Bill 305.

Summary.

The bill establishes rules for the sale of new motor vehicles by authorized dealers and distributors in the Republic of Panama. Its scope covers pricing, the time allowed for customs clearance, and conditions of sale based on actual mileage. It defines a dealer as a natural or legal person authorized to sell those vehicles. It also defines “selo-kilometraje” as a reference value based on distance traveled between manufacture and sale, the date of manufacture as the year recorded by the manufacturer, and customs clearance as the process of nationalizing an imported vehicle and paying the applicable duties and taxes.

For sales to the public, the base price must correspond to the year of manufacture. If a vehicle was manufactured before the year of sale, its price must reflect progressive depreciation of no less than 10% per year, calculated cumulatively. Dealers are prohibited from pricing a vehicle manufactured in an earlier year as though it belonged to the current year. These provisions link the price offered to consumers to the production year recorded by the manufacturer.

A dealer must clear each imported vehicle through customs within no more than 30 calendar days after its arrival in the country. Holding a vehicle in customs beyond that period would constitute a serious administrative violation. The National Customs Authority (Autoridad Nacional de Aduanas) would impose a fine of up to B/. 10,000.00 for each vehicle held beyond the deadline. The bill thereby links availability for sale to completion of the customs clearance process within the prescribed period.

The final sale price must also reflect mileage accumulated during manufacture, transport, and storage. Vehicles with more than 50 kilometers must be classified as “vehicles with logistical use” and receive an additional discount of no less than 5%. Every vehicle must display its year of manufacture in a visible place. At the time of sale, the dealer must provide the consumer, in writing, with the vehicle’s exact mileage and accumulated use.

The Consumer Protection and Competition Defense Authority (Autoridad de Protección al Consumidor y Defensa de la Competencia, ACODECO), together with the National Customs Authority, would oversee compliance and could conduct audits and inspections without prior notice. The Executive Branch must issue implementing regulations within no more than 90 calendar days after promulgation. The bill sets its commencement on publication in the Official Gazette. Its provisions establish these duties and controls for new vehicle sales without expressly amending another enactment. The public bodies concerned are those authorities and the Executive Branch; the activities and groups concerned include dealers, authorized distributors, importers, consumers, and Panama’s vehicle sales sector.