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Christmas salary (thirteenth month)

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

Abroad a year end bonus is usually a choice; here every employer pays a Christmas salary of one twelfth of the ordinary pay of the calendar year by 20 December. It is due even if the contract ended earlier, with a proportional amount for part of a year. It is free of income tax, including above five minimum salaries, and Ley 30-26 restated that in June 2026.

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

Christmas salary	One twelfth of annual ordinary salary Ley 16-92 art. 219, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Payment deadline	20 December Ley 16-92 art. 220, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Income tax on the Christmas salary	Exempt Ley 16-92 art. 222; Ley 30-26 art. 33, as of 2026-10-30 · in force

The rule

1. The employer pays in December a Christmas salary of one twelfth of ordinary salary earned in the calendar year. The code limits the amount to five legal minimum salaries, while keeping company practice, collective agreements or a higher voluntary amount.
Cost to do it: One twelfth of a year of ordinary pay per worker.
Example: Salary RD$60,000: RD$60,000 for a full year. / US$985.21 for a full year.Ley 16-92, Código de Trabajo, art. 219, 1992-05-29 official text · verified 2026-10-30

2. Overtime and profit share are left out of the base, and the Christmas salary does not count for notice, cesantía or economic assistance.Ley 16-92, Código de Trabajo, art. 219, 1992-05-29 official text · verified 2026-10-30

3. The Christmas salary cannot be attached, assigned or sold and is not subject to income tax.Ley 16-92, Código de Trabajo, art. 222, 1992-05-29 official text · verified 2026-10-30

4. The tax exemption applies to the Christmas salary of one twelfth of ordinary salary of the calendar year, even if the amount paid exceeds five legal minimum salaries.Ley 30-26, restating Ley 204-97, art. 33, 2026-06-18 official text · verified 2026-10-30 · changed: Ley 30-26 art. 33 rewrote the single article of Ley 204-97 on 18 June 2026, tying the exemption to the one twelfth amount.

Worked example

A worker on RD$60,000 (US$985.21) a month from 1 April to 31 December earns RD$540,000 (US$8,866.89) and is due RD$45,000 (US$738.91) by 20 December. At a large company, five minimum salaries are RD$149,940 (US$2,462.04).

Step by step

Accrue one twelfth a month in the budget.
Check the base: leave out overtime and profit share.
Pay by 20 December, including to those who left in the year.
Keep proof of payment for each worker.

Common traps

Reading the five minimum salary limit as a cap on a voluntary policy is risky if company practice pays more, since art. 219 keeps that practice.
Workers who left during the year must still be paid.
New wording in Ley 30-26 ties the exemption to the one twelfth amount, so check any extra year end bonus: it may not share the exemption.
The Christmas salary does not count toward notice or cesantía, so keep it apart from monthly pay in the records.

Sources

← Every job contract is presumed indefiniteMandatory profit sharing →

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