Living in Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic is quickly becoming, for its privileged climate and the affordable price of real estate properties, in one of the preferred places to live for many European and American seniors, who can see how their purchase power goes beyond what it does back home.

However, it is important not to forget that relocating to Dominican Republic isn't the same as spending a week enjoying the "All Inclusive" hotels of Punta Cana or Puerto Plata. This is a far more serious decission, and we must not forget that the quality of utilities services that the country offers, is not the same as in a developed country.

But if this little caribbean paradise is the land of your dreams, then go ahead: Entry formalities aren't really complicated in this country.



First of all, entry visas are not necessary for nationals of developed countries, and one can legally apply for a job having entered as a tourist in Dominican Republic. However, unemployment is quite high so you shouldn't expect plenty of job offers. Salaries are low, as well.

What you eventually need is a resident card, whose application procedure takes a few months to process, therefore it is important to apply as soon as possible.

When you finally get yours, you will also be given another document, an ID card called "cedula" tha mus be renewed annually. The resident card you obtain the first time you apply for it is provisional, so after one year you must repaat the whole process to get the permanent resident card.

Healthcare in Dominican Republic

Dominican public health system is precarious and underfunded, so it is strongly advised to get a private health insurance policy if you decide to stay in the country. Privately held hospitals are quite good, and a medical insurance policy wih one of the insurance companies calle ARS (Aseguradoras de Riesgos de Salud - Health Risk Insurances), which have made agreements with the best hospitals in the country, is the best way to get access to them at a very reasonable price.

A quite important remark: the term Hospital, is usually employed here for public hospitals which, as we said above, lack the most basic resources. The word Clínica, is the most used to talk about privately owned health centers.



Among them, the best are in Santo Domingo and Santiago: In the country's capital there are Hospiten (which also has a facility in Punta Cana), AAA Health Centers, or Clínica Abreu.

In Santiago, Clínica Corominas, Clínica Unión Medica, and Instituto Materno Infantil are among the most reputed. Bournigal in Puerto Plata also has a good reputation.

Embassies in the Dominican Republic

List of main Consulates and Embassies in Dominican Republic

Germany

Gustavo Mejía Ricart No. 196 (esq. Av. Abraham Lincoln), Torre Piantini (Piso 16/17), Ensanche Piantini, Santo Domingo

Tel.: 809-542-8949 o 809-542-8950 Fax: 809-542-8955
Fax: 809-542-8961 (Sección Consular)
e-mail: info@santo-domingo.diplo.de
http://www.santodomingo.diplo.de/Vertretung/santodomingo/es/Startseite.html

Australia

The Trinidad and Tobago embassy representes Australian interests in Dominican Republic:
18 Herbert Street, St Clair. Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
PO Box 4640, St James. Port of Spain

Tel.: +1 (868) 628 0695 Fax +1 (868) 622 0659
http://www.trinidadandtobago.embassy.gov.au/

Belgium

Consular section (Depends on the embassy in Caracas, Venezuela):
207 Padre Billini
Ciudad Colonial, D.N.Santo Domingo, Republica Dominicana

+ (001) (809) 687.22.44+ (001) (809) 221-7369
consubel@ilanguage.com secr.consubel@dom-rep.com
www.diplomatie.be

Colombia

Calle Fernando Escobar, No. 8A, Ensanche Serralles, Santo Domingo D.N.
Tel. 1 809 5625282 - 5621670 Fax. 1 809 5623253
email: erdomini@minrelext.gov.co

Cuba

Hatuey 808, Esquina Privada El Millón
Santo Domingo - Republica Dominicana
Tel. 537 2113 / 537 0139 / 537 9795 Fax. 537 9820

Canada

Capitan Eugenio de Marchena No. 39,
La Esperilla, Santo Domingo
Código Postal: 2054
Teléfono: + 1-200-0012 / 809-685-1136
Fax: + 1 809 682-2691
E-Mail: sdmgo@international.gc.ca
Web: http://geo.international.gc.ca/latin-america/dominicanrepublic.htm

Denmark

Honorary consul: Avenida Abraham Lincoln #504
Santo Domingo, D.N
Teléfono: (809) 549-5100
Fax: (809 567-7992
http://www.ambassade-info.dk/dkdominicansancg.htm
Depends on the embassy in México: mexamb@um.dk http://www.danmex.org

Spain

Av. Independencia, 1205. Santo Domingo
Apartado de Correos, 1468
Tel. 535-6500 Fax. 535-1595

General Consulate
Av. Independencia, 1205. Santo Domingo
Tel. 535-1615 (Ext. 241) Fax. 535-1550
Email:embespdo@mail.mae.es

Work, Social Scurity and Social Affairs section:
Dirección:Av. Independencia, 1205.-Santo Domingo.
Teléfono:(809) 533-5257.Fax:(809) 533-5152.

Commercial Affairs:
Dirección:Av. Winston Churchill esq. Luis F. Thomen, Torre BHD, 4.º Piso.-Santo Domingo. P.O.Box 21421, Santo Domingo.
Teléfo no: 567-5682.Fax:(809) 542-6026.

Cooperation office AECI:
Dirección:Hostos, 207.-Santo Domingo.
Teléfono:(809) 689-5090.Fax:(809) 689-5877.
Email:aeci.rd.@codetel.net.do

Centro Cultural de España (Spain's Culture Center)
Antiguo Colegio Gorjón: Dirección:Arz. Meriño, esquina Arz. Portes.
Santo Domingo.
Teléfono:(809) 686-8212. Fax:(809) 682-8351.
Email:aeci-cch.ici@codetel.net.do

U.S.A.

César Nicolás Penson esquina Máximo Gómez
Teléfono: (809) 221-2171 | Fax: (809) 685-6959
http://www.usemb.gov.do

France

Calle Las Damas #42
Zona Colonial
Santo Domingo, D.N
Teléfono: (809) 687.5626 (Chancellery)
(809) 687.5244 (Consular Section)
Fax: (809) 687.5273 (Chancellery)
(809) 687.5272 (Consular Section)

ambafrance@ambafrance-do.org
http://www.ambafrance-do.org

Netherlands (Holland)

C/ Máximo Henríquez Ureña # 50
Teléfono : (809) 262-0320
Fax: (809) 565-4685
Tel. consular section: (809) 262-0300
std@minbuza.nl
http://www.holanda.org.do

Italy

Calle Rodríguez Objío # 4
Gazcue
Teléfonos: (809) 682-0830 /689-3684/686-6781
Fax: (809) 682-8296
ambital@codetel.net.do
www.ambasantodomingo.esteri.it


Israel

Av. Pedro Henrique Ureña No.80. Santo Domingo
Apartado Postal 1404, Santo Domingo
Tel. : 542-1635/542-1548/541-8974 Fax : 562-3555
embasisrael@codetel.net.do


United Kingdom

Av. 27 de Febrero
Edif. Corominas Pepin – 7mo piso
Santo Domingo, D.N
Teléfono : (809) 472-7111
brit.emb.sadom@codetel.net.do

Other places of interest:


Secretary of State for Foreign Relations (Secretaría de Estado para la Relaciones Exteriores)
http://serex.gov.do/

European Commission Delegation (Delegación de la comisión Europea)
http://www.deldom.ec.europa.eu/es/contacts/contactrd.htm

Other useful websites

http://www.netdux.com/yaaconsulados.htm

A few useful tips

Emergency phone: 711

Equivalences between US measures and metric measures (both being often used in Dominican Republic):

1 ft = 0,3048m. 1 meter = 3,2808 ft

1 pound (often used for food) = 453,6 grams

1 US gallon (often used for petrol) = 3,785 liters

1 tarea = 627,27 square meters (old surface measurement unit, used in agriculture).

Electricity: 110V, 60 Hz, American type plug (2 flat blades). European appliances will require a transformer and a plug adaptor. Small electric devices like shaving machines or hairdryers will probably need only the plug adaptor, as many of them can run on 110 or 220V just turning a little switch. Laptops actually include the transformer so you only need the plug adaptor (available at any electricity shop).

TV signal system also follows American standards (NTSC). Most modern TV sets are able to display signals in any of the main systems, so they will work here, although you'll probably need to change some settings.

Buying or Renting in Dominican Republic

Best residential areas in Santo Domingo are situated in the center of the modern city: Naco, Piantini and La Esperilla, plus the areas situated towards the west, such as Bella Vista, Mirador Sur and Los Cacicazgos. Buildings in these areas are mainly high-rise luxury condos. Another upper class area, apart from the city bustle and where beautiful villas abound, is Arroyo Hondo.

In the older part of the city, Gazcue is one of the nicest, most likeable areas. Traditional residence of the middle and upper classes, it has plenty of charm in the old houses and modern apartment buildings.




Santiago’s best areas are La Moraleja, La Esmeralda, Rincón Largo and Cerros de Gurabo. Also La Zurza and Reparto Universitario. Traditionally middle class and very nice to live are the Jardines Metropolitanos.

Puerto Plata, Sosua and other coastal resorts have an important expatriate population, who have taken residence usually in the residential resorts located along the coastline.

In any case, a good website to start looking for a place to live in Dominican Republic before moving to the country is super-casas.com, which has extensive listings including photographs.

Dominican Republic Real Estate

A valid property certificate (certificado de título) is the proof of the right to property over a building or a plot of land.

Most purchases begin with the signature of a sale promise (promesa de venta). Then, both buyer and seller must sign a contract in front of a notary public (Notario) which must include the legal description of the asset to be sold, the sale price and all other conditions and clauses if necessary.

The contract must then be taken to a local branch of the Revenue Service (Dirección General de Impuestos Internos), in order to pay transfer taxes which consist on about 4.4% of the sale price, which can be broken down as follows:
a) 3% Tax on real estate transfers (Law 288-04)
b) 1.3% Tax on documents (Law 835-45).
c) Miscellaneous expenses: stamps, certificates...
Taxes are always calculated from the value estimated by the authorities and not the efective sale price.

Purchase of Dominican properties by foreigners:

There are no restrictions to foreigners: They can purchase or inherit any property in the Dominican Republic; however, if they are non-resident, succession taxes are 50% higher than for a resident or citizen.

Renting a property in Dominican Republic

Some of the most usual requisites to rent a property include:

Having a warrantor who commits to pay any debt in case the tenant doesn't pay the rent;

Signing a tenancy contract which stipulates agreed price and duration, amount of the initial deposit and details of tenant, landlord, property manager and warrantor.

Taxes in the Dominican Republic

Main taxes existing in the country:

There is a tax called ITBIS - Impuesto sobre la Transferencia de Bienes Industrializados y Servicios, with a current rate of 16%, applicable both to national or imported products and services. Only a set of basic products are exempt.

The Revenue Tax (Impuesto sobre la Renta - ISR) is applicable to every person, following this table (year 2006):

Revenues up to RD$276,422.00: Exempt

Revenues from RD$276,422.01 up to RD$414,632.00: 15%

Revenues from RD$414,632.01 up to RD$575,878.00: RD$20,732.00 plus 20% of the surplus beyond RD$414,632.01

Revenues from RD$575,878.01 up to 900,000.00: RD$52,981.00 plus 25% of the surplus beyond RD$575,878.01

Revenues from RD$900,000.01 onwards: RD$134,012.00 plus 30% of the surplus beyond RD$900,000.01

The 30% tax will be gradually reduced every year to become 25% from 2009(29% on tax year 2007; 27% on tax year 2008).

Company Tax (Impuesto sobre Sociedades) is set at a rate of 30%.

Tax year for physical persons runs from January 1st to December 31st. Tax year for companies can be chosen to finish on March 31st, June 30th, or September 31st.

Deadline for presentation and payment of the Sworn Declaration of the Income Tax (ISR) is March 31st every year, corresponding to income generated the previous tax year.

Deadline for presentation and payment of the Sworn Declaration of the Company Tax (Form IR-2) is 120 days after the closing of the company's tax year.

Other taxes:

Selective tax on consumption - Impuesto Selectivo al Consumo (ISC): This is a tax on alcohol, tobacco, telecommunications services and payments through checks and electronic money transfers.

Succession and Gift Tax - Impuesto sobre Sucesiones y Donaciones: For successions, the tax rate is 3% of the total amount of the estate, after applicable deductions. In the case of gifts (donations) the tax is 25% of the amount.
Tax on luxury homes and unused urban plots - Impuesto sobre las Viviendas Suntuarias y los Solares Urbanos no Edificados (IVSS)Applicable to houses and flats whose market value is higher than 5 million pesos, and to urban plots which have not been built, or where a construction occupies less then 30% of the available space. Te rate is 1% of the official value, as calculated by the cadastre (Dirección General de Catastro).


Tax advantages of becoming a legal resident

Only legal residents can work or set up companies in Dominican Republic.

Becoming a legal resident makes you exempt from paying the tourist card every time you enter the country, and the penalty for overstaying every time you leave the country after having stayed in for more than 15 days.

You can bring personal items (furniture, appliances) tax-free from your country of origin without paying import duties. There is also a partial exemption for vehicles.

In case you initiate a legal action and you are a non-resident, you must deposit a caution for legal expenses, that can be quite high. A legal resident is not subject to this requirement.

Due to the relatively low tax rates in the country, it might become interesting to apply for residency to avoid being taxed at your country of origin for all income generate outside it. (Important for American citizens).

In case of being a heir of a property in RD, a non-resident must pay 50% more taxes than residents and nationals.

Visa, Residency, Naturalization and documents.

Visas and entry formalities

When coming to Dominican Republic on vacation, most nationalities do not require a visa, only a valid passport and the purchase at the arrival airport of the $10 Tourist Card, valid for 15 days.

Business or official trips require different kinds of visa. Here below you can find a brief description:

Visa Diplomática - diplomatic visa (DM) valid for multiple entries, up to 60 days
Visa Oficial - official visa (OM) multiple entries, up to 1 year
Visa de Cortesía - courtesy visa CS: single entry, 60 days, CM: multiple entries, up to 1 year
Negocio NS Negocio simple -simple business visa (single entry) 60 days
NM Negocios Múltiples - multiple business visa (multiple entries) 1 year
Dependencia - dependency (DPM) multiple entries, up to 60 days
Turismo - tourism TS single entry, 60 days (for those countries that require it)
Residencia - residency RS single entry, 60 days
Estudiante - student E multiple entries, 1 year

These visas are issued by the Consular Service (Servicio Consular Exterior de la República Dominicana) or the Secretary of State (Secretaria de Estado de Relaciones Exteriores).

Every document of foreign origin must be legalized by the consular Dominican representant in the country of origin. All documents must be presented as original plus four copies. If necessary, they will be translated into Spanish by an authorizd translator and legalized in the Procuraduría General de la República.

As the list of requirements is long, and can be subject to frequent changes, it is advisable to get in touch with the Dominican consulate in the country of origin, in order to get an up-to-date list of requirements.

Residency in Dominican Republic

According to the law, foreigners can obtain the right to reside in the Dominican Republic acquiring, in a first stage, a residency visa from the Secretary of State of Foreign Affairs (Secretaria de Estado de Relaciones Exteriores), and later on a Residency Card, which is obtained from the Directorate of Migration (Dirección General de Migración). In practice, the prerequisite of obtaining a residency visa before entering the country is not necessary, as it is perfectly possible and legal to enter the country as a tourist and once in it, apply for the residency card.

Provisional and Definitive Residency Permits

In order be eligible for provisional or definitive residence cards, it is compulsory to have entered legally into Dominican territory and comply with the following: not having a criminal record in the country (for some countries, such as Germany, it is also necessary a clean criminal record in the country of origin: check at your consulate), economic solvency or a job in Dominican territory, among others.

Both provisional or definitive residence cards are issued by the Directorate of Migrations ( Dirección General de Migración). Usually, completion of the whole procedure takes up to four months.

Any foreigner with a provisional or definitive residence card has the right to work and/or create a company with the same rights and duties of a Dominican citizen.


Naturalization procedure

The Dominican Constitution establishes the following requisites to obtain Dominican nationality:

a) By birth.- Those born on Dominican territory, are elligible to become Dominican citizens. This excludes children of people who were in the Dominican Republic as tourists or ilegal residents.

b) By origin.- Children of Dominican mother or father may opt for Dominican citizenship.
c) By law.- Those who acquired Dominican citizenship by consequence of any previous law, even if it is nor valid anymore, remain Dominican citizens.
d) By naturalization.- Those who comply with legal requirements to apply for it:
- Foreigners who have established their domicile in the Dominican Republic six months before application;
- Those who can justify an uninterrupted period of residence in the country for at least two years;
- Those who can justify an uninterrupted period of residence in the country of at leasts six months, if they have set up companies or are owners of a home in the country;
- Those who can justify an uninterrupted period of residence in the country of at leasts six months, if they have married a Dominican;
- Those with a Presidential authorisation, provided they have a cultivated plot of land in the country;
- Those who served in the Dominican Army;
- AThose who have participated in the national agricultural colonies;
-Those with a special presidential concession, awarded to those who have served the Dominican Republic with merit.

Money, Banks and Dominican currency

The Dominican currency is the Dominican Peso, whose symbol is RD$. In tourist areas it is also possible to pay with American dollars, or even Euros athough the exchange rate is usually less advantageous.

The exchange rate fluctuates freely acording to market supply and demand. In order to know the going rate, you can ask in a bank, or on th internet, in sites such as xe.com or oanda.com .
At the moment of exchanging money, remember that casas de cambio (bureaux de change) usually provide a good rate, with moderate commissions,even slightly better than banks some times, although it is always good to know the official exchange rate to avoid surprises.

Something we do not reccomend is to use the services of the street "exchange agents" that can be found in some corners waving a handful of dollars: they frecuently try to cheat their customers. Another, much safer option, are the ATM cash machines, which always deliver pesos, and can be found in every major city and most tourist resorts.

Financial Institutions

Among these we can mention commercial Banks, Savings & Loans associations (asociaciones de ahorros y prestamos), which work in a similar manner to banks, and loan agencies or financieras.
Main banks and Savings & Loans associations worth mentioning are:

Banco Popular
Banco León
Scotiabank
Banco de Reservas
Banco del Progreso
Banco BHD
Asociación Cibao de ahorros y prestamos
Asociación La Nacional de Ahorros y prestamos

The majority of Dominican banks allow the opening of dollar-denominated acounts, and some of them also have euro-denominated accounts. Generally speaking, interest rates are highr than those in the USA or Europe.

International money transfer are legal, although in order to take money into the country in amounts of more than US$ 10.000 it is required to justify its origin, in order to comply with anti money-laundering regulations.

Travelling around Dominican Republic

Transport and infrastructures

Virtually all transport inside Dominican Republic is made by road: There are no operating train networks in the country. The state of the roads is on average better than in surrounding countries, although maintenance is often quite neglected. This, added to the facts that roads traverse every village and cars have to share them with all kind and vehicles, some of them very peculiar, makes time spent in travel quite longer that what you'd probably expect.

That makes it worth considering interior flights within the country: there are several domestic companies that fly from and to Santo Domingo, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana and Samaná, such as Sapair, Caribair, Air Century or Aerodomca.



Busses are also a good choice for shorter distances: they are comfortable, air conditioned and reasonabily priced. There are two main companies: Metro and Caribe Tours. The first one only services the country's main corridor Santo Domingo - Santiago - Puerto Plata, while the second one has a bigger route map.

Shorter trips are serviced by an extensive network of guaguas or little vans, pretty much battered that, due to the crazy speeds that drivers reach, carry the well deserved nickname of
voladoras (flyers). Inside them, the conductor or pitcher will manage to pack as many people as one can possibly imagine (or maybe more) and won't depart until the guagua is full.

This is poor Dominicans' transport, so getting on a guagua is a good opportunity to get to know the real Dominican people. It is also a good way to travel for very little money... although comfort is a different issue.

Inside cities, taxis are a good choice, as there are many companies whose services can be requested over the phone and will very quickly send a taxi. Service is good, and price is reasonable. Here again, there is a popular option: the conchos or collective taxis, really shattered cars that run on fixed routes with up to 6 passengers plus the driver (on a normal 5-seat car). You wave at them to make the driver stop, get in and whey you are arriving to your destination, tell the driver to stop.

Little cities especially coastal resorts, have plenty of motoconchos, young men with a little motorbike that for a modest fare will transport you on short distances.



Of course, fully independent travel can only be attained when driving one's own vehicle. There are several rental car companies; some of them are branches of the best known multinationals, such as Avis or Hertz, while other are small independent companies that often offer better prices but the average age of their car fleet is bigger and maintenance can be somewhat dubious.

However, before jumping into the adventure that driving in Dominican Republic is, we reccommend you to observe during a few days the behavior of the average Dominican driver.

When you finally decide to have a go at diving, just forget about every rule and traffic signal you learnt: you will have to learn everything again and not really in a book. Meanwhile, drive deffensively and don't assume anything about other driver's behaviour, as this author has witnessed countless maneuvers that were not only dangerous and sudden, but whose purpose also defied any attempt of explanation.

Education

Dominican Republic's public educational system is really precarious and its lack of resources is sadly chronical. If you want to settle down in the country with your family, you should seriously consider a privately run school.

There are very good schools for all levels, from primary education to prestigious universities such as Santo Domingo and Santiago. Some of them are bilingual, and there are some where every subject is taught in English, and in some cases, French. However, These schools are quite pricey, and this is something to be taken into account when estimating a monthly budget.


English-speaking or bilingual schools

Nursery schools

Froebel Nursery School. Calle Haim Lopez Peña 14. Tel. 227-2839.

Kids Create. Calle Virgilio Diaz Ordoñez No. 4. Tel. 683-6685. Email: burgonza@codetel.net.do

My Little School. Calle Boy Scouts No. 10. Tel. 565-1370. Email: avance.ind@codetel.net.do

Tiny Ones. Calle Roberto Pastoriza 358. Tel. 541-9433.


Elementary school and onwards

The Carol Morgan School (Santo Domingo), one of the most reputable (and expensive) schools. SACS accredited.
Website: www.cms.edu.do

The American School of Santo Domingo, also SACS accredited.
Website: www.assd.edu.do

International School of Santo Domingo.
Calle Gaspar Polanco No. 33, Bella Vista. Tel. 533-9484.
Website: www.intlschool.com

St. Thomas School.
Juan Tomas Mejia Cortes No. 43 Arroyo Hondo, Santo Domingo Tel. 732-5869.

St. Michael’s School,
Hector Inchaustegui No. 8, at Piantini, SACS accredited. Tel. 563-1707, 567-1230. Fax 567-1235.

New Horizons Bilingual School,
Juan Miguel Roman No. 2, entre Betancourt y Sarasota, Tel. 533-4915, from nursery to 12th grade.

The Americas Bicultural School (ABC School),
Calle F. Valerio No. 2, Tel. 535-3371.

The St. George’s School,
bilingual from nursery to 12th grade. Follows the Internaional Baccalaureat programme. Tel. 562-5262. Email: stgeorge@tricom.net

Colegio Dominico-Americano,
Abraham Lincoln No. 21, nursery to 12th grade. Tel. 562-5262. Email dominico.amer@codetel.net.do

Ashton School of Santo Domingo.
Federico Geraldino 86, Santo Domingo. Tel. 1 809 562 0891

Interamerican School.
Abraham Lincoln 851, Santo Domingo. Tel: (809) 540-1013

International Christian School.
Av. Sarasota, Santo Domingo.
Tel: (809) 535-8410

Abraham Lincoln School.
La Romana.
Kindergarten to grade 12. Tels. 809 523-3333 y 1 809 687 7787.

Santiago Christian School in Santiago
Website: www.scs.edu.do

Centro Cultural Dominico-Americano de Santiago (affiliated to the Instituto Cultural Dominico-Americano (ICDA) in Santo Domingo). Tel. 809 582 6627

Sosua: ISS (SACS accredited), is in Sosua, services Sosua, Cabarete and Puerto Plata. Grados Pre-K to 12th
Tel 809 571-3271: Fax 571-1904. Email iss.sosua@codetel.net.do

The Garden Kids School, Sosua. Website: www.garden-kids.org


In French:

Le Lycee Français
Rafael Damirón Esq. Jimenez Moya
Centro de los Heroes
Santo Domingo
República Dominicana
TEL: 809 533 33 38 - 809 535 27 61
FAX: 809 535 88 14

Ecole Française Théodore Chasseriau
Las Terrenas
tel. : (+809) 240-6624
emaill : esc.francesa@verizon.net.do

L'École Française de la Costa Verde, Río San Juan, R.D.
Tel.: 809 589 26 21