bringing vessel in from US for business

[Shawn]

Have a new idea for transporting snorkelling guests to the outer islands. Want to know about bringing the vessel in.
Will I have to pay an import tax on the vessel and equipment?
Is it better for tax purposes to register the business and vessel in the US, if that is even possible?
How dificult is it to register my business in the DR?
More questions to come but this is a good start.

Thank you for your input

[JOHNNY HONDA]

Hopefully Mr Guzman will answer this for you however Im certain that you vessel must be of Dominican flag to work here and ITS GOING TO BE VERY EXPENSIVE.check befire bringing it or be prepared to get royaly screwed.
J.h.

[Ken]

I, too, will let Fabio Guzman give the legal answer, but based on what I learned during years of living aboard in Samana, anyone who brings in a vessel for commercial purposes must flag the vessel in the Dominican Republic. There seems to be some difference in how much this actually costs, depending on how well connected you are, but you are wise to be looking into this subject before bringing the vessel.

Looking at it from the standpoint of the Dominican Republic, if foreign owners were allowed to bring their vessels to the Dominican Republic to conduct excursions, they would probably soon put Dominican boat owners out of business. That will not be allowed to happen.

Several years ago on one of the other islands of the Caribbean there was a great deal of trouble because the playing field for foreign vessel owners was pretty much on a par with the local owners. When the locals started being squeezed out, the foreign owners started having explosions, etc., that destroyed their boats. There are now laws that give better protection to the foriegn owners there.

[Shawn]

Thank you both for your input. It sounds like this Mr. Guzman is the man with this type of knowledge, hopefully he will respond to my thread. I wonder if there are any allowances if I attatch my business and my vessel to a resort.
Thanks again

[Fabio J. Guzman]

Dominican registration is a must. Another requirement is a permit from the Department of Tourism. In short, you should establish yourself to do business in the Dominican Republic.

[Hillbilly]

And that is just the tip of the iceberg. I wonder where Captain Larry is??? He had a hell of a time...

HB

[JOHNNY HONDA]

Last I recall the cost of registering equaled the price of the bOAt.Fabio?
J.H.

[Ken]

It can, Johnny, but as I said above, I know people in the tourism industry well connected enough to substantially reduce the cost.

[Shawn]

Thanks for the input Mr. Guzman. I have heard horror stories about vessels being assest crazy amounts when entering the DR. Do you feel as though I should try and deal directly with the Department of Tourism or do I need to do it through a lawyer? Also you mentioned about people who have contacts getting these fee's dramatically reduced, I am crossing my fingers that my contacts at the resorts will be able to help out there. Any other insight would be greatly appreciated.

[JOHNNY HONDA]

Ialso know some very well conected people however you usualy save your favors for when you need them,I dont know many who do anything for free.
J.H