Panama law re importation of pets

[Bonnie]

As a U.S. warden for Boquete, I was contacted today by a citizen living in Las Lajas who believes strongly that expats who travel with their pets should band together to advocate for a change in Panamanian law relative to bringing pets into Panama. She lives in the U.S. but travels back and forth several times a year with her dog, each trip requiring voluminous paperwork, a $350 fee, and the occasional missing of her flight to David because of the vet not being at his post in Tocumen when he should be. Other countries like Mexico, she related, issue one-year permits for pets and require only that paperwork be checked at the airport, i.e., no vet. She cites a number of people who have left Panama because of the stringent pet policies. She believes that if enough expats experience this expense and inconvenience, they might form a group to seek change in law.

Following a lengthy conversation, I advised her that I would post here to see if other citizens are suffering from the same problem and have interest in getting together to try to change the Panamanian law. (Just how to go about changing it would be an issue for the group to consider.) If you have such an interest, please respond.

 

 

Edited June 27, 2018 by Bonnie

[Kim Batt Lincoln]

I have shipped three dogs to Panama and it was an incredible ordeal. My husband had to drive 7 hours round trip twice to the Panamanian Embassy in Austin, Texas to get their health certificates stamped. Why is an American health certificate more accurate after it is stamped by authorities who do not even see the dogs? Seems like a scam to get money from us. 

[Keith Woolford]

3 hours ago, Kim Batt Lincoln said:

Why is an American health certificate more accurate after it is stamped by authorities who do not even see the dogs? Seems like a scam to get money from us. 

The Panamanian Consulate is just authenticating the document, they’re not verifying the information it contains.