Panama — Legal Help

Police emergency is 104 (911 handles medical). Sex work is legal and state-regulated: registered workers must be adults and carry a health card with mandatory Ministry of Health check-ups, while pimping and profiting from another person are criminalized under the 2007 Penal Code and Law 79 of 2011 covers trafficking with heavy sentences. The general age of consent is 14 with additional protections up to 18; any commercial sex with a person under 18 is a felony under Law 16 of 2004 on commercial sexual exploitation of minors and is prosecuted aggressively. If arrested, ask for your embassy immediately — detention pending investigation can be slow.

Embassies provide lawyer lists and welfare visits but will not get charges dropped. Keep your passport (or a photo plus the entry stamp) on you; police run spot checks around nightlife areas.