Maintaining Up to Date Address

ju10prd

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Nov 19, 2014
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In our home countries it would be something done without hesitation. When you change address you notify everybody and every institution.........but the process is easy and I don't come from a country with a national ID system.

Naturally when you move address, the utility companies and your insurers, etc. will be advised in the process.

My question is how important is it to change the address given on your cedula, your residency card and driving license which should all be the same, each time you relocate? It all comes with a cost and takes time since each comes from different government bodies. And equally most Dominicans are on the move all the time and probably keep one address which may turn out to be their parent (s) home.
 

KateP

Silver
May 28, 2004
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When I renewed mine the last time I kept my previous address. No problem so far. Thought behind this was if ever my purse gets stolen with my house keys an all, at least they won?t know where I live.
 

LTSteve

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Jul 9, 2010
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When I renewed mine the last time I kept my previous address. No problem so far. Thought behind this was if ever my purse gets stolen with my house keys an all, at least they won?t know where I live.

When you renew put the new address on it. Why not?
 

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
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I don't think the system here is 'current' enough to catch this.
I would just change at renewal.

In a similar vein, I have been asked recently to verify my residency/address by a financial institution.
Typically, they want tax bill, utility bill or the like.

I have trouble explaining that there is no real address/street system where I live.
Then I move on to to the fact that I am solar and have a well - no utility bills.

In the end I just gave my residency card and driver's licence.

But it wasn't easy.........
 

KateP

Silver
May 28, 2004
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When you renew put the new address on it. Why not?

As mentioned previously, if my purse gets stolen with my wallet and keys, I would prefer the robbers not know where I live as they would have access to my house. Also, I sometimes have to leave my cedula at hotel/residential gates and would prefer the security guards not have access to that information. I have not needed to have my real address on my documents at any time in the past 10 years so it's a no-brainer for me.
 

ju10prd

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Nov 19, 2014
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Seems I am in the 'same boat' as others. I still have the address where I was staying when I renewed my residency a couple of years back and that address is on my driving license too. So it is a couple more years before an easy opportunity to change.

I am particularly interested to see if there are any potential legal implications not updating ones address. Expats don't have the luxury of having a parents home to use and many of us will likely move in a four year period at least once.

The other aspect is that DR is changing. We hear of a so called digital age, and then JCE, Immigration and the Police are/have linking/linked their databases. Perhaps all agencies will be linked soon. We also now hear of the US and DR tax authorities sharing information. Pretty soon it could be like home where if the address given on a credit card is different to your bank account and wasn't updated your card is blocked, to give an example.

Rather than what people are doing now, I am asking is this something that will become a sheer necessity soon?
 

Derfish

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Jan 7, 2016
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Maybe make out a power of attorney and send some otherwise unemployed person to make all the stops to bring your address up to date? This is a regular profession n Panama.
 

Cdn_Gringo

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Apr 29, 2014
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Rather than what people are doing now, I am asking is this something that will become a sheer necessity soon?

This may come down to what you consider soon. I moved about six months ago. I remember clearly how difficult it was to get the documents I have. I know that to change most of then requires a trip to SD. I would proably need some sort of proof of where I am living now. Without a written lease, no utility bills except receipts from the landlord for my monthly rent; coming up with multiples instances of paperwork with my house GPS coordinates (because I have no street address) might be difficult.

I opted to do nothing. Changing my cedula will probably mean having to change my residency card or vice versa. For now, those renewal dates do not match up. If and when they ever do, I'll consider changing the address then. Driver's license, we'll have to see how hard the process is when I renew in a few more years.

Right now, the address on all three cards match and I think that might be more important than actually reflecting which enclave I choose to sleep in on any given night. So far I haven't had to prove I live anywhere. When asked at the bank or elsewhere I just recite my old urbanization and that has been good enough.
 

ju10prd

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Nov 19, 2014
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Maybe make out a power of attorney and send some otherwise unemployed person to make all the stops to bring your address up to date? This is a regular profession n Panama.

So it is a necessity in Panama?

I question this because we read DR and Panama are cooperating on various systems.
 
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Meemselle

Just A Few Words
Oct 27, 2014
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Thank you for posting this. While my "permanent" address remains at my sister's in Massachusetts, this reminded me to update my local information with the US Embassy.