The delinquency of employers with the Social Security Fund (CSS) grew again during the first semester of 2026. At the close of June, 29,148 employers maintained pending $301.9 million in contributions, including employer-employee contributions and other associated concepts, a debt that directly affects the financing of health, maternity, disability, old age, and death benefits for workers.
In December 2025, the institution recorded 28,964 delinquent employers and a debt of $279.47 million. In six months, 184 new employers were added, an increase of 0.64%, while the outstanding amount grew by $22.42 million, equivalent to 8.02%.
The debt advanced much faster than the number of companies included in the list, which reflects an increase in the average balance accumulated by each employer.
The province of Panama concentrates the majority of the problem, with 18,537 employers and obligations of $196.71 million, around 65% of the national balance. It is followed by Chiriquí, with 3,080 employers and $30.24 million; Colón, with 1,590 and $24.27 million; and Panamá Oeste, where 2,885 employers owe $18.61 million.
The province of Panama concentrates the majority of employer delinquency, with almost two-thirds of the outstanding balance reported by the CSS.
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Los Santos records $9.07 million; Coclé, $8.19 million; Herrera, $5.65 million; Veraguas, $4.70 million; Bocas del Toro, $4.13 million; and Darién, $285,661. Although some provinces have fewer employers, the amounts may be influenced by the age of the obligations, surcharges, interest, and debts of public institutions.
The employer-employee contribution is composed of the money deducted monthly from the worker and the additional contribution that corresponds to the employer. The employer acts as a withholding agent: they deduct the part of the wage earner, add their contribution, and must transfer both to the CSS within the established deadline.
Not doing so means that it retains resources that were already deducted from the worker’s income.
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Law 462 currently establishes a contribution equivalent to 9.75% of the salary for employees and 13.25% for employers, the latter in effect until February 2027.
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The employer contribution will rise to 14.25% from March 2027 and to 15.25% starting in March 2029. On the items of the thirteenth month, special contributions of 7.25% for the worker and 10.75% for the employer apply.
The employer-employee contribution finances benefits such as medical care, maternity, disability, retirement, and survivor pensions, in addition to other programs administered by the CSS. Courtesy
These resources are essential because they fund the coverage and benefits recognized by social security. When an employer does not correctly report wages or fails to transfer the contributions, it can affect the accreditation of the contributions necessary for the worker to access subsidies, medical care, and, subsequently, a pension.
The review of the status of the files shows that the majority of the cases continue in the administrative stage. A total of 21,025 employers do not maintain a payment agreement and accumulate $94.34 million. Another 788 employers reached administrative agreements and maintain obligations of $9.38 million.
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In the coercive jurisdiction collection stage, there are 6,955 employers without a payment arrangement, equivalent to 23.9% of the total, but they account for $170.64 million, more than half of the total debt. Another 147 employers have payment agreements within that instance and owe $1.55 million.
There are also 197 government institutions with commitments totaling $16.33 million; another 16 public entities maintain administrative agreements for $915,098; and 20 government institutions were referred to coercive jurisdiction, with obligations totaling $8.72 million.
Thousands of employers remain in administrative collection and coercive jurisdiction processes for failing to transfer contributions to the CSS.
The administrative channel corresponds to the ordinary management carried out by the CSS to recover obligations within the legal deadlines, without the need to initiate a judicial procedure. The coercive jurisdiction allows the institution to execute collection, including fines, surcharges, and interest, without resorting to ordinary courts.
Separately, the CSS maintains a list of employers sent to uncollectible status, either because they were referred from the enforcement courts or because they were processed by the Arrears Analysis and Clearing Unit.
The document updated as of June contains 18,083 records, with obligations totaling approximately $95.1 million. Of that total, 7,934 cases referred from enforcement courts represent $58.1 million, while 10,149 records processed by the specialized unit accumulate $36.96 million.
The uncollectible status does not automatically equate to the elimination of the debt, but it indicates that there are serious difficulties in recovering it, including defunct companies, individuals without traceable assets, old closures, or files whose execution did not produce results.
That balance represents almost a third of the delinquency reported as of June and exposes the dimension of resources that will hardly return to the social security system.
The growth of debt in just six months leaves an uncomfortable signal: the CSS not only faces the challenge of recovering historical obligations, but also of preventing new balances from continuing to accumulate. In an institution pressured by health and pension costs, every withheld and untransferred installment ends up becoming money that is missing where it is needed most.
