Countries › Dominican Republic › Guide › 6. Taxes › Tax treaties of the Dominican Republic: Canada and Spain only, with rate table and how to claim relief

Tax treaties of the Dominican Republic: Canada and Spain only, with rate table and how to claim relief

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

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

DGII names two income tax treaties in force, with Canada and Spain, plus an information exchange agreement with the United States and the multilateral mutual assistance convention. There is no treaty with Argentina or the United States on income tax, so domestic rates apply. Since DGII repealed its prior approval procedure in 2023, relief is claimed with a residence certificate and supporting contract.

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

Income tax treaties in force	2 treatiesNorma General 05-2023, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Income tax treaty with Argentina	No statusNot among the treaties named in Norma General 05-2023, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Spain treaty dividend cap	10 %Spain treaty art. 10, as of 2026-10-30 · in force
Canada convention dividend cap	18 %Canada convention art. X, as of 2026-10-30 · in force

The rule

1. The Dominican Republic has income tax treaties in force with Canada and Spain, an information exchange agreement with the United States and the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance, in force from 1 December 2019.Norma General 11-2022, recitals, and Norma General 05-2023, Recitals, 2023-09-25 official text · verified 2026-10-30

2. The Canada convention was signed on 6 August 1976. DGII states it has been in force since 1 January 1977 and has not been amended.Resolución 455; DGII technical consultation of 23 July 2025, Consultation G.L. 4706, 2025-07-23 official text · verified 2026-10-30

3. The Spain treaty and protocol were signed in Madrid on 16 November 2011 and entered into force on 25 July 2014.Resolución 115-14; BOE-A-2014-6918, Publication note, 2014-07-25 official text · verified 2026-10-30

4. Spain treaty caps: dividends 10%, with that cap paragraph not applying to a company directly holding at least 75%; interest 10%; royalties 10%; services performed in the source state 10% unless there is a permanent establishment.Spain treaty, art. 10 to art. 13, 2014-07-25 official text · verified 2026-10-30

5. Canada convention caps: dividends, interest and royalties 18% each. Copyright royalties on literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works are taxable only in the residence state. A lower dividend rate agreed with a third state applies automatically.Canada convention, art. X, art. XI, art. XII and Protocol, 1976-08-06 official text · verified 2026-10-30

6. The Spain protocol keeps domestic anti avoidance, CFC and thin capitalization rules. Articles 10 to 13 do not apply where a main purpose of the arrangement is to obtain them. The treaty does not limit benefits granted by domestic law.Spain treaty, Protocol I and II, 2014-07-25 official text · verified 2026-10-30

7. Norma General 11-2022 set a prior procedure to obtain treaty benefits, and Norma General 05-2023 repealed it on 25 September 2023.Norma General 05-2023, Single article, 2023-09-25 official text · verified 2026-10-30

8. DGII asks for a tax residence certificate from the foreign authority valid for treaty purposes and the contract behind the services, and its international tax department reviews each case.DGII technical consultation of 23 July 2025, Consultation G.L. 4706, 2025-07-23 official text · verified 2026-10-30

Income	Domestic	Spain	Canada
Dividends	10%	10%; cap paragraph off at 75% direct holding	18%, third state clause
Interest	10%	10%	18%
Royalties	15%	10%	18%; some copyright only in residence state
Services	27%	10% if performed there, no permanent establishment	Business profits art. VII or independent services art. XIV

Domestic rate and treaty cap, whichever is lower applies in practice

Worked example

A royalty of RD$1,000,000 (about US$16,431.32) to a Spanish owner would carry RD$150,000 (about US$2,464.70) under domestic law and RD$100,000 (about US$1,643.13) under the treaty. A Canadian owner gets no benefit, since the 18% cap sits above the domestic 15%.

Step by step

Confirm the recipient is the beneficial owner.
Get a residence certificate for the correct year.
Keep the contract and evidence of substance.
Apply the rate and report the payment in the IR-17 treaty annex.
Keep the file for the three year audit period.

Common traps

Since Ley 30-26 cut royalties to 15% and interest stays at 10%, the Canada convention rarely lowers Dominican tax.
The Spain treaty text says only that the cap paragraph does not apply to a 75% direct holder. Confirm the reading with DGII before paying a dividend at zero.
The Dominican Republic has no income tax treaty with Argentina, so payments between the two run at domestic rates on each side. See The Argentine Thread for the Argentine 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

← Capital gains in the Dominican Republic: 10% on real estate for individuals, 27% for companies and offshore share salesPermanent establishments and branches in the Dominican Republic: when a foreign company is taxed and how →

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