How to Register a Trademark in Panama (DIGERPI): Steps, Deadlines and What Foreign Owners Need

To register a trademark in Panama, you file an application with the General Directorate of the Industrial Property Registry (DIGERPI). You must always file through a lawyer and, if the owner lives abroad, provide an address in Panama for notifications. DIGERPI examines both form and substance before publishing, publishes only once in its Official Bulletin, and opens a two-month period in which a third party can file an opposition lawsuit (demanda de oposición) in court. If there is no opposition, the trademark is registered for 10 years counted from the filing date. Panama is not a member of the Madrid Protocol: the route is a national application. If you prefer that we handle it for you, you can register your trademark in Panama with Protect.TM.

Verified on 7 November 2026 against Law 35 of 1996 in its consolidated text as amended by Law 61 of 2012, Executive Decree 85 of 2017, the pages and notices of the MICI and DIGERPI, the Official Bulletin of the Industrial Property Registry (BORPI) no. 430, and the treaty tables of WIPO and the Hague Conference. Each row states its article. Official fees change, so this page does not publish them.

Trademark registration in Panama in 6 points

1. Where: at DIGERPI, which is part of the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (MICI). There is an online filing platform for lawyers and firms, in addition to the paper form.
2. Who files: the law requires every application to be filed through a lawyer. The text makes no exception for Panamanians or residents.
3. Classes: since the 2012 reform, a single application can cover one or several Nice classes, with a fee for each additional class.
4. Order of the process: formal examination, substantive examination (including similar earlier trademarks), publication in BORPI, two months of opposition, and decision. Unlike in Colombia or Paraguay, the substantive examination comes before publication.
5. How long it takes: DIGERPI does not publish a total timeframe. In our count of the October 2026 BORPI, half of the granted trademarks took 7.3 months or less from filing.
6. After registration: 10 years from filing, renewable without publication or opposition; judicial cancellation if the trademark is not used for 5 consecutive years.

The steps before DIGERPI, one by one

1. Search for prior marks. DIGERPI refuses ex officio a trademark that is identical or similar to another one that is used, registered, or pending for the same or similar goods or services (art. 91.9 of Law 35). Before filing, you should check its public search by name and class or request a registrability study.
2. Classify. Goods and services are listed under the Nice Classification, with the number of each class (art. 94). Panama did not sign the Nice Agreement, but its law adopts the classification anyway.
3. Prepare the power of attorney or use filing without a power of attorney (gestión oficiosa). The power of attorney to the lawyer can be a private document with no notarization or legalization. If it is not yet signed, the lawyer can file by gestión oficiosa with a bond and submit it later (details below).
4. File the application. It includes the owner's details, the lawyer, the address in Panama if the owner lives abroad, the trademark as it will be used, the goods and services, the priority claim if there is one, and a declaration of use or of intent to use (arts. 102 and 103). DIGERPI issues a receipt with the day, time, and number.
5. Formal examination. If anything is missing, DIGERPI notifies you by notice and gives you 3 months to correct it. If it is not corrected, the application is considered abandoned and is archived (art. 104).
6. Substantive examination. The office reviews the prohibitions in the law, including similarity to earlier trademarks. If it finds one, it issues a reasoned decision rejecting the application (art. 105).
7. Publication and opposition. Once approved, the application is published only once in BORPI. For 2 months, anyone with a better right can file an opposition lawsuit in court (art. 107).
8. Decision and certificate. If there is no opposition, DIGERPI orders the registration by reasoned decision, stores the certificate in its system, and publishes the list of granted trademarks in BORPI.

The deadlines set by law

Stage	Deadline	If it expires	Source
Submit the power of attorney in gestión oficiosa	2 months from filing, extendable by 1 month on request	The bond goes to the Treasury and the application is deemed not filed	Law 35, art. 103
Correct a formal defect	3 months from notification of the notice	The application is considered abandoned and is archived	Law 35, art. 104; ED 85, art. 116
Notification by public notice	5 business days posted at DIGERPI and on its website	Once it expires, the notification is deemed made	Law 35, art. 162
Appeal against a DIGERPI decision	10 business days (reconsideration or appeal)	The decision becomes final	Law 35, art. 163
Opposition lawsuit	2 months from the day after publication in BORPI	Opposition to that application is no longer possible	Law 35, art. 107
Court notice to DIGERPI	15 business days after the opposition period	DIGERPI issues the decision and the registration	Law 35, art. 195
Priority document	With the application or within 6 months	The priority date is lost	ED 85, art. 114.2
Renewal	From 1 year before until 6 months after expiration (the 6 months, with a monthly surcharge)	The registration lapses by operation of law	Law 35, arts. 110 and 205

How long does it take in total? DIGERPI does not publish a total timeframe, either on its pages or in the MICI annual report. That is why we counted from its own bulletin: BORPI no. 430 of 15 October 2026 publishes 834 applications, with a median of 4.2 months between filing and publication (695 of them were filed in June 2026), and 457 grants with a complete date, with a median of 7.3 months between filing and decision. One in four took more than 10.6 months and one in ten took more than 13.8. This is our own count, not an official figure; an objection or an opposition makes it longer.

What an owner who lives outside Panama needs

• A lawyer to file. There is no direct filing: the law and Executive Decree 85 say every application goes through a lawyer. On the online platform, the user is the lawyer or the firm.
• An address in Panama for the administrative and judicial notifications of the trademark (art. 102.3). In practice, it is usually the lawyer's address.
• A power of attorney without legalization. The last paragraph of art. 103 says the application documents, including the power of attorney, do not require a notary, authentication, or legalization. Some guides still ask for an apostilled power of attorney: that is only needed to record it in DIGERPI's Power of Attorney Register, which is optional (ED 85, art. 10), or to use it in a trial (art. 184-A).
• Gestión oficiosa if the power of attorney does not arrive in time. The lawyer files with a bond and has 2 months, plus 1 on request, to submit the documents. This secures the filing date earlier.
• Translations. Documents in another language must come with a translation by an authorized public translator (ED 85, art. 114.4).
• Paris priority. Panama has been a party to the Paris Convention since 19 October 1996: if you filed in another country in the last 6 months, you can claim that date.
• No Madrid Protocol. Panama is not among the 117 members of the Madrid System, so you cannot designate Panama in an international registration. If you are thinking about several countries, read our comparison of national and international trademark registration.

Opposition in Panama is a lawsuit, not a filing

In Colombia, Mexico, or Chile, opposition is a written filing resolved by the trademark office itself. In Panama it is not: art. 107 refers to an "opposition lawsuit" ("demanda de oposición"), and art. 197 sends trademark proceedings to the courts created by Law 29 of 1996. The judgment can be appealed to the Third Superior Court and, after that, in cassation.

• Who can oppose: anyone with a better right to the trademark, through use or registration (ED 85, art. 124). An unregistered trademark counts if the opposing party proves it used it earlier (art. 98).
• What DIGERPI does: the court gives the plaintiff a note for the office. If that communication does not arrive within 15 business days after the opposition period, DIGERPI grants the registration (art. 195). If it does arrive, DIGERPI suspends the process until the lawsuit ends (ED 85, art. 118).
• What it means for you: an opposition in Panama requires a trial lawyer and leaves your application suspended until a judgment that allows appeal and cassation. That is why the prior search is worth more here than at an office with administrative opposition. Our filing service does not include oppositions: they are quoted separately.

The application documents

Document or data	When it is required	Source
DIGERPI form or application on the online platform	Always, filed by a lawyer	Law 35, art. 102; ED 85, art. 3
Power of attorney to the lawyer (private document, not legalized)	Always, except gestión oficiosa for 2 + 1 months	Law 35, art. 103; ED 85, art. 8
Address in Panama	If the owner is domiciled abroad	Law 35, art. 102.3
Declaration of use or of intent to use ("marca es usada" or "marca será usada")	Always; you do not need to use the trademark before filing	Law 35, art. 103.7; ED 85, art. 114.3
Reproduction of the trademark, from 8 x 8 to 10 x 10 cm	Figurative, composite, three-dimensional, or color trademarks	ED 85, art. 114.1; DIGERPI notice 2026-1500
Translation or transliteration of the trademark	If the trademark has words in another language or another script	Law 35, art. 103
Priority document	If priority is claimed (with the application or within 6 months)	ED 85, art. 114.2
Proof of payment of fees	Always; one fee per class	Law 35, arts. 103 and 204

Two official pages that do not match. The procedure page on Panamá Digital still cites Executive Decree 7 of 1998, which Executive Decree 85 repealed in 2017 (art. 178), and it offers a 5-year registration that the current art. 109 does not provide for. And DIGERPI's downloadable form asks for a label of "máximo 7 x 7 cm" (maximum 7 x 7 cm), while the decree and an office notice of 23 October 2026 require 8 x 8 to 10 x 10 cm. For filing, the law, the decree, and the requirements published by the MICI prevail.

After registration: term, renewal, and use

Topic	Rule	Source
Term	10 years from the filing date (not from the grant), renewable indefinitely for equal periods	Law 35, art. 109
Renewal window	From 1 year before until 6 months after expiration; during those 6 months the registration remains in force, with a surcharge per month or fraction	Law 35, arts. 110 and 205
Effect of renewal	Runs from the expiration of the previous registration; it is not published and does not allow opposition	Law 35, art. 111
What can be changed on renewal	Nothing about the trademark and no new goods; in a multiclass registration, only some classes can be renewed	Law 35, art. 110; ED 85, art. 122
Mandatory use	Cancellation by a judge, at the request of any interested party, if the trademark is not used for 5 consecutive years; not before 5 years from registration; the owner proves use	Law 35, art. 138.2; ED 85, arts. 146 and 149
Trade name	Protected without registration; registration is declarative and lasts 10 years from filing	Law 35, arts. 145 and 151; ED 85, art. 152

From January to April 2026, DIGERPI received 2,874 trademark applications, compared with 2,620 in the same period of 2025, an increase of about 10%, according to the MICI. When the time comes, you can renew your trademark in Panama with us.

Checklist before filing

• Search for the trademark by name and class in DIGERPI's database, or request a registrability study: here, similarity is reviewed ex officio and an opposition is a lawsuit.
• Define the Nice classes; one application can cover several, with a fee for each class.
• Sign a simple power of attorney for the lawyer. If it does not arrive in time, use gestión oficiosa and submit the power of attorney within 2 months (3 with the extension).
• If you live abroad, designate the address in Panama for notifications.
• Prepare the 8 x 8 to 10 x 10 cm label if the trademark has a design or color.
• If you filed in another country in the last 6 months, claim Paris priority.
• Note the expiration date: 10 years from the application date, with the renewal window opening one year before.

Protect.TM files your trademark in Panama with local lawyers, starting with a registrability study delivered in one business day: register a trademark in Panama. If your trademark is also going to other countries in the region, see trademark registration in Central America and our guides to Colombia, Mexico, and Paraguay.