Countries › Dominican Republic › Guide › 6. Taxes › Dividend withholding in the Dominican Republic: 10% final, the dividend account and a US$100 example

Dividend withholding in the Dominican Republic: 10% final, the dividend account and a US$100 example

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

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

Companies withhold a final 10% on dividends to resident or non resident shareholders, and the tax is not creditable by a Dominican individual. A Dominican parent excludes dividends received and can pay them on without new withholding through a dividend account. Branches owe the same 10% on remittances, and a US$100 dividend nets US$90 to a foreign shareholder.

USD figures use the Banco Central de la República Dominicana reference selling rate of RD$60.8594 per US dollar for 28 October 2026, the latest row in its published rate file on the verification date, rounded to the cent.

Key facts

Dividend withholding, non residents	10 %Ley 11-92 art. 308, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Dividend withholding, residents	10 %Ley 11-92 art. 308, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Combined burden at the 27% rate plus 10% dividend	34.3 %Computed from Ley 11-92 art. 297 and art. 308, as of 2026-10-30 · in force

The rule

1. Anyone paying or crediting dividends, or distributing Dominican source profits in any other form, to residents or non residents withholds 10% as a sole and final payment.
Example: Dividend RD$10,000,000: withholding RD$1,000,000. / Dividend US$164,313.15: withholding US$16,431.32.Ley 11-92, Código Tributario, art. 308, 2012-11-09 official text · verified 2026-10-30

2. A dividend is any distribution by a company to a shareholder or partner by reason of the holding, whether or not the company has profits. Dividends in shares and distributions up to the amount contributed on liquidation are not dividends. Holders of interests in non share companies count as shareholders.Ley 11-92, Código Tributario, art. 291, 1992-05-16 official text · verified 2026-10-30

3. A company owning shares of another company excludes the net dividend from gross income and records it in a dividend account. Later dividends out of that account, up to its balance, are free of withholding.Ley 11-92, Código Tributario, art. 308 paragraph I, 2012-11-09 official text · verified 2026-10-30

4. Permanent establishments withhold and pay the same 10% when they remit amounts to the head office as dividends or similar.Ley 11-92, Código Tributario, art. 308 paragraph II, 2012-11-09 official text · verified 2026-10-30

5. The Spain treaty caps source tax on dividends at 10% and removes that cap paragraph for a company directly holding at least 75% of the payer. The Canada treaty caps source tax at 18%, with a protocol clause that a lower rate agreed with a third state applies automatically.Spain treaty of 16 November 2011; Canada convention of 6 August 1976, art. 10; art. X and Protocol, 2014-07-25 official text · verified 2026-10-30

6. Withholding is filed and paid by the 10th of the following month on form IR-17.Reglamento 139-98 and DGII income tax page, art. 61, 1998 official text · verified 2026-10-30

Step	At 27%	At 30%
Pre tax profit	US$100.00	US$100.00
Income tax	US$27.00	US$30.00
Profit available	US$73.00	US$70.00
Dividend withholding at 10%	US$7.30	US$7.00
Net to shareholder	US$65.70	US$63.00
Combined burden	34.3%	37.0%

US$100 of pre tax profit to a foreign shareholder

Worked example

A US$100 dividend out of the country is RD$6,085.94 at the rate used. Withholding is RD$608.59, about US$10.00, and the shareholder receives RD$5,477.35, about US$90.00. No further Dominican tax applies.

Step by step

Approve the accounts and the dividend at the shareholders meeting.
Check the dividend account for any balance free of withholding.
Withhold 10% at payment or credit in account, whichever comes first.
File IR-17 and pay by the 10th of the next month.
Give the shareholder proof of withholding for a foreign credit claim.

Common traps

Art. 299 literal ñ exempts the shareholder only if the 10% was actually withheld.
Crediting a dividend in account triggers withholding before any cash moves.
Art. 308 covers profits distributed in any form and lets DGII define forms of distribution other than dividends by norm, so label payments to shareholders with care.
For an Argentine shareholder there is no treaty, so the domestic 10% stands. See The Argentine Thread for the home country side.

Sources

Related: Dominican Republic country profile · live dashboard · central bank and release calendar · our posts on X · where Argentina is involved, see The Argentine Thread guide

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