I know this is an old thread but....
So here in La Romana I went to the local, DMV. Not sure the local name for it. I told them what I wanted, I had to pay 1800 pesos
at BanReserva, go to the Red Cross to get my blood typed, get a good conduct report (same day at courthouse by the police station)
and take a written exam. The written Exam is actually on a computer and you watch videos. Anyone with a knowledge of spanish
words like obra, multa, left and right can figure it out.I got only 1 wrong without even looking at the book. I have been driving in
the US for many years so pretty simular. This gets you your Temp driver's license. You need to drive with someone who has a valid
one. Once I got pulled over and my friend showed his from NY. It worked. Than 45 days later I paid 990 to BanReserva went with my
cedula, temps and drove around the block with the instructor. If you don't want an automatic car only restriction, take it with the manual
car. The route is going around the block so don't freak out too much. 5 minutes later I had my license. Easy easy.