Countries › Dominican Republic › Guide › 16. What is normal abroad but not here › Consumer guarantee and distance sale rights

Consumer guarantee and distance sale rights

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

Abroad a return policy is often a shop choice; here durable goods carry a legal guarantee, and distance sales must allow a trial of at least seven working days. If repair fails, the buyer picks replacement, a price cut or a refund. Contracts and warranties must be in Spanish, and the law favors the consumer in case of doubt.

Key facts

Trial period in distance sales	7 working daysLey 358-05 art. 62 g, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Trial period in distance sales	7 working daysLey 358-05 art. 62 g, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Reflection period before delivery in distance sales	3 working daysLey 358-05 art. 62 f, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Minimum guarantee on repairs	30 daysLey 358-05 art. 76 paragraph I, as of 2026-10-30 · in force

The rule

1. Durable goods carry a legal guarantee for defects that affect how they work or that make the goods differ from the offer. The consumer pays nothing extra for the guarantee or for service in its term.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 66 and art. 67, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

2. The supplier gives a written guarantee, at least in Spanish.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 68, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

3. During the term the holder gets free repair. If that is not possible, the holder chooses replacement, a price cut or a refund of the price, interest and other costs.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 70, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

4. Time without the good because of repair extends the guarantee.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 80, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

5. Authorized local suppliers of durable goods give the same guarantee term as the country of origin.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 72, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

6. Sales away from the shop, by phone, internet or similar, must inform the full price with taxes and delivery, allow claims and returns by similar means at the supplier's cost, give a reflection period of at least three working days before delivery and a trial period of at least seven working days before return.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 62, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

7. Repair and maintenance services carry a written guarantee of at least 30 days.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 76 paragraph I, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

8. Adhesion contracts must be at least in Spanish, legible and expressly accepted.Ley 358-05 General de Protección de los Derechos del Consumidor o Usuario, art. 83, 2005-07-26 official text · verified 2026-10-30

9. The Constitutional Court rejected the challenges to the sanction articles, urged Congress to legislate and struck out words on sanctioning by Pro Consumidor in the paragraph of art. 112 of Ley 166-12.Sentencia TC/0723/24, Second to Fifth, 2024-11-28 official text · verified 2026-10-30

Worked example

An online shop sells a phone to a Santo Domingo buyer. The shop must show the full delivered price, let the buyer return it within the trial period of at least seven working days by a similar channel, and cover the cost of a reclaim.

Step by step

Translate terms and warranties into Spanish.
State guarantee terms in writing.
Set returns by the same channel as the sale.
Keep spare parts and service for the guarantee term.

Common traps

Foreign terms with no Spanish text fail art. 83 for adhesion contracts.
Art. 62 sets minimum periods, so a shorter policy does not work.
The law does not give one term for all durable goods in the articles read, so state yours.
The sanction power of Pro Consumidor is unsettled after TC/0723/24, but court claims remain.

Sources

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