I think the amount of money that expats contribute to the economy is being greatly underestimated. According to the link below(and also the one posted by NSP), out of about 60,000 total expats, there are about 34,700 expats here from just the the US, Canada, and major European countries. This wouldn't include all the expats here that are living as perpetual tourists.
Almost all of these are retirees or "rentistas" bringing in money from outside the country. In addition, many of these expats also start businesses and create jobs, further contributing to the economy.
Assuming an average monthly income of $2000/mo(and I think that's on the low side), this equals $833 million dollars/yr coming into the economy. Not exactly chump change. $833 million dollars is about 11% is about 11% of the reported $7.7 billion dollars from tourism - not an insignificant drop in the bucket as some are saying.
The government could easily increase these numbers by streaming the residency process, making it easier, and offering incentives as many other countries have done - all at very little cost to the government. I don't know if the OP is correct, but the government is foolish if they're not trying harder to attract expats.
República Dominicana - Inmigración 2019
datosmacro.expansion.com
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