organizing a DR NGO

NoMoreSnow

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Apr 10, 2002
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What is legally required to establish a non-governmental not-for-profit organization in the DR?


Does it matter what the mission or the purpose of the organizaton is?

What are the requirements with respect to residency of Directors or non-national and DR national Directors?

How much does it cost to incorporate?

How long does the incorporation process take?

Are any "incentives" required to obtain official approval?

Thanks in advance for any information ... would especially like to hear the experiences of people who have gone through the process.

Please reserve all "chatter" until I have gotten the information that I need ... then you can talk amongst yourselves at your leisure until Robert pushes the "big" button.
 

Fabio J. Guzman

DR1 Expert
Jan 1, 2002
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Non-profit organizations in the Dominican Republic are called "asociaciones sin fines de lucro" and are governed by Law #520 of 1920, as amended by Law #666 of 1982. Their names end with the abbreviation "Inc." ("incorporada") as opposed to for profit entities which have an S.A. ("sociedad an?nima') or C. por A. ("compa??a por acciones") at the end of their names.

Any two or more persons wishing to form a non-profit entity can petition the government to grant them incorporation status. The general requirements are the following:

1) The object of the entity must be legal.
2) The petition must be submitted to the Presidency through the Attorney General's Office ("Procuradur?a General de la Rep?blica").
3) The petition must contain the bylaws of the entity and copy of the minutes of the meeting where the officers are designated.

A ball park figure for the time required would be around 6 months. As for the cost, $500 to $1500 depending on the complexity of the entity and the lawyer doing the work.
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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Regarding your question with respect to the mission or purpose of the organization, there have been articles in the press recently indicating that a number of existing NGO's might lose their favored tax status because it was felt by evaluators they didn't truly meet both the letter and the spirit of the law. Someone else can probably give you more details on this, but it has been a cause for concern among NGOs.
 

NoMoreSnow

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Apr 10, 2002
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DR Residency Requirement

Mr Guzman

Does the law specify any residency requirements for the Board of Directors of the NGO?
 

pasha

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Sep 4, 2003
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Would it be safe.......

to assume that enough time has passed that we can use this thread to continue the discussion about NGOs? Or would it be best to start another thread to keep the chatter down? Or, did Robert push the "big button" yet?

Anyhow, I'd be interested to know if the original poster carried through on setting up an NGO and any details s/he is willing to share, either in open Forum or private email.

Mr Guzman - a few small questions: from your first reply, it sounded as if one goes ahead and sets up the NGO [by-laws, officer designation, etc] and only then petitions the government for legalization. Is that correct? Is there a compilation of existing NGOs in the DR, national and international? I'll also pulse the US Embassy to see what their holdings are. Hope the Peace Corps has representation in the DR as they're usually pretty tuned in to other help organizations.

Ken - if you know, was there any further fall out from the news articles and/or government's decision to whack some of the NGOs?

Thanks and best, P
 

GringoCArlos

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Jan 9, 2002
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Regarding "whacking " out NGO's from eligibility, it's because many NGO's in the DR are started and operated for the benefit of the politician who started it up , as in "The Fundacion para MI!".
 
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pasha

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Sep 4, 2003
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Carl, you may have......

some valid points.....it wouldn't be the first time I've seen sham NGOs that exist for whatever pupose. Your remarks are well noted and tucked away in the mental file.

Surely, though, USAID wouldn't engage in such an unethical way.

Thanks and best, P
 

Fabio J. Guzman

DR1 Expert
Jan 1, 2002
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The attorney in charge of the incorporation prepares the bylaws and the minutes to the meeting electing the officers, and then submits the documents to the Presidency (via Ministry of Interior) for the incorporation decree.