- Thread starter El Tigre
- Start date
No wonder everyone says "better to buy a vehicle in the DR"
Drives me barmy (no pun intended)
Drives me barmy when I look at Jepetas on the UK Auto Trader website and see how cheap they are compared to the DR.
eg a 2006 WV Toureg Diesel with all the extras is available at ?9,600 thats about US$ 14,500
The same vehicle on super-carros.com is US$ 41,000 - mmmm
So even if I pay US$ 5,000 to ship one over in a container, when its gets to customs they will say something along the lines of ;-
oh thats worth around US$ 40k so we'd like about, mmmmm lets think of a figure and double it, let's say US$ 20k tax.
Licensed bandits basically.
Means that whatever you buy over in the DR is costing you double its real value.
So.... I suppose you will do a heck of a lot better buying new, as apposed to super inflated 2nd hand prices.
Paul
Drives me barmy when I look at Jepetas on the UK Auto Trader website and see how cheap they are compared to the DR.
eg a 2006 WV Toureg Diesel with all the extras is available at ?9,600 thats about US$ 14,500
The same vehicle on super-carros.com is US$ 41,000 - mmmm
So even if I pay US$ 5,000 to ship one over in a container, when its gets to customs they will say something along the lines of ;-
oh thats worth around US$ 40k so we'd like about, mmmmm lets think of a figure and double it, let's say US$ 20k tax.
Licensed bandits basically.
Means that whatever you buy over in the DR is costing you double its real value.
So.... I suppose you will do a heck of a lot better buying new, as apposed to super inflated 2nd hand prices.
Paul
I believe Dominicans and new residents get a fairly substantial reduction in the duties. TheHun paid I believe around US5k for a late model Toyota SUV.
At any rate, now is the time to buy and good deals can be had. I just bought an 87 Montero for the wife for RD70k and will having it look and running like new for 35k more. In fact the guy who sold me the jipeta has 96 Montero in great condition going for RD320k in Sosua. He is on vacation here but going back to Sweden soon with the wife.
At any rate, now is the time to buy and good deals can be had. I just bought an 87 Montero for the wife for RD70k and will having it look and running like new for 35k more. In fact the guy who sold me the jipeta has 96 Montero in great condition going for RD320k in Sosua. He is on vacation here but going back to Sweden soon with the wife.
wouldnt any vehicle already have those fees applied at some point , if it is on the island??????????
apples being apples and oranges being oranges..
do the auto dealers get discounts?
the placa/marbete/servicio...is what floors me!!!
is that plates and registration???
are plates and registrations the same regardless of the vehicle??
bob
apples being apples and oranges being oranges..
do the auto dealers get discounts?
the placa/marbete/servicio...is what floors me!!!
is that plates and registration???
are plates and registrations the same regardless of the vehicle??
bob
Well, in last September I paid about US$ 7000 for tax and a bit over US$ 3000 for registration (placa, matricula). And they said I got 60% discount on the tax as a new resident....
BTW, it was for a 2005 Toyota 4Runner.
The registration is 17% of the TOTAL value (including shipping!)
It's hard to believe this government has any bigger revenue than vehicle tax.
The Hun
BTW, it was for a 2005 Toyota 4Runner.
The registration is 17% of the TOTAL value (including shipping!)
It's hard to believe this government has any bigger revenue than vehicle tax.
The Hun
This is so absurd! So it does makes sense AFTER ALL to buy a vehicle in the DR. I guess one exception in which someone will bring a vehicle is if it's some kind of special vehicle not found in the D.R. or if someone has money to spend. In my case even if I had the money to pay for customs, hustlers etc I just can't justify spending all this money. To me (again my opinion) this is just absurd!
TheHun: why did you decide to import rather than buy down there? Did the vehicle have some kind of sentimental value to you? What was it? I really want to know what drove you to do it.
Thanks.
TheHun: why did you decide to import rather than buy down there? Did the vehicle have some kind of sentimental value to you? What was it? I really want to know what drove you to do it.
Thanks.
Uhhh, not exactyly. US6k here will get you a nice car, and if it does have some minor defects, labor is cheap here to repair them.
A Truism of Life in the DR:
-If it's labor-Intensive, it's cheap.
-If it's material intensive, it's expensive.
-If it's imported, it's REALLY expensive.
Having lived offshore for close to 20 years now I finally decided to take the plunge last year and try to maneuver our way through aduanas so we imported our family furniture/household belongings.
It was extortion.
The DR Consulate in the other country stressed my wife was NOT TO PAY ANYTHING in the DR (aside from some tax they said would be between $100-$150 dollars). They STRESSED she'd be hassled and bullied on the DR side but NOT TO PAY ANYTHING!!! She's a Dominican repatriating to her country after 10 years abroad. They said "Just show them these sealed/notarized documents from the consulate in this envelope and you're good to go". Of course when my wife got to DR aduanas the guy said "I need $3,000 for the taxes on this stuff" My wife said "I paid all the taxes on the other side. Take a look at these documents from the Dominican Consulate"....the guy opened them looked at her and said "Yeah...I don't know this guy. It's gonna be $3,000 if you want your stuff. We're charging you a daily holding fee as well. We can just keep it if you want, it's your call.". Extortion.
People advised us "Get a customs agent!". I'm skeptical of inviting middle men into a transaction as the price rarely goes DOWN. The 1st two customs agents came back to tell us they could get the stuff for $5,000 and $4,000 respectively. Imagine that, the price went up when a middle man got involved! Who could have guessed? Finally we used a customs agent who is a friend of the wife's uncle....who's....you guessed it....a Colonel. This last customs agent charged us more than the original $3,000 as well. The wife told her uncle who ripped the guy a new one. A couple days later the guy had our stuff at our house, he (allegedly) paid for it out of his own pocket and had receipts (You can have a pack of receipts printed for $300 pesos) showing about $1,500, which we finally paid. I figure he and the Colonel probably split the $1,500 up and had a good laugh.
Live and learn. Now when I read threads about importing things I don't have to wonder if it's something I should try.
It was extortion.
The DR Consulate in the other country stressed my wife was NOT TO PAY ANYTHING in the DR (aside from some tax they said would be between $100-$150 dollars). They STRESSED she'd be hassled and bullied on the DR side but NOT TO PAY ANYTHING!!! She's a Dominican repatriating to her country after 10 years abroad. They said "Just show them these sealed/notarized documents from the consulate in this envelope and you're good to go". Of course when my wife got to DR aduanas the guy said "I need $3,000 for the taxes on this stuff" My wife said "I paid all the taxes on the other side. Take a look at these documents from the Dominican Consulate"....the guy opened them looked at her and said "Yeah...I don't know this guy. It's gonna be $3,000 if you want your stuff. We're charging you a daily holding fee as well. We can just keep it if you want, it's your call.". Extortion.
People advised us "Get a customs agent!". I'm skeptical of inviting middle men into a transaction as the price rarely goes DOWN. The 1st two customs agents came back to tell us they could get the stuff for $5,000 and $4,000 respectively. Imagine that, the price went up when a middle man got involved! Who could have guessed? Finally we used a customs agent who is a friend of the wife's uncle....who's....you guessed it....a Colonel. This last customs agent charged us more than the original $3,000 as well. The wife told her uncle who ripped the guy a new one. A couple days later the guy had our stuff at our house, he (allegedly) paid for it out of his own pocket and had receipts (You can have a pack of receipts printed for $300 pesos) showing about $1,500, which we finally paid. I figure he and the Colonel probably split the $1,500 up and had a good laugh.
Live and learn. Now when I read threads about importing things I don't have to wonder if it's something I should try.
I am convinced when it is time to retire and move to your destination of choice [in Latin America/Islands], just leave everything behind and start over...NOT WORTH the cost nor the headaches! 
its only worth the headache if someone gives you a car
or if you have a dealer that has the connections
or if you have a dealer that has the connections
General opinion is that this dealership is reliable and prices are considered reasonable
Espaillat Motors - 2009 TOYOTA HILUX SRV 4X4
Espaillat Motors - 2009 TOYOTA HILUX SRV 4X4