Countries › Dominican Republic › Guide › 15. Exiting › Judicial liquidation of an insolvent company
Judicial liquidation of an insolvent company
Last verified: 2026-10-30 · Status: Stable
Under Ley 141-15 a debtor can ask for liquidation at any time, and a court names a liquidator within three working days who takes over from the company. Unpaid staff are paid first, by court order within ten days if funds exist, and all unmatured debts fall due. Creditors that do not claim in time lose their claims, and owners receive anything only after all debts are paid.
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
| First ranking claims on the labor code text | State and municipal claims, then worker wages textCódigo de Trabajo art. 207; Ley 141-15 art. 167 and 168, as of 2026-10-30 · in force |
|---|---|
| Late claim period after publication | 10 working daysLey 141-15 art. 153 paragraph I, as of 2026-10-30 · in force |
The rule
1. Liquidation can be requested by the debtor at any time, by the verifier if restructuring is plainly not viable or the verifier is obstructed, by the conciliator if the plan period ends without a plan, or on breach of a plan.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 146, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
2. The court names a liquidator at random within three working days, and within three more working days the liquidator publishes an extract of the judgment in a national newspaper for three days and on the Poder Judicial website.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 147 and art. 148, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
3. The judgment lifts the art. 54 stay, so suits restart where they stopped, and makes unmatured debts payable. Connected claims can be set off.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 149 and paragraph, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
4. The debtor loses control of its assets. The liquidator holds all management powers and those of the company's organs until closure.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 151, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
5. If the public interest or most creditors so require, the court can let the business continue for a set time.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 152, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
6. Creditors not yet declared have ten working days after publication to file through the liquidator. Late claims are shut out and, unless relief is obtained, extinguished. The debtor gives a certified creditor list within 15 working days.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 153 paragraph I, art. 154 and art. 157, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
7. The liquidator files a provisional claims list within 20 working days of publication, and the court decides within 10 working days of receiving it.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 156 and art. 159, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
8. Claims from employment keep the labor code privileges. The liquidator pays them under a court order within ten days of the opening judgment if funds exist, and otherwise pays in part from the first money received.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 167 and art. 168, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
9. Worker wage claims rank ahead of any other claim, except those of the State, the Distrito Nacional and the municipalities.Ley 16-92, Código de Trabajo, art. 207, 1992-05-29 official text · verified 2026-10-30
10. Within 15 working days after the final claims list, the liquidator files a liquidation plan that respects priorities. Parties have five working days to respond, the court decides, and appeal lies within five working days.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 172 and art. 173, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
11. The liquidator reports monthly once the plan is decided.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 174, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
12. Real estate is sold by the short foreclosure of Ley 189-11. Other assets go to public auction or private sale.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 176 and art. 178, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
13. Secured and privileged creditors and the tax authority can enforce on their own once claims are declared, if the liquidator has not started selling those assets within 45 working days after the final list.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 181, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
14. After costs and payments to privileged and mortgage creditors, the rest is shared pro rata among all admitted creditors.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 188, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
15. The court closes the case when no debts remain or funds suffice, or when going on is impossible for lack of assets. Any balance goes back to shareholders in proportion. Closure for lack of assets stops creditors from suing again, except for criminal fraud, personal rights, or where fraud or personal bankruptcy is found.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 189 and art. 191, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
16. Appeals are filed within 30 calendar days of notice and do not suspend the decision, although a stay can be requested.Ley 141-15 de Reestructuración y Liquidación de Empresas y Personas Físicas Comerciantes, art. 193, 2015-08-07 official text · verified 2026-10-30
17. DGII requires the final judgment declaring bankruptcy when closing a bankrupt company's RNC.DGII service sheet 57, Requisito 12, 2026-10-30 official text · verified 2026-10-30
| Step | Deadline | Article |
|---|---|---|
| Liquidator named | 3 working days | 147 |
| Publication | 3 working days after appointment | 148 |
| Worker claims paid if funds exist | 10 days | 168 |
| Late creditors file | 10 working days from publication | 153 |
| Debtor list | 15 working days from notice | 154 |
| Provisional list | 20 working days from publication | 156 |
| Court rules on the list | 10 working days | 159 |
| Liquidation plan | 15 working days after final list | 172 |
Clock from the opening judgment
Worked example
- A company sells its assets for RD$18,270,210 (about US$300,000.00) in a judicial liquidation. Costs take RD$1,827,021 (about US$30,000.00), worker claims RD$3,045,035 (about US$50,000.00), and the mortgage bank RD$9,135,105 (about US$150,000.00) on its property. The remaining RD$4,263,049 (about US$70,000.00) is shared pro rata among unsecured claims of RD$12,180,140 (about US$200,000.00), or 35 cents per peso. Owners get nothing.
Step by step
- Take advice before paying any old debt, since unauthorized payments can be offences.
- Compare a restructuring request with a direct liquidation.
- File with the supporting documents at the restructuring court.
- Hand books and assets to the liquidator.
- Foreign creditors should file through a special attorney within the ten working days.
Common traps
- Art. 183 just refers to the legal order, so rank must be pieced together from the labor code, Civil Code and special laws.
- Decreto 20-17 was not read for this page, and it may add detail on the random selection of liquidators and fees.
- A voluntary liquidation of a company that cannot pay everyone in full exposes the liquidator. Move to Ley 141-15 instead.
- Banks and securities market participants are outside the law.
Sources
- Ley 141-15 (Poder Judicial)
- Código de Trabajo and resolutions (Ministerio de Trabajo)
- DGII service sheet 57, dissolution of legal entities
- Banco Central reference rate file
Related pages
- disputes/insolvency-and-creditor-claims
- exiting/closing-down-and-employees
- exiting/director-liquidator-and-shareholder-liability
- exiting/closing-with-the-dgii
- /country/dominican-republic/
- /calendar/
- Live dashboard
Related: Dominican Republic country profile · live dashboard · central bank and release calendar · our posts on X
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