Is prostitution legal in Panama?
Legal & regulated
Prostitution is legal and regulated in Panama, requiring registration and identification.
Panama is one of 61 countries classified “Legal & regulated” for sex work — 28% of the 219 with data. (Also searched as prostitution.)
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Prostitution in the Americas
- Last checked
- 17 September 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Costa Rica
- Decriminalized / unregulated Selling sex is not illegal, but facilitating or promoting it is prohibited.
- Nicaragua
- Legal & regulated Prostitution is legal in Nicaragua, though promoting and procuring are prohibited.
- Honduras
- Decriminalized / unregulated Selling sex is legal, though related activities like pimping are illegal.
- Colombia
- Legal & regulated Prostitution is legal and regulated in Colombia, limited to designated tolerance zones.
- El Salvador
- Decriminalized / unregulated Selling sex is not prohibited nationally, though local ordinances may restrict it.
- Jamaica
- Illegal Selling sex is a criminal offense, though it is widely tolerated in tourist areas.
Other laws in Panama
- Same-Sex Marriage
- Not recognized
- Same-Sex Activity
- Legal
- Age of Consent
- 14–15
- Divorce
- Legal
- Incest Laws
- Legal between adults
- Marriage Age
- 18+
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.