Mclaren - Property Abroad

Below are some brief points in purchasing property in Dominican Republic.

There are no restrictions on foreigners purchasing property in the Dominican Republic so having found your ideal property in Dominican Republic; you will enter into an agreement between yourself (the purchaser) and the seller. You will be asked to sign a "Contract of Sale" before a Dominican Republic Notary who will authenticate it.

The Contract of Sale will contain the legal description of the property, price and conditions of sale (Notaries in the Dominican Republic are required to have a law degree)

The authenticated Contract of Sale is then taken to the nearest Dominican Republic Internal Revenue Office for payment of the appropriate Dominican Republic taxes.

The property purchaser will have to pay property purchase taxes in the region of 7.5% of the value of the property purchased.

If the property purchased does not exceed 5 million pesos, they are not liable for any future yearly property taxes (exempted from the Dominican Republic IVSS tax).

When the property exceeds 5 million pesos, and they will be liable for 1% property tax (Dominican Republic IVSS) on the value of the property above that amount.

The Contract of Sale and the sellers Certificate of Title are deposited at the Dominican Republic Title Registry Office in the jurisdiction where the property is located, and the sale is legally recorded.

The Dominican Republic Title Registry Office issues a new Certificate of Title in the name of the purchaser and cancels the old certificate issued in the name of the seller; this may take a few days or a few months depending on the Title Registry Office where the sale of properties is recorded.

Your agent in the Dominican Republic will make sure that this process is done smoothly, making sure that all of the following are checked out before signing in front of the Notary

1. Copy of the Certificate of Title to the property
2. Copy of the survey to the property or plat plan
3. Copy of the seller's identification card or passport
4. Copy of receipts showing all taxes being paid should they be required (IVSS) or the copy of the certificate stating that the property is exempt from the IVSS tax
5. If the seller is a Dominican Republic company, copy of corporate documentation authorizing the sale and a certificate from the Dominican Republic Internal Revenue showing the company is current with its income tax returns.