kind of fear of those things that are happening when authorities find that there are things in terms of migration that are not working correctly. Yes. Some Central America and South America countries are aiming for retirees to live in their countries but as much as I can recall all of them require that people do the right things in terms of the local regulations they had about immigrants. Seems like the problem is semantic because some people tend to confuse constantly the terms TOURIST and IMMIGRANTS.
  22. Roger B
    Hil. No. It is not. The problem is more complicated and serious that anyone can imagine and it is rising to levels that could end in something not so good for everyone involved.
  23. Roger B
    Uncle Dog As you stated it was the genesis of the problem. Now venezuelans have put into the authorities radar the "hole" in the law about border hoping. But as the law should be equal for everybody and there couldnt be priviliges for any group in detriment of another groups "border hoping" will be coming to an end very soon.
  24. Roger B
    Bud: People from provinces in Panama always complain that the utility and other services companies treat them like second class citizens. They center their main operation in Panama City and the metropolitan area but do not do much in the Interior or provinces. In Panama City there are not such problems that you suffered and if something happens they solved it quickly. There is an Agency to complain about the service of utilities companies. It is called ASEP. I am not so sure how to do it but they could give you a hint on the ways to place a claim if you have any damaged appliance because of the power surges and brownouts. I will suggest to look for that information and file a complain. There is nothing to lose. Just give it a try.
  25. Roger B
    WE are looking for the president and the other police authorities to wear very well their "pantalones" and hit so hard those criminals and their families of criminals.
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