Countries › Dominican Republic › Guide › 15. Exiting › Exiting the Dominican Republic: sale, liquidation and getting the money out

Exiting the Dominican Republic: sale, liquidation and getting the money out

Argentina. For full detail on Argentina, go to The Argentine Thread.

Last verified: 2026-10-30 · Status: Stable

A foreign owner can leave by selling the shares, selling the business, or dissolving and liquidating, and a registered investor can take the proceeds home without prior authorization once taxes are paid. Gains on shares are taxed at 27%, the 10% dividend withholding reaches what a company pays out above contributed capital, and a final tax return is due within 60 days of closing. The usual order is creditors and staff, chamber filing, DGII closure with a guarantor, then the foreign investment registry and the remittance.

USD figures use the Banco Central de la República Dominicana reference selling rate of RD$60.9007 per US dollar for 29 October 2026, the latest row in its published rate file on the verification date, rounded to the cent.

Key facts

Reference selling rate used for USD conversions	60.9007 DOP per USDBanco Central reference rate, 29 October 2026, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
General corporate income tax rate	27 %Código Tributario art. 297, Ley 30-26 art. 15, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Withholding on dividends to non residents	10 %Código Tributario art. 308, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Final income tax return after a business ends	60 daysCódigo Tributario art. 325, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Reporting a sale or liquidation to the foreign investment registry	60 calendar daysDecreto 214-04 art. 5, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Income tax treaty with Argentina	None in force; treaties are with Canada and Spain textNorma General 11-2022 recitals, as of 2026-10-30 · in force

The rule

1. A foreign investor whose capital is registered may repatriate it when selling shares, participations or rights to national or foreign investors, or on liquidation of the company, provided tax and statistical reporting duties are met. Capital gains realized and booked may also leave without prior Banco Central authorization.Decreto 214-04, Reglamento de Aplicación del Registro de la Inversión Extranjera, art. 5, 2004-03-11 official text · verified 2026-10-30

2. Sales, transfers and liquidations are reported to the investment registry within 60 calendar days, and the original registration certificate goes back to the registry before the capital is repatriated.Decreto 214-04, Reglamento de Aplicación del Registro de la Inversión Extranjera, art. 5 and paragraph I, 2004-03-11 official text · verified 2026-10-30

3. Companies pay 27% on taxable income, and that rate is the one used for gains on shares. For 2026, 2027 and 2028 taxpayers with income from RD$1,000 million pay 30%. DGII lists 27% for legal entities, national and foreign.Ley 11-92, Código Tributario, as amended by Ley 30-26, art. 297 and paragraphs I and II, 2026-06-18 official text · verified 2026-10-30

4. On a liquidation, distributions up to the amount of the contributions are not dividends. Anything else a company distributes to a shareholder because of the holding is a dividend, whether or not it has profits, and carries a final 10% withholding.Ley 11-92, Código Tributario, art. 291 and art. 308, 2012-11-09 official text · verified 2026-10-30

5. When a business ends by sale, liquidation, exchange or any other cause the current tax year closes, and the taxpayer files a return and pays within 60 days.Ley 11-92, Código Tributario, art. 325, 1992-05-16 official text · verified 2026-10-30

6. DGII sets the sequence: close at the chamber of commerce first, bring tax obligations up to date, then file the closure documents and the final return.DGII technical guide, Solicitud de Disolución o Cese Definitivo, steps 1 to 4, 2026-10-30 official text · verified 2026-10-30

7. The Dominican Republic has double tax treaties in force with Canada and Spain, and an information exchange agreement with the United States.Norma General 11-2022, repealed by Norma General 05-2023, recitals, 2022-10-03 official text · verified 2026-10-30

Route	What is taxed	Rate	Who deals with it	Rough timing
Share sale	Price less inflation adjusted cost	27% of the gain	Seller; a resident corporate buyer also withholds	Weeks after signing, plus 60 days for the registry
Sale of a foreign holding	Local assets, valued by DGII from the share price	27% of the gain	Foreign seller, through a withholding agent	Notice in 10 working days if part of a reorganization
Asset sale	Gains in company income; ITBIS on movable goods; transfer taxes	27%; 18%; 3% real estate, 2% vehicles	Selling company	Asset by asset
Dissolution and liquidation	Company income up to closing; payout above contributions	27%; 10%	Company and liquidator	Several months; liquidator mandate up to three years
Capital reduction, company stays	Payment to shareholders	10% on any dividend part; see the trap on that page	Company	Publication within 10 days, 10 days for creditors
Judicial liquidation	Under Ley 141-15	Not a tax route	Court and liquidator	Set by the court

Main exit routes for a foreign company shareholder, on the domestic rules

Worked example

Sale: a foreign parent sells an S.R.L. for RD$60,900,700 (about US$1,000,000.00). Its adjusted cost is RD$24,360,280 (about US$400,000.00), so the gain is RD$36,540,420 (about US$600,000.00) and tax at 27% is RD$9,865,913.40 (about US$162,000.00). Net proceeds are RD$51,034,786.60 (about US$838,000.00), before the bank tax on transfers and professional fees.
Liquidation of the same company: if it held net cash of RD$60,900,700 (about US$1,000,000.00) after its own taxes and contributed capital was RD$12,180,140 (about US$200,000.00), the excess of RD$48,720,560 (about US$800,000.00) is a dividend. Withholding at 10% is RD$4,872,056 (about US$80,000.00), so RD$56,028,644 (about US$920,000.00) reaches the parent. The two are not like for like, since a buyer pays for the business, while a liquidation sells assets first and pays 27% on any gains inside the company.

Step by step

Decide the route using the table above and the tax cost of each.
Check that the investment registration certificate is at hand and shows the capital you expect to take out.
Clear staff, suppliers and taxes, or for a share sale agree who bears them.
File with the chamber of commerce, then with DGII and TSS.
Report to the investment registry within 60 calendar days, hand in the certificate and buy the currency through a bank.

Common traps

Dissolving at the chamber does not end the tax file. The RNC stays open until DGII approves the closure, and returns keep falling due.
An unregistered foreign investor loses the express statutory right in Decreto 214-04 and should expect more questions from the bank.
Argentina has no income tax treaty here, so an Argentine seller gets the domestic rates. The Argentine side of the deal sits in The Argentine Thread guide.
Dividends are only final for Dominican tax. Check the credit available at home before comparing routes.

Sources

← Lease disputes and evictions in the Dominican Republic: Ley 85-25Dissolving and liquidating an S.R.L., S.A. or S.A.S. →

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