Residency

[NicolaGriff]

Recently I have been offered a job in the DR, starting next month, although at the moment I have not even started applying for residency, I wondered how long the process would take, If there was a quick way to get it, If it was possible to apply whilst still in the UK and also would an employer take me on if they knew I was in the process even if it had not yet come through?!?! Your Help and suggestions would be much appreciated.

[Oche]

You have to be on Dominican Republic soil because dominican immigritation authorities cannot process your provisional residency application ( which is the 1st stage of the process of acquiring residency) unless you already had performed the medical exam required for obtaining the residency at their own office. Process takes a few months. Your best choice would be to get in touch with a lawyer in order to apply for residency.

[Ken]

You will have to talk with the employer, but I would think that you would be able to start work and complete residency requirements while in the DR. If you must start work in about 2 weeks, time is against you. Get here as soon as you can and start the process. Perhaps the employer will be able to help you expedite it.

[anonymous1960]

As far as I know (personal experience), Dominican employers don't give a care whether you are a legal resident, not even the big ones. You will just start working illegally.

By the same token, they won't pay for your application. You cannot do it without a lawyer, since you don't have a guarantor (they don't care about your job, you need a Dominican national with money in the bank), and the lawyer makes up a guarantor.

You could arrange a marriage for the purposes of getting residency and then file yourself, but I would advise extremely strongly against it.

Lawyer will charge you 500-600 US$. It doesn't matter how long it take since you get a receipt.


Cheers.

[Fabio J. Guzman]

Since you will be arriving next month, there is obviously no time to obtain a business visa for labor purposes or a residency permit before your arrival. You should come into the country with a tourist card and immediately apply for your residency permit and begin to work. Although from a strictly legal standpoint you should wait until your residency application is approved before starting work, in practice the Immigration Department does not take any action if an application has been filed.