How To Find a Job in Panama as a Foreigner

The expatriate community in Panama is and has always been very large (stemming all the way back to the days of the construction of the Panama Canal). I have been to Panama City several times (and Bocos del Toro as well), and it is not unusual to come across loads of foreigners each day when you are out and about within the city.

Like in many countries around the world, jobs for foreigners are not plentiful outside of teaching English. As is the case in other countries in Latin America, such as Brazil, you have a much higher probability of getting a job through networking with either multinationals with operations in Panama or expatriates who have set up shop in the country.

Nothing is impossible in this world, and if your dream is to live and work in Panama, you need to go ahead with that dream. You only live once. To this end, I’m going to give you a list of the best resources on the web based on both personal experience and word-of-mouth recommendations. (Don’t forget to check out my information on how to get a Panamanian work visa).

Below is a selection of resources for searching for employment opportunities as a foreigner in Panama.

General Job Search Engines and Classifieds

With the sites below, you can expect to get a 0.5 to 1.0% response rate (people who will respond back to you to whom you sent your application/CV.) Nevertheless, I encourage you to give these sites a try as you never know what you will come up with or what connections you can make from a simple e-mail or application.

• Glassdoor: Glassdoor is where you should begin your search. I recommend typing the keyword “English” into the search space and then type “Panama” in the space where it asks for the location.
• OpcionEmpleo.com: Run by the same guys who run CareerJet.com. This is a good general search engine for jobs in Panama.
• Konzerta: Konzerta is a job search engine like Indeed or CareerJet. It has a whole truck load of job opportunities in Panama.
• Indeed: The big job search site Indeed has a bunch of job opportunities, particularly in Panama City.
• Craigslist: Craigslist is the well-known classifieds site. It has job opportunities, especially in the area of sales.
• Encuentra24: Encuentra24 is much like Prensa and Olx. It is a big classifieds site chock full of lower-end jobs.
• Estas Contratado: Estas Contratado has job search listings for Panama and other countries in South America.
• Computrabajo: Computrabajo has a horrendous interface. The good thing though is that the selection of jobs is not a reflection of how pretty the site looks.

Teaching English

Teaching English will be your easiest option (if you are a native English speaker that is). All of the sites below are pretty similar and have a massive amount of teaching English job options. Browse through each of the sites for any Panamanian job opportunities. Also, be sure to check out this cool table from the International TEFL academy that shows how much money teachers can expect to make in various countries around the world.

• ESL Employment: Not the most beautiful interface, but who needs a pretty website when you have so many English teaching job options to choose from.
• Total ESL: Also an overly busy interface but a wealth of job postings for teaching jobs abroad.
• ESL Cafe: Dave does a great job in compiling some of the best job openings from around the world.
• Tesall: Big teaching jobs aggregator.

Overseas and Expat Job Portals

• Overseas Jobs:  I find that there is often significant overlap between the postings on this site and that of other sites. Nevertheless this site has been around for a while.
• Go Abroad: I’ve always been a fan of GoAbroad. In fact, on the visa information portion of my website, you will find where I have linked to their global embassies directory. They have a good job portal too.
• Linkedin: Last but not least, this huge professional social network is a resource for building contacts in the field and location of your interest.

There you have it. The best places to find jobs in Panama as a foreigner. For information on visas for Panama, be sure to check out my Panama visa page.  If you are single and are looking to spice up your dating life, check out my reviews of the best dating sites in Panama.

Further Reading

• How to Answer the 150 Most Common Job Interview Questions: Get sample answers to the most frequently asked job interview questions.

• Worldwide Jobs Guide: Be sure to check out my posts on how to find jobs in any country in the world.

• Worldwide Apartments Guide: If you are interested in renting an apartment in this country, take a look at my articles on how to find an apartment in various countries around the world.

• Worldwide Dating Guide: Also, check out my posts on the best online dating sites in 60+ countries around the world.

Visahunter.com accepts no responsibility or liability whatsoever with regard to the accuracy of the information contained on this site. Please read the Visitor Agreement and Disclaimer. If you think there is an error in the information, please bring it to our attention so that we can correct it. Also, some of the links above could be affiliate links, which means that I will earn a commission (at no additional cost to you) should you decide to click on the links and make a purchase. I recommend sites from time to time, not because I get a tiny commission if you click on the links and make a purchase, but because, I want you to focus on the places that will deliver you the most value and the best results. Good luck!