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Taxes, Immigration, and how we're all screwed
By The Boss on Feb 24, 2008 | In Expat | 2 feedbacks »
Doom and gloom. First we read that the government adopts a new immigration law that is so bad they had to do everything in secret. No more permanent residency. Ten years max is what you can get, and then they'll evaluate if you still qualify (read: shake you down for a massive bribe). If not: deportation!
Then real estate. The market is already crashing because of the crisis in the US, so naturally the government had to come up with a way to fuck everything up even more. Panama is a sovereign nation, entitled to its own fuck-ups. No more under the yoke of the gringos!
Sam has two rumors. One: Tax exoneration on new construction will only be extended for buildings that had their permit before September 2006. Read: the amateurs who can't finish their projects on schedule (all Panamanians and friends of the government) get rewarded. If you're not a Panamanian amateur you're too late to become one. Two: Some sneaky shit with taxes you have to pay even when you don't have to pay them.
We only see one way out.
2 comments
The free speech issues are certainly still very much in there, somewhat disguised in phrases like "having committed a crime" and similar expressions. It all looks reasonable enough, until you look a bit deeper and find what ridiculous things are considered a crime here, like offending the honor of a dead person.
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