Residencia - 2020 - How to get it done.

Hello all, new here but have read through this thread and found it very helpful. I didn't see a question about this residence visa requirement, which has got me a bit stumped. From the website of the Dominican Republic embassy in Washington DC:

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"Notarized Letter of Guarantee. Signed by a Dominican or a legal resident alien in the Dominican Republic ... the guarantor certifies to the Dominican authorities to undertake any expenses incurred on account of the visa beneficiary. The guarantor remains financially committed in the event that deportation is required if the recipient should violate the Dominican law.”

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So if you don't know anybody who's close enough that they'd be willing to sign off on that for you (seems like a pretty big commitment!), what do you do?

Thanks!

Usually your lawyer will arrange this. As well now you will purchase an insurance product that covers these expenses if necessary

@planner Thanks!

Follow-up question: Is there any way to get a broad estimate (single amount or range) of what the guarantee and/or insurance would cost, without first putting down good money for a lawyer or other professional assistance?

If the answer is "no" that's OK, but I thought I'd ask. At this point I'm trying to get a preliminary idea of whether this move is feasible for me. I have the basic required minimum income, and some savings of course, but I'm a little nervous about start-up costs. Thanks for any further light you can shed on this!

The insurance is about US 120 per person I believe.  Someone with more recent experience will know but it's not much.

Fromnpersonal experience (currently), it's pretty easy to fill out docs. for me the bottle neck is a and was sate dept to apostille docs and returning them as well as fbi background which the letter is not the problem but waiting on it cause of prints as i am in DR then sending it to state dpt. but overall the process is realtively easy just like ours.

@ddmcghee I'm curious -- writing well after the original message was posted, so I hope this is an OK place to follow up -- now that things have calmed down again post-Covid (well, sort-of-post-Covid), are the "year or more" wait times still happening? Is there such a thing as an average wait time in mid-to-late 2023?

Are you talking from start to finish or from deposit in Santo Domingo?

@planner Thanks! At the moment I'm curious about the process that you initiate in your country of origin. Say you fill in all the forms right and have all the required documentation. From the day you submit that application to the day they grant you a visa so you can go to the Dominican Republic and start the application for residency -- that time frame.

That will depend on which office you use. As I understand it times vary from a few weeks to months.

I’ve only been through the process once myself, so the 4-week experience I had is all that I know for sure. DC seems to have the process flowing smoothly from what I hear from others who applied there. I’ve heard horror stories of the visa process taking so long that FBI background checks were expired and had to be redone, financials resubmitted, etc. With all of these accounts, I take them with a grain of salt! Was all the needed documentation submitted initially? Did the embassy request more documents or have questions? Were the applicants timely in responding? So many variables! We got one email from the embassy asking for one additional bank statement and we submitted it within a day or two - as soon as it was available. Even with that request, it was still only 4 weeks from submission to having our passports with visas returned to us by priority mail.

Just wanted to throw in a quick comment for anyone who, like me, is in the early stages of planning this: Start lining up your documentation now; don't wait.

For documents that don't expire, get them in hand. For documents that do expire, at least make sure you know how the process works and what you can expect. (If not expensive, maybe order a copy for a dry run?)

For example, I just found out that the US state that issues my birth certificate has a 6-months-or-longer backlog and there is no way to expedite. (Lucky for me, I have a certified copy, but it's old and ratty and I'd hoped to get a new one, also good to have a spare since they keep the one you send them.)

If it's not that, it'll be something else. Roads have bumps. I know the detail on the embassy website can make your eyes glaze over, but it's really not a long list and it's worth working through.

^^For the experienced folks I'm sure that's coals to Newcastle; but there could be a fellow newbie out there who could use the reminder. fwiw!

Great advice!  Well worth reminding people.  These days nothing is straightforward!

The amazing part is you go to the airport now and they use eye scanners and passport reader machines (at least in Punta Cana) and still use very outdated methods for this.

We definitely have not caught up.  But I think it's coming!

@AttyLishali

Hello, can I Please have your contact number?

Here is her number +1 809-860-1231

My Attorney:  is Andrea Nina  Whats app 809-602-5189 email anina@drlawyer.com Realtor : TerryAnn loney 829-986-5493 email terry@sunpixel.com

Make sure you mention Vanessa  from US as a referral please

sorry terry@puntacanacondos.com or  terry@sunpixel.com

@planner

Hello, hope you is in great health, my question is. i have obtain an apartment here a year ago and is looking forward to moving here for good. I would like to know, 1- how long I have to obtain dual citizenship. 2- where/or how i am to process the dual citizenship paperwork. In addition, if I want to start a further business. and how long is this process to be completed?

So are you Dominican or Dominican heritage?   If so getting citizenship is fast and easy.

If not you go through the regular Residency process which starts at home!

@tankw35 I am going through the residency process now and everything seems to be going smoothly so far. I also completed the business registration and can tell you it’s imperative to have a knowledgeable attorney for both. Don’t forget you have to be very involved, and have some patience.

@AttyLishali

My wife and I are beginning on our build this year.  She is Dominican and American (dual citizenship).  On our first trip we plan to begin process of her getting updated cedula.  For me, I could qualify residency under investor or family (wife citizen), possibly other category.   I'm guessing the easiest path for me would be to persue long term visa then residency based on my wife being Dominican.  Is that a good guess?  If financial solvency /investments would be very easy to show, would that be just as simple or more so?    Anyone have recommendation or thoughts from their own experience?  I'm 55, so not typical retiree.  Thanks.

@Gcjackson2277 have a friend asking that wants to start the process too.

1. Do you or anyone know from your process after you submit your digital form photos of all the forms for the retirement TR9 Retirement residencey how long DGM is taking to schedule medical exam and the DGM appointment to present the physical papers?

They already have the VISA and now submitted the papers vía the DGM portal website

@wondering9 I think not all residencey permit require a guarantor. I know the TR9 retirement one did not require a guarantor

@planner I hear they just did away with the insurance requirement for 2024 March. Had a friend that is starting the process and the lawyer said no longer required and the link is gone.

@ddmcghee how long was it for you when you applied via DGM once in the DR to process the 2nd step of the permit ID, etc? Currious

@tchenier. Lishali doesn't give advice in online forums.  You will need to reach out to her directly.  Too many possibilities for her to answer online

I wasn't aware the insurance issue changed! Thanks

@planner yeah I think it changed March 1 2024..

Your friend is a bit further along in the process than I am. It's been a bit of back and forth to gather the required documents for submission to the consulate office, ensuring everything is correct. Getting the documents apostilled was straightforward, and surprisingly, the FBI background check returned to me in just 2 weeks instead of the initially quoted 8 weeks. However, obtaining all the other necessary documents was relatively uncomplicated.

When I went to the consulate office in Washington DC to submit my application package, I learned that most of the documents needed to be translated from English to Spanish. The Washington DC office charges $95 per page for translation, totaling $760 for the 8 pages I needed. However, I discovered that the Boston office charges only $55 per page. Instead, I opted to use a local translator who charges the same rate and also provides notarization services. The translation is expected to be completed in 3 days, after which I will submit my package to the consulate office along with the $200 application fee.

The consulate office mentioned that it would take approximately 3 weeks for the visa to be issued if everything is in proper order. My understanding is that once the visa is granted, I will have 60 days to travel to the Dominican Republic to start the residency process. My attorney will coordinate this process, accompanying me to the medical exam and interview. I've been advised that the residency process could take anywhere from 3 to 4 months (Dominican time).

@Gcjackson2277

On the documents translated to Spanish, did they have to be  apostilled in Spanish besides certified translation as well? (Ie the FBI background check)

@DRVisitor yes they must also be appositle by the DR government and you turn in both US and DR appositle documents

@CHRISTOPHER DAVID56

Doesnt that become expensive needing to  apostille every english document into Spanish translated  apostilledocuments as well? What companies can provide es Spanish apostille documents or does the DR consulate offer?

Yes it gets expensive but it's not optional

    @ddmcghee how long was it for you when you applied via DGM once in the DR to process the 2nd step of the permit ID, etc? Currious
   

    -@CHRISTOPHER DAVID56

It only took 2 days to get an appointment to finalize the application and have our medical exams done once we submitted our applications online. Approval for us was 6 months, but that was because of COVID! Our appointment was on March 13, 2020, and the state of emergency and government shutdown went into effect on March 15. It was July before they started reviewing applications again.

@DRVisitor yes it can be and all depends on your lawyer or legal advisor my quote for the work. There are various rates and different fees for each personal requirements.

However, exactly what Planner mentioned its not an option not too.

I have seen people in the DR get it done for the DR side from 8k to 12k peso.thats translation and DR apostille.

US State Department charges 20 bucks if you do it on your own for the apostille.

Just highly recommend do your research if you do it on your own

@CHRISTOPHER DAVID56

How do people get it done on the DR side when it has to start on the origin country of person? The docs are origin language and not spanish on some.

@DRVisitor yes?the process starts in the country of orgin for the VISA. If you have legal contacts in the DR you can utilize them after you get the US appostile to get translated in Spanish and DR appostile in the DR . Yes this can require fedex , UPS etc to send documents.

There are also various 3rd party resources to accomplish this just have to research and select the options that best meet your needs and requirements

@DRVisitorI know for sure in the next few weeks. I was told by the representative at the consulate office that I did not need to get the translated copy apostilled as the initial true copy was already apostilled. Surprisingly, they even had recommended that many people uses other tranlated services because its a lot cheaper. I the company performing the translation will provide a statement that the person who conducted the translation is certified and will also notarized it. so let's see what happens once the full package is submitted. I will update the forum with my progress.

@Gcjackson2277 remember, the two government agencies are different the Consulate who accepts your VISA application is not who reviews and approves your residence application. They have different guidelines and again highly recommend accessing the DGM website and read thier requirements for your indvidual residence petition.

Good luck!

and remember the quality of the advice and info you receive at any Consulate will  differ!  Some are good and some are  frankly, horrible.  That is where a good lawyer can help  guide you!