Should you hold property in Latin America in your own name or through a structure? Where foreigners can buy directly, why Mexico requires a fideicomiso, and when a company is the better choice for inheritance and protection. The 2026 guide.
Anyone buying property in Latin America faces a basic question early on: hold it in your own name, or through a structure, meaning a company or a trust? The simple answer, your own name, is cheap and uncomplicated, but it comes at a price: no protection, an estate handled under local law, full visibility. You barely notice these drawbacks day to day, but they become expensive when something goes wrong. The structured answer costs more and raises substance questions, but it makes inheritance easier and protects the asset. This guide shows you where foreigners can buy in their own name in the first place, why Mexico plays a special role, and when a structure pays off. One point up front: the form of ownership is not a formality. It determines protection, inheritance and privacy.
Where foreigners can buy in their own name
The good news first: in most countries of the region, foreigners may hold property directly in their own name, with almost the same rights as locals. Panama allows foreigners titled ownership, the so-called finca, with almost identical rights, either in their own name or through a Panamanian company. What matters there is the difference between titled ownership and a mere right of possession, which you need to understand before any purchase. Colombia guarantees foreigners the same civil rights as citizens under its constitution, and buying in cities and tourist areas is unrestricted. Uruguay and Paraguay are also open to foreign buyers. Uruguay is regarded as particularly legally secure and stable, which makes it attractive to safety-minded buyers. Paraguay's strengths are low prices and easy access. You will find the tax framework for each country at PwC. For an ordinary apartment or house purchase, your own name is therefore the simplest, most direct route in these countries. You appear as the owner in the public register, just like a local, and you are free to use, rent out and sell the property.
The limits: border zones and special land
Even there, however, there are limits, quite literally. Panama bars foreigners from titled ownership within ten kilometres of the borders with Costa Rica and Colombia, and in the indigenous comarca territories, and it clearly favours titled ownership over the riskier derecho posesorio, the mere right of possession. Colombia calls for caution within roughly one hundred kilometres of its national borders and on baldío land of state origin under Law 191 of 1995. These zones are protected for reasons of national security, and no structure gets around them. A local company does not help there either: the restriction applies to foreigners and foreign-owned companies alike. The 22-metre public strip along Panama's beaches is another of those finer points you should know before buying on the beach. For the typical buyer in Panama City, Boquete, Medellín or Cartagena, none of this matters, but anyone buying in rural or border areas must check the exact location before signing. Checking the register and the distance to the border before the notary appointment avoids nasty surprises.
The special case of Mexico: the fideicomiso
Mexico deserves its own chapter, because it has the region's best-known special rule. Outside the so-called restricted zone, foreigners may buy in their own name. Inside that zone, however, defined as 50 kilometres from the coast and 100 kilometres from the border, which covers Cancún, Tulum, Playa del Carmen, Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos and the whole of Baja, the constitution (Article 27) rules out direct ownership by foreigners. The solution is the fideicomiso, a bank trust: a Mexican bank holds the title, and you are the beneficiary with full rights to use, rent out, sell and bequeath the property, for renewable 50-year terms. A fideicomiso costs around USD 2,000 to 3,000 to set up and USD 500 to 1,000 a year, needs approval from the SRE (the foreign ministry), and with substitute beneficiaries it even avoids Mexican probate. It runs for 50 years and can be renewed indefinitely, so there is no scenario in which your house simply expires. For a beach property in Mexico, there is no way around the fideicomiso. It is not a lease or a rental arrangement but a recognised substitute for ownership, with all the economic rights.
Your own name: simple, but unprotected
Now to the core question. Buying in your own name is the simplest and cheapest route: no company to set up, no running fees, just a direct entry in the register. But it has three drawbacks. First, no protection: the property is tied directly to your name and is therefore exposed to anything that reaches you personally, including any creditors. Second, inheritance: when the owner dies, the estate passes under the succession law of the country where the property sits, often a long, expensive court procedure that puts heirs abroad in a difficult position. Heirs who do not speak Spanish and do not know the local law then face months of bureaucracy in a foreign country. Third, visibility: the property sits openly in your name. For a home you use yourself, your own name may be entirely sufficient, but for larger values or complex family situations it is often the weaker choice. The difference usually only shows when an estate has to be settled, by which time it is too late to change it.
The structure: protection and inheritance
The alternative is a structure, usually a local company or, as in Mexico, a trust arrangement. Its biggest advantage is estate planning: if you hold the property through a Panamanian company, you can pass on the shares without going through local probate, which saves your heirs a great deal of time and money. Instead of a property abroad, your children then simply inherit company shares, which makes the transition much easier. The fideicomiso does the same with its substitute beneficiaries. On death, the property passes to the named beneficiaries without a Mexican court procedure. On top of that come more privacy and a degree of asset protection, because the property no longer sits directly in your name. How strong that protection is depends on the specific structure and the law of the country, and it should not be overestimated. The price: higher costs, ongoing administration and, for companies, substance and reporting questions. For valuable property, for rental investments and for well-thought-out estate planning, a structure is therefore often the smarter, if more expensive, choice. As a rule of thumb: the higher the value and the more international the family, the more a structure pays off. For a small holiday apartment, your own name is usually perfectly fine.
The CRS and visibility question
A word on transparency, because a common misconception needs correcting. A property itself is not reported automatically through CRS like a bank account; it is a physical asset. But be careful: rental income flows through accounts that are reported, and if you hold the property through a company, the beneficial owner becomes visible through that company's accounts and registers anyway. A structure does not make you invisible. It serves inheritance and protection, not concealment. Understand that and you will choose a structure for the right reasons and not expect the wrong things from it. A property structure built purely to hide is built for the wrong reason. The right reason is always estate planning, protection or administration, never the illusion of invisibility. Being clear about the purpose saves you from costly structures built on a false premise.
Do not forget your home country
Which brings us to you. Buying property in Latin America does not end your obligations at home. Whether your home country taxes the sale of shares or property when you leave, whether it taxes an estate or a gift that includes a villa in Panama, and whether a treaty prevents the same asset being taxed twice, all depend on where you and your heirs live. The country where the property sits taxes as well, and there are far fewer treaties covering inheritance than covering income, which can make the position harder. Data on the region's economies is published by the World Bank. The form of ownership and your home-country position should therefore be part of the same plan. Think only about the purchase price, forget the estate, and you have done half the planning. The structure matters more than the destination.
Own name or structure: how to decide
In most Latin American countries, foreigners may hold property in their own name: in Panama, Colombia, Uruguay and Paraguay, with exceptions only in border zones and on special land. Mexico requires the fideicomiso near its coasts and borders, a trust arrangement with full rights of use. Your own name is simple and cheap, but it offers no protection, leads into local probate and is fully visible. A structure costs more, but makes inheritance and protection considerably easier. And no structure makes you invisible, because its purpose is estate planning and protection, not concealment. Above all, do not forget what your home country does with your estate while you or your heirs remain resident there. This is exactly the trade-off between your own name and a structure that I work through with my clients. The answer for a holiday apartment you use yourself is different from the answer for a portfolio of rental properties.
If you want to hold your property in Latin America the right way, protected, easy to pass on and well thought through on tax, let us plan it together. Book a call with me; you will find the link right below.
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