Please remember that Dominica or the Commonwealth of Dominica and the Dominican Republic are TWO SEPARATE NATIONS. We offer our advice on citizenship and passports of both countries. This article refers to the possibility of residence, citizenship and passports of the Dominican Republic (also known as D.R.).
1. Obtain a visa to the United States for up to 10 years!
If you are a Dominican passport holder, you have the opportunity to obtain a visa to the United States. Although this is at the discretion of the US consular officer, generally visas are issued for multiple entry for a period of five and ten years.
As you know American citizens are forced to pay taxes on their global income, both in the country where it is earned and in the United States. With a Dominican Republic passport, you can legally earn income in the U.S., fly there to do business, but not be subject to tax on your worldwide income and assets.
2. Obtain Naturalization Easily!
When comparing the citizenship programs of Panama and Dominica against the DR, you will find that the process in the DR is much simpler and cheaper. Bank deposits and investments are not required like they are in these other jurisdictions. It is also less expensive.
The procedure is summarized as follows:
- You receive a resident visa and then a residence permit from the Dominican Republic;
- You are granted permanent residence;
- By decree of the President of the Dominican Republic, you become a citizen of the Dominican Republic (naturalization).
Some clients have asked about the possibility of obtaining naturalization, passport and citizenship in Spain with a Dominican Republic second passport. Whilst citizens of other countries need to live in Spain for 10 years, and only then they can apply for Spanish citizenship, Dominican Republic citizens only require two years before they can apply for Spanish citizenship. However, Spanish law only extends this benefit to people who are born as Dominican citizens. Therefore, if you are naturalized, this doesn’t apply to you.
3. Mexican residence can be obtained quickly
Mexico is becoming a hot destination for remote workers from all over the world, especially North America and Europe. Read more about our Mexican immigration services here.
Mexico’s Immigration Department provides an opportunity for Dominican Republic nationals to obtain a residence visa through the Mexican embassy in Santo Domingo, that can be converted to a plastic Residence Card on arrival in Mexico.
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4. Opening Bank Accounts in Dominican Republic
Dominican citizens can also apply for bank accounts in Dominican Republic banks. Accounts may be held not just in local currency (Dominican pesos) but also in USD, Euro etc. Dominican Republic banks are part of the IBAN system making inbound transfers smooth and easy. You can also obtain credit cards billed in US dollars, including those that offer rewards points.
Besides these, of course there are many other advantages of obtaining Dominican citizenship. Contact us at info@offshore-pro.info for further details.
Procedures
1) The applicant gathers the necessary documents required by the Dominican Republic with the assistance of an accredited attorney to obtain a resident visa. The required documents are listed below:
- Passport valid for at least 1.5 years
- Photo 4 by 5 cm.
- medical examination on form 86/u (carried out in Dominican Republic);
- A bank statement and a statement on the movement of funds for the last 6 months, with a translation into Spanish if needed;
- Birth certificate. Apostilled, translated into Spanish
- Clean police report apostilled and translated into Spanish
- Marriage certificate, apostilled and translated into Spanish (if applicable).
The average visa application period is from 2-4 weeks.
2) The documents are prepared for filing with the Immigration Service in order to obtain a temporary residence (residencia provisional) and cedula (national ID card). To do this, you must travel to the Dominican Republic and provide the lawyer with the original documents. The lawyer registers the applicant and files the application with the for the Department of Immigration. Processing time is between 3-6 months. However you are free to travel in this time without any limits.
3) The third stage is obtaining permanent residence (residencia definitiva). You must live in the Dominican Republic, or at least hold the right to do so, for 1-2 years and only then apply for permanent residence.
4) The fourth stage is obtaining Dominican citizenship (ciudadania/naturalizacion). After two years or six months (if you have been an active investor and have invested in the country’s economy) since you received permanent residence, you can apply to become a citizen of the Dominican Republic.
Note: The above information is general, consultation with a lawyer is mandatory on a case-by-case basis, in order to obtain up-to-date information in view of changes in immigration law.
The cost of legal support for the immigration process is calculated individually on a case-by-case basis. The approximate price is from $5,000 for residence and then starting from $15,000 for naturalization. The exact amount is set after the first consultation.
What do you need to buy a property in the Dominican Republic?
You do not have to be a citizen or have a residence permit to buy real estate in the country.
The country’s legislation for residents and non-residents in terms of property purchase is the same.
It should be noted that obtaining citizenship and subsequent passport are easier to obtain if you plan to carry out additional actions with the purchased property. For example, this applies to construction on purchased land in the Dominican Republic or the use of real estate for commercial purposes (buying for profit).
