The European Union announced today that it had removed Panama and Vietnam from its tax haven blacklist, citing progress made by both countries. The decision was taken by EU finance ministers during a meeting in Luxembourg. Panama had been on the bloc’s blacklist since 2020, while Vietnam was added in February 2026.
“This update reflects a positive trend in compliance with international standards of good tax governance,” the EU said in a statement. The blacklist was established in December 2017 following a series of financial scandals exposed by the Panama Papers and LuxLeaks. It is designed to combat tax evasion by multinational corporations and wealthy individuals.
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino welcomed the decision in a video posted on social media. “Panama is off the blacklist. We did it,” Mulino said. “Today, with this great victory, we are opening the door to new investments. We are becoming more competitive and creating real opportunities for Panamanians.”
Countries included on the blacklist can face sanctions, including the freezing of European Union funds. The list now contains eight countries and territories: American Samoa, the British territory of Anguilla, the U.S. territory of Guam, Palau, Russia, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Vanuatu.
According to the EU, these jurisdictions either fail to comply with agreed international tax standards or do not fulfill their commitments to good tax governance within the required timeframe. The EU updates its tax haven blacklist twice a year.
Panama has frequently faced accusations of being a tax haven because its tax system generally does not tax income earned abroad. This has made the country attractive to individuals and businesses seeking to reduce their tax obligations by establishing companies in Panama to conduct international operations.
In 2016, the Central American nation became the center of the Panama Papers scandal, an international investigation that revealed how prominent figures around the world used a Panamanian law firm to conceal assets and evade taxes. The revelations severely damaged Panama’s international reputation.
Since then, Panama has introduced a series of legal reforms, including making tax evasion a criminal offense. Those changes have helped the country secure removal from several international watchlists in recent years. The European Union’s tax haven blacklist, however, had remained one of the last major restrictions still affecting the country.
