This Monday afternoon, President Laurentino Cortizo, sanctioned Bill 789, which provides incentives for the country’s tourist activity.
Through this new rule, which repeals Law 122 and modifies Law 80, the incentive is reduced from 100% to 60% of the tax credit of the total value of the project (excluding the value of the property and the infrastructure), plus a 5% of the value of the infrastructure of the Master Plan declared before the Tourism Authority of Panama.
Said law has the objective of encouraging investment and financing for the development of new tourist public lodging establishments or extensions of existing ones, including tourist products and their complementary services that are registered in the National Registry of Tourism, located in regions, destinations or areas of tourist interest, with the exception of those located in the district of Panama.
The regulations also seek to consolidate Panama as a world-class tourist destination, building at least 5,000 new rooms in the interior of the country, where 80% of the country’s tourist resources are concentrated. This law supports the execution of the Sustainable Tourism Master Plan approved in 2021 by the Cabinet Council, making tourism a State policy.
Cortizo stated that the regulations are self-financing, since when tourist constructions begin, ITBMS taxes, permits, contributions to the Social Security Fund and later taxes on permanent income are generated for the State, which are then compensated with the credits granted. .
This controversial law 789 has been rejected by professionals, politicians and former officials of the country, who sent a letter to the president. They asked him to refrain from sanctioning the bill, which modifies article 9 of Law 80 of 2012, which, in turn, dictates incentive regulations for the promotion of tourist activity in Panama and which intends to partially replace the Law 122, which has received so much criticism from different sectors of the citizenry and which is challenged as unconstitutional before the Supreme Court of Justice, a challenge that has the concept of the Attorney General of the Nation in the sense that it is, in effect, unconstitutional.
