Visa & Residency Guide to the Dominican Republic

Sup.

Thinking of either visiting the DR on a tourist visa or living there with residency?

Here are the basics of what you need to know.

The Tourism Visa in the DR

So having never lived in the DR myself and briefly visited once up to this point of writing…

From what I am reading…

Once you arrive, you get a tourist card that is good for 30 days.

Many airlines include this in the price of the flight ticket but can cost up to around 10 bucks if not.

From there, you can request an extension by going to the offices of the Dirección General de Migración in the airport in Santo Domingo.

The cost of the extension starts at about 10 bucks and will be higher depending on the length of your extension.

And, like in other countries for expats, can you do visa runs?

Visa Run?

So are you allowed to live in the DR and exit and come back to get a new tourist card only a few days after leaving initially?

From what I have read online, it seems to be the case.

According to this article here.

For example, if you went to nearby Haiti for a brief visit…

Then you would have to pay for an entrance and exit fee but you would get a new tourist card anyway.

Of course, given the minimal amount of time they seem to offer with your tourist cards…

Since a flight out of country can cost maybe 400 to 500 more or less…

It is arguably better to just overstay the tourist card.

But what are the costs if you overstay your card?

Overstay the Tourist Card?

From what I have read online, it seems more favorable to just overstay the tourist card and pay the fine at the airport.

Not recommending anything illegal here but that seems to be the consensus from what I am reading online for the DR.

Now I am getting mixed signals as to the cost of overstaying…

For example, this site here claims the cost ranges from 30 to 500 bucks at most.

While this site here proposes that there is a scale as to how much you could be fined up to $1,400 USD.

I am inclined to believe the latter as more sources I am reading online indicate that this is the case.

So what is this scale?

Well…

Supposedly..

If you overstay by 1 to 3 months, the fine is 50 bucks.

For 3 to 9 months, the fine is 80 bucks.

For 9 to 12 months, the fine is 100 bucks.

For 12 to 18 months, the fine is 130 bucks.

For 18 to 24 months, the fine is 160 bucks.

For 24 to 30 month, the fine is 190 bucks.

For 30 to 36 months, the fine is 220 bucks.

For 36 to 48 months, the fine is 320 bucks.

For 48 to 60 months, the fine is 400 bucks.

For 6 years, the fine is 600 bucks.

For 7 years, the fine is 800 bucks.

For 8 years, the fine is 1,000 bucks.

For 9 years, the fine is 1,200 bucks.

For 10 years, the fine is 1,400 bucks.

So, based on these numbers, I could see how it would be less expensive to just overstay.

Based on this source here.

Either way…

Let’s assume you want to stay legally…

Temporary & Permanent Residency in the DR

From what I have read, the process for both types of residency is fairly similar so we will merge the two together to keep things simple.

Aside from a few extra documents that the permanent residency process requires, here are the document that supposedly both processes require (temporary and permanent):

• Pictures of you
• A passport that is at least valid for 60 days after you would arrive to the DR
• Relevant documents related to the reason for why you are pursuing residency – such as a work contract if you gained local employment in the DR for example.
• A criminal record certificate and a medical record certificate from appropriate authorities in your country.
• Photocopy of a national I.D. of the country you were born or have residency in currently.
• Birth certificate – though the certificate has to be translated to Spanish if the original document is not written in Spanish. Both the original and the translated version need to be provided then.
• Marriage certificate (if applicable) and the same standards for the birth certificate apply here.
• Documents proving your economic solvency.
• A letter of guarantee signed by a Dominican or permanent resident of the DR.
• Visa fee.

Unfortunately, I was not able to find any info on what the standard for “economic solvency” means..

Maybe 1,000 a month…

Or 2,000…

For more info on that, I recommend you look up expat groups in the DR and ask for info on that from people who have gone through the process.

Anyway, that is all the info I could find online.

Again, I have never gone through the residency process in the DR and only spent a few weeks there as of this writing.

So just know all the info here is based on research I did online.

Always consult with actual expats living there and/or the Dominican Republic embassy if you have any doubts.

Though leave any comments below if you have any questions or comments.

And follow my Twitter here.

Thanks.

Best regards,

Matt