P
PICHARDO
Guest
If you are a tourist visiting the DR and entered the country with no visa required:
That means you can drive legally in the DR for 30 days. This is the legal term of time your foreign license is valid for during your stay, since your legal stay is 30 days.
As some can attest, many people have driven beyond this term and had no issues due to this.
Some can even find insurance coverage for vehicles purchased and registered whilst as tourists in the Dominican Republic.
What's plausible and what's defined as legal can change when something happens.
Getting into an accident, while driving in the DR beyond the 30 days, can bring you a lot of legal issues when personal or property damages are involved. The insurance company can (at their option) cover or not the damages or injuries under the policy, by simply accepting or declining the validity of your License during your extended stay beyond the visa-free term.
As a rule of thumb, given their brand reputation, most insurers will provide policy coverage for both. But when it comes to the legal aspect in a Dominican court, precedence lies with the Law and valid limits extended under the visa-free tourist stay. That's to say, the court will not rely on a private insurance provider in determining the validity status of your foreign license once a claim is made for injury/damages.
The short and layman terms for this:
Your foreign license is valid ONLY for 30 Days.
Any extension of this term, would require you file for a legal extension of your tourist stay with Immigration.
When you exit the country and pay a penalty fee for overstaying beyond the 30 days, is exactly just that:
A penalty fee.
If you entered the DR with a VISA, the term defined in the VISA and stamped on your passport is the Validity term of your foreign driver license in the DR. The validity ends at the defined date stamped on the Visa/Passport for length of stay.
Driving in the DR with a foreign driver license beyond the legal stay in the country, can bring you a heap of trouble if something major occurs.
Things are slowly changing in the DR. Don't be caught off guard!
Like I said here in the forums of DR1, even a foot patrol Police agent will be able to scan your passport/ID and determine your legal status in the country soon enough.
That means you can drive legally in the DR for 30 days. This is the legal term of time your foreign license is valid for during your stay, since your legal stay is 30 days.
As some can attest, many people have driven beyond this term and had no issues due to this.
Some can even find insurance coverage for vehicles purchased and registered whilst as tourists in the Dominican Republic.
What's plausible and what's defined as legal can change when something happens.
Getting into an accident, while driving in the DR beyond the 30 days, can bring you a lot of legal issues when personal or property damages are involved. The insurance company can (at their option) cover or not the damages or injuries under the policy, by simply accepting or declining the validity of your License during your extended stay beyond the visa-free term.
As a rule of thumb, given their brand reputation, most insurers will provide policy coverage for both. But when it comes to the legal aspect in a Dominican court, precedence lies with the Law and valid limits extended under the visa-free tourist stay. That's to say, the court will not rely on a private insurance provider in determining the validity status of your foreign license once a claim is made for injury/damages.
The short and layman terms for this:
Your foreign license is valid ONLY for 30 Days.
Any extension of this term, would require you file for a legal extension of your tourist stay with Immigration.
When you exit the country and pay a penalty fee for overstaying beyond the 30 days, is exactly just that:
A penalty fee.
If you entered the DR with a VISA, the term defined in the VISA and stamped on your passport is the Validity term of your foreign driver license in the DR. The validity ends at the defined date stamped on the Visa/Passport for length of stay.
Driving in the DR with a foreign driver license beyond the legal stay in the country, can bring you a heap of trouble if something major occurs.
Things are slowly changing in the DR. Don't be caught off guard!
Like I said here in the forums of DR1, even a foot patrol Police agent will be able to scan your passport/ID and determine your legal status in the country soon enough.