Panama

Where the governments disagree on Panama

The governments do not agree on Panama. South Korea stands alone at level 3 (reconsider non-essential travel), while the other 11 governments sit lower, from level 1 to level 2. A single outlier usually means one of two things: that government knows something specific about its own citizens' exposure, or its assessment has not caught up with the others.

Currency varies between sources. Japan's is the oldest assessment of Panama on file, last revised in October 2024, while the rest have been reviewed more recently. Worth weighing: the strictest rating is also the most dated, which raises the possibility that the disagreement is about when each government last looked rather than about conditions today.

The warnings for Panama are not uniform across the country. 16 distinct areas are singled out by at least one government. Among them: The Mosquito Gulf and Parts of the Darién Region. At least one of these carries the highest possible rating, meaning a government advising against all travel there while rating the rest of the country lower.

The level 3 rating from South Korea carries practical weight even if your own government is more relaxed — insurers commonly price against, or exclude, travel contrary to official advice, so the rating that matters most is the one issued for your passport.

Derived from 12 government assessments for Panama, most recently reviewed in October 2026.