Recording job interviews in Panama: Penal Code Article 167, Law 81 of 2019 consent and ANTAI

Recording a job interview with a candidate in Panama should be done only with the candidate's informed consent. Article 167 of the Penal Code punishes anyone who, without judicial authorization, uses technical devices to listen to, record or reproduce "conversations not addressed to the public" with two to four years in prison, and its text does not say whether a participant's recording counts. Law 81 of 2019 on personal data protection, in force since March 2021, requires consent or another legal condition, with the person informed of the purpose and the consent obtained in a traceable way (Article 6), and an answer to access requests within ten business days (Article 16). The regulator is the National Authority for Transparency and Access to Information (ANTAI). This is the position as of November 2026.

This page adds Panama to our Latin American series alongside Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico. It is for recruiters, agency consultants and hiring managers who interview candidates located in Panama by video or phone, including from the US, and for regional hubs that recruit there. It covers the breadth of Article 167, the short deadlines in Law 81, and its conditions for sending data abroad.

Panama's rules at a glance

Is it legal to record a job interview in Panama?

Only with consent, and the criminal law is broader than in most of the region. Article 167 of the Penal Code reads: "Whoever, without authorization from the judicial authority, intercepts telecommunications or uses technical devices for listening to, transmitting, recording or reproducing conversations not addressed to the public shall be punished with two to four years in prison." It sits in the chapter on crimes against the inviolability of secrets and the right to privacy.

Unlike Ecuador's code, which turns on the lack of consent, the article does not mention the consent of the people speaking and does not say whether someone who takes part in the conversation is covered. We found no official guidance on the point. Read literally, it could reach any recording of a private conversation, so take the strongest position available: record only interviews you take part in, tell the candidate before you start, get a clear yes, keep evidence of it, and stop if the candidate declines. Article 166 adds that a person who lawfully holds "a correspondence, recording or private documents of a personal nature, not intended for publicity, even if addressed to them," and makes them public without due authorization, causing harm, faces 200 to 500 day-fines or weekend arrest. Never publish interview clips.

What does Law 81 require before you record?

Law 81 of 2019 applies to databases in Panamanian territory holding personal data of nationals or foreigners, and to controllers domiciled in Panama (Article 5); it came into force two years after its promulgation on March 26, 2019 (Article 47). ANTAI's guide for the private sector lists the files of "job applicants" among the human resources processing the law protects.

Article 6 allows processing only when at least one condition is met: the data subject's consent, a contractual obligation to which the person is party, a legal obligation, or a special law. "The person who consents to such processing must be duly informed about the purpose of the use of their personal data," and consent "may be obtained in a way that allows its traceability through documentation, whether electronic or by any other mechanism appropriate to the medium," and may be revoked without retroactive effect. Article 8 adds cases that need no authorization, including processing "necessary to satisfy legitimate interests" of the controller or a third party, unless the person's interests or fundamental rights prevail. A candidate is not yet party to a contract, and a recording is hard to call necessary, so consent is the practical condition. Article 11 limits use to the purposes authorized when the data was collected; any other use needs new consent, a special law, a contractual obligation or a legal order.

Keep the consent traceable: a yes captured at the start of the recording, plus a reply to the invitation or a short form, gives you documentation in two places.

What about health and other sensitive data?

Article 4(11) defines sensitive data as data relating to the "intimate sphere" of its holder, or whose misuse could lead to discrimination or serious risk, and lists data that may reveal "racial or ethnic origin; religious, philosophical and moral beliefs; union membership; political opinions; data relating to health, to life, to sexual preference or orientation, genetic data or biometric data." Article 8 says that where consent concerns sensitive health data, "consent shall be prior, irrefutable and express." Article 13 bars transferring sensitive data except with "explicit authorization" or in narrow cases, and Article 41 makes failing to observe the rules on sensitive data a very serious infraction. Do not ask about these subjects, keep volunteered details out of notes and scorecards, and delete audio that captured them early.

Can you share the recording with a client or a vendor?

Only within what the candidate agreed to. Article 9 binds everyone involved in processing to confidentiality, an obligation "that does not end" when their work ends. When a vendor processes data on your behalf, Article 10 requires the mandate to record that consent was given "in writing or electronically, provided there is certainty of its being given," and to set the conditions for using the data, which the vendor must respect; Article 14 makes the vendor liable for damage too. For a transfer to another party such as a client, Article 32 requires a record of who asked, why, which data, the notice to the people concerned (unless they consented in advance), and the maximum time the data will be used and how it will be destroyed; the controller's own internal processes are exempt. Sending the client a written summary with the candidate's key quotes, rather than the audio, keeps that record short.

What if you interview a candidate in Panama from the US?

Panama's Penal Code protects the candidate's side of the call, and your own state's law governs your side; see two-party consent states. Whether Law 81 covers a US recruiter with no database or domicile in Panama depends on Article 5; a Panamanian client or agency in the process is covered. Article 5 also allows confidential, sensitive or restricted data originating in Panama to be processed across borders only where the controller or custodian meets the law's standards or equivalent ones, unless the person consented or the transfer is necessary for a contract made in their interest.

Article 33 treats a transfer as lawful if at least one condition is met, including the person's consent, a receiving country that provides "a level of protection equivalent or higher," a transfer necessary under a contract "concluded or to be concluded in the unequivocal interest of the data holder," binding self-regulation, or contractual clauses with protection mechanisms where the person is a party. Article 41 makes storing or transferring personal data internationally in breach of the law a very serious infraction. The simplest route for a US-hosted tool is to name the vendor and its country in the consent request.

Can candidates get the recording, and what are the penalties?

Article 15 gives the rights of access, rectification, cancellation, objection and portability. Under Article 16, the information a person requests "must be provided within a period of no more than ten business days" from the request, free of charge, and the person may demand deletion of data stored without a legal basis, not expressly authorized, or expired. Article 17 requires erroneous, inaccurate or incomplete data to be corrected within five business days. Our guide to candidate data access requests covers what to send. We found no retention period for interview recordings in Law 81, so set one tied to the hiring decision.

ANTAI enforces the law through its data protection directorate (Article 36). Its fines run from 1,000 to 10,000 balboas, set by the gravity of the infraction, and decisions can be challenged by reconsideration and then appeal within five days. Processing without consent, breaching confidentiality and obstructing access, rectification, cancellation or objection are serious infractions (Article 40); very serious infractions can lead to closure of the database records or suspension of processing on top of a fine (Article 43). The controller must also compensate financial or moral damage (Article 37). According to ANTAI's guide, private entities have no legal duty to appoint a data protection officer.

Can you use AI note takers or transcription?

Yes, with traceable consent that names the tool and its purpose, a written or electronic mandate under Article 10, a transfer condition under Article 33 for any vendor abroad, and short retention. Ask the vendor where it stores audio and transcripts, how long it keeps them and whether it trains models on your interviews. Interview Signal, for example, captures audio on the interviewer's own computer with no bot joining the call, shows a read-aloud consent line with a one-click pause, and does not retain audio after transcription; the transcript is still personal data under the rules above.

A consent line for interviews with candidates in Panama

Antes de empezar: quisiera [grabar esta entrevista / usar un programa
que transcribe nuestra conversación] para registrar sus respuestas con
exactitud. [La grabación / La transcripción] se usará solo para este
proceso de selección, la verán únicamente [el cliente / el responsable
de contratación], se almacenará con [proveedor, país] y se eliminará
[plazo] después de la decisión. ¿Me autoriza a grabar? Puede negarse o
pedirme que detenga la grabación en cualquier momento, sin ninguna
consecuencia para su postulación.

(Before we start: I'd like to [record this interview / use software
that transcribes our conversation] to capture your answers accurately.
The [recording / transcript] will be used only for this hiring
process, seen only by [the client / the hiring manager], stored with
[vendor, country] and deleted [period] after the decision. Do you
authorize me to record? You can say no or ask me to stop recording at
any time, with no consequence for your application.)

Send the same information with the invitation and ask the candidate to confirm by reply, so the consent is traceable before the call. More wording is in the interview recording consent script.

Checklist before you record interviews in Panama

• Candidate told before recording or live transcription starts; consent captured in writing and on the recording.
• Only interviews you take part in are recorded; nothing covert, nothing left running after you leave.
• Purpose, recipients, vendor country and retention stated; no use beyond the stated purpose.
• No questions on health, religion, ethnicity, union membership or political views.
• Vendor mandate in writing; Article 32 record kept for transfers to clients; Article 33 condition for transfers abroad.
• Requests answered within ten business days; corrections within five.
• Recordings never published; retention period set and followed.