Draft bill 139.

Summary.

The draft bill would add a transitional paragraph to Article 2 of Law 350 of 2022, as amended by Law 500 of 2025. That article retains a professional competency examination as a licensing requirement, while exempting from the new requirements people who obtained a Law and Political Science degree and had begun university studies or were enrolled before November 24, 2025. It also covers people enrolled on November 23, 2025, including those who had completed their credits, had a thesis pending or were completing graduation procedures. For this group, the requirements in force before the promulgation of Law 500 of 2025 would be expressly restored, with reference to Article 37 of the Civil Code (Código Civil).

Licensing for the exempt group would depend on verification of Panamanian nationality and the professional degree. Applications would be submitted to the Fourth Chamber for General Matters (Sala Cuarta de Negocios Generales), either in person or through legal counsel holding a notarized power of attorney. Required materials would include an authenticated or notarized copy of the diploma; for graduates of private universities, a CTDA certificate concerning the curriculum and its accreditation; a copy of the identity card; an original birth certificate with the applicable tax stamps; proof of payment of processing fees; two (2) current passport-size photographs; and university certification of an academic connection before November 24, 2025. The Fourth Chamber (Sala Cuarta) would have no more than sixty (60) calendar days to decide applications, in connection with the right to work cited in Article 40 of the Constitution.

Applications filed before promulgation would be brought under the transitional regime automatically, including files awaiting a decision, suspended for administrative processing, or returned or rejected under criteria drawn from Law 500 of 2025. Documents already in a file would not have to be submitted again, and an applicant could request immediate reactivation through a simple written submission. The exception would end once the last student within the defined group obtains a professional license. Law 500 of 2025 would continue to apply to students enrolling from November 24, 2025, and to its other provisions unrelated to this group’s licensing requirements.

Article 2 provides for effect from promulgation and retroactive application to pending applicants, graduates who did not apply during the specified period, and people whose files were returned or rejected; it invokes Article 46 of the Political Constitution of the Republic of Panama (Constitución Política de la República de Panamá). Article 3 directs the Fourth Chamber for General Matters of the Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia) to publish, within thirty (30) calendar days after promulgation, an administrative guide covering procedures, forms, required documents and a process flowchart. A copy would go to the National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional), and the guide would appear on the Supreme Court of Justice website; its absence would not prevent immediate application. Articles 4 and 5 repeal conflicting provisions and set commencement upon promulgation in the Official Gazette. The proposal concerns those public bodies, universities, and law students, graduates and professionals.