Starting a Business - Dominican Republic

100% foreign ownership is permitted in virtually all sectors. Law No. 16-95 guarantees national treatment and imposes no prior-approval requirement except in regulated sectors (e.g., banking, insurance) where domestic investors face the same approval. Prohibited only for activities involving disposal of foreign-origin hazardous waste, activities that damage public health/environment, and production of national-defence materiel.

The main forms are SRL (LLC, minimum DOP 100,000 capital, 2–50 shareholders), SA (Joint Stock, minimum DOP 30,000,000 capital, paid-up deposit required before registration), SAS (Simplified Joint Stock, flexible), and EIRL (sole-shareholder LLC). SRL is the most common choice for foreign SMEs.

Three mandatory steps: (1) Register trade name with ONAPI (National Office of Industrial Property); (2) File articles of incorporation and obtain Mercantile Registry Certificate from the relevant Chamber of Commerce and Production; (3) Register with DGII to obtain an RNC (National Taxpayers' Registry number) — DGII processes online submissions within 3 business days (up to 15 if economic-activity verification is needed).

Foreign shareholders must supply apostilled identity documents (passport) and any corporate documents in Spanish or with certified Spanish translation. A local legal representative is required for the filing; the representative may themselves be a foreigner.

To access the treaty protections and benefits of Law No. 16-95 (e.g., free repatriation of profits, protection against expropriation), foreign investors must register with ProDominicana/CEI-RD within 180 days of completing the investment. CEI-RD issues a registration certificate within 15 business days. This step is optional for operating the company but required to claim statutory investment protections.

End-to-end incorporation (ONAPI → Mercantile Registry → RNC) typically takes 2–4 weeks. There are government fees at each stage (ONAPI name search/registration, Chamber filing fee proportional to capital, 1% incorporation tax on authorised capital paid to DGII). No exchange controls and no restrictions on repatriating funds.