Panama banking regulator bans various commission fees starting 2027

The Superintendencia de Bancos de Panamá (SBP) has approved Agreement No. 7-2026, which introduces new regulations regarding banking commissions. Starting January 4, 2027, banks in Panama will be prohibited from charging at least 10 types of fees to strengthen transparency and balance contractual relationships between institutions and clients.

Under the new rules, banks may no longer charge for in-person cash withdrawals or deposits for savings and checking accounts, except for high-volume transactions. Specifically, deposits exceeding $10,000 in a single month or coin deposits exceeding $4,999 per month may still incur fees.

Regarding loans, the regulation prohibits fees for early cancellation, extraordinary payments, or the migration of mortgage loans to other banks after an initial five-year period. Fees for the issuance of credit status certificates, balance letters, bank reference letters, and payment histories requested once a year are also being eliminated. Additionally, banks will be unable to charge for changing beneficiaries on accounts or for Swift message confirmations.