To leave Panama by private yacht, the skipper takes the crew's passports to Migración for exit stamps, then gets an international zarpe from an AMP port captain naming your next country. Where Aduanas recorded the boat's entry, close that too. Do it on a weekday at a port that has both offices, then sail within the window the port captain gives you. Leaving from San Blas needs extra planning because Porvenir has no port captain.
The order of things
- Settle up: marina, fuel, any Guna Yala fees. Some marinas give you a clearance letter; bring it.
- Migración: everyone on the crew list is stamped out. Anyone flying home instead must already be off the crew list.
- AMP port captain: the international zarpe, listing the vessel, captain, crew and destination. Bring the cruising permit, registration, crew list copies, passports with exit stamps and your previous zarpe.
- Aduanas: where customs recorded the boat's temporary entry, ask whether you must close it before departure.
- Sail, within the time the port captain allows.
The international zarpe is what your next country will ask for. Details in zarpe explained.
Where you can clear out
| Departure point | How exit works |
|---|---|
| Colón / Shelter Bay | Migración and port captain on site at Shelter Bay on weekdays; the usual exit point toward Jamaica, the Bahamas and Florida. |
| Puerto Lindo / Linton Bay | Port captain at Linton; Migración in Portobelo. |
| Porvenir (San Blas) | Migración only, per noonsite (March 2025); the international zarpe must come from Puerto Lindo, Colón or elsewhere. |
| Puerto Obaldía | Border post toward Colombia, with Migración and a port captain reported. |
| Bocas del Toro | All offices in Bocas Town; port captain closes 3 pm on weekdays. |
| Balboa / Panama City | Port captain and Migración in the city; exit point for the Galápagos, Ecuador and the South Pacific. |
| Pedregal, Chiriquí | Exit toward Costa Rica on the Pacific side; officials can come to Boca Chica for a fee. |
More on each: Panama ports of entry by sea.
Leaving from San Blas
Many boats heading to Colombia spend their last weeks in Guna Yala. Because Porvenir has no port captain at present, you need to combine two offices. Noonsite's March 2025 page says to clear out with Migración at Porvenir and get the international zarpe at Puerto Lindo, Colón or elsewhere before departing. In practice that means agreeing the dates with both offices so the exit stamps and the zarpe line up; ask the port captain at Puerto Lindo how he wants it done before you leave the mainland.
Noonsite also warns of locals posing as agents in San Blas who charge very high prices to help with departure. Deal with the officials directly or with an agent your marina recommends.
Small charges at Porvenir are reported: US$4.20 plus US$1.50 for departure, and a US$20 consent-to-depart fee at weekends and holidays (noonsite, March 2025).
Timing windows
- Weekdays only, if you can. Offices keep weekday hours and charge overtime outside them.
- Ask how long the zarpe is good for and sail within it. If weather delays you beyond it, go back to the port captain.
- Exit stamps start your clock out. Once stamped, you are expected to leave; do not spend another week ashore.
- Crew stay limits: if anyone is close to their limit, clear out before it, not after; see visa rules for boat crew.
- Canal transit first? Many yachts clear out on the side they exit from after a transit, which needs the Canal schedule settled before you book Migración.
Costs and what comes next
Exit charges are small and not published. Cruiser reports include international zarpes of about US$4 to US$14 (2012–2019) and a US$35 clearance for the Galápagos (2013). Confirm the current amount with the port captain and bring US dollar cash.
If you are heading home to the United States, your next job is clearing in with CBP; see returning to Florida by boat. If you are leaving the boat in Panama instead and flying out, you do not take a zarpe; you sign crew off and keep the boat's permit valid, as described in temporary import of a foreign yacht.
Your practical starting checklist
- Settle the marina bill and any local fees, and ask for a clearance letter.
- Take crew off the list who are flying home instead of sailing.
- Stamp everyone out at Migración.
- Get the international zarpe from the AMP port captain, checking names and destination.
- Ask Aduanas whether the boat's temporary entry must be closed.
- Sail within the zarpe's window and keep it for your next port of entry.
Frequently asked questions
Can I clear out of Panama at the weekend?
Sometimes, at a price. Offices keep weekday hours, noonsite reports a US$75 weekend surcharge for clearance at Shelter Bay (February 2025) and a US$20 weekend consent-to-depart fee in San Blas. Do the paperwork on Friday morning at the latest.
Can I clear out of Panama in San Blas?
Only partly, per noonsite in March 2025. Migración at Porvenir can stamp you out, but there is no port captain there, so the international zarpe must come from Puerto Lindo or Colón.
How long after the exit stamp do I have to leave?
We could not confirm a fixed window. Ask the port captain how long your zarpe is valid and leave within it; if weather holds you, go back before it expires.
Do I need to see Aduanas when leaving?
Where customs recorded the boat's entry, ask them. At many small ports the port captain and Migración handle departure without a separate customs visit.
¿Qué necesito para salir de Panamá en yate?
Sellos de salida de Migración para toda la tripulación y el zarpe internacional de la Capitanía de Puerto de la AMP, con el permiso de navegación, el registro, la lista de tripulantes y el zarpe anterior.
The next question to answer
Domestic and international clearance documents. Read Zarpe explained.
Stay limits, crew changes and flying in to join a yacht. Read Visa rules for boat crew.
Where you can clear in on each coast, and who is there. Read Panama ports of entry by sea.
Same topic in Florida: coming from the US? Compare Returning to Florida by Boat: Entry Procedures.
Official resources
Use the relevant Panamanian authority for current requirements and fees. These resources are the next place to check; a practical recommendation is not an agency determination.
- Noonsite: Porvenir (San Blas) clearance (updated Mar 2025) — secondary, cruiser-reported ↗
- Noonsite: Cristóbal/Colón clearance (updated Feb 2025) — secondary, cruiser-reported ↗
- Noonsite: Bocas del Toro clearance (updated Dec 2022) — secondary, cruiser-reported ↗
- Noonsite: Boca Chica clearance (updated Mar 2020) — secondary ↗
- Noonsite: Clearing into Panama, cruiser reports 2012–2019 — secondary, dated ↗
- AMP: nota de prensa, AMP y marinas de Bocas del Toro (contact [email protected], +507 501-5000) ↗