Key takeaways
- Corporate income tax is generally 27%; Law 30-26 temporarily applies 30% for fiscal years 2026–2028 when annual gross income is at least RD$1 billion.
- ITBIS (VAT) is generally 18%; IT-1 is monthly, applicable data formats have separate deadlines, and e-CF sales are not duplicated in 607.
- Dividends abroad generally carry a 10% withholding; the 1% asset tax applies to taxable assets, with income tax creditable under the Tax Code rules.
- The DGII calendar is monthly, not annual — miss it and surcharges compound.
- Free zones, CONFOTUR and Law 57-07 provide defined exemptions for qualifying activities, periods and approvals.
Every foreign company that operates in the Dominican Republic meets the same tax machinery, and it is all built on one statute: Law 11-92, the Tax Code, administered by the DGII. Here is the map our clients wish they had on day one.
The four taxes every operating company meets
Corporate income tax (ISR) is generally 27% of net taxable income. For fiscal years 2026–2028, Law 30-26 applies a temporary 30% rate to taxpayers whose annual gross income is at least RD$1 billion. ITBIS is generally 18% on taxable goods and services. Withholding applies to dividends, payroll and specified payments, while the 1% tax on assets is computed on taxable assets and allows income-tax credits under the Tax Code rules.
The DGII calendar: monthly, relentless, automatable
The IT-1 ITBIS return and payment are generally due by the 20th of the following month; data formats 606, 607, 608 and 609 are generally due by the 15th. Electronic sales invoices are not duplicated in 607, while 606 and other obligations assigned by DGII continue. The annual corporate return (IR-2) follows the taxpayer’s fiscal year, with anticipos governed by the applicable rules. Dominican compliance is therefore a form-by-form operating calendar, not one universal monthly deadline.
When you are the withholding agent
Salaries, dividends, rents, fees to non-residents — in each case the law deputizes the paying company to retain and remit. Getting a rate wrong is expensive twice: the DGII collects the missing tax from you, plus surcharges and interest.
Incentives that change the math
Targeted statutes coexist with the Tax Code: Law 8-90 enumerates exemptions for licensed free-zone operations, Law 158-01 covers approved tourism projects, and Law 57-07 covers qualifying renewable-energy activity. Each regime has its own taxes, beneficiaries, term, approval and continuing-compliance conditions; none should be described as a universal route to zero tax.
The mistakes we see foreign companies make
Registering the RNC late and losing deductible history; invoicing without valid fiscal receipts (NCF/e-CF); treating ITBIS as their money instead of collected tax; ignoring transfer-pricing documentation for intercompany charges; and discovering the asset tax only when profits dip. All five are avoidable with a calendar and a competent fiscal desk.
Every situation has its own facts — for guidance on yours, book a free consultation with the desk that wrote this guide.