We are setting up a new trading company and I'd like recommendations for reasonably-priced lawyers or accountants who do company formations in Santo Domingo. To stress, I already have a very good but expensive lawyer that I work with, but I know he will charge into the thousands of dollars to do this, and I'm looking for a little firm to do this who won't charge so much. I need the company registration, TSS registration, ONAPI, Registro Mercantil, registration for ITBIS and the papers for a new bank account (and probably a few more that I've forgotten about). We are experienced in running businesses here, so not looking for much advice.
- Thread starter MariaRubia
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Help please - need an accountant or reasonably priced lawyer to set up new company
There was something in the DR1 news about a place or new government department that the President open on fast track and only one place to set up a business Maybe someone can find this news.
Plenty to chose from on IG . Most have fixed prices …upfront….with a list of what is/ is not included. There’s a thread here somewhere about DIY company formation in DR ….tried it …lost money …ONAPI kept our fees🤬 ….wouldn’t recommend it… long story 😖
The last one we did was with an Accountant we found on IG …found that his office was close to ours… so went to met him ….Everything came to around 20000 RD$ ….all inclusive ..with everything on your list and more .
Oh thank you that's very helpful. I presume you're not in the capital, or if you are could you PM me his details please.
🤔..I don't think that we have ever recommended anyone in DR, especially when it comes to business services……mainly due to the low business ethical standards in DR ….and…you never know what type of "pay me now, see you later" BS you will get from the same firm you just recommended.
Plus, when I asked Miesposa about recommending the accountant we used , she said, "I wouldn't wish that accountant on anyone…. we only got things done to our satisfaction because of his proximity….” She was always chasing him for updates.
What I would recommend is searching #constituciondeempresas or #constituciondeempresasrd on IG …see what’s on offer …and try a fixed-price firm that you are comfortable with.
Also, I remember some people here in DR1 said how “easy” the DIY process was …it wasn’t for us …😩…but you may want to take a look at that thread.
Way too often I catch myself asking "is all this worth it". And all too often I think about how my life has changed from the laws, regulation, oversight and the frustrations set down in the US. Ex: In a business I owned early on in my career I overstepped the line on a EPA regulation and was in the process of legally disposing of several hundred cans of used lacquer paints into a dumpster in front of my factory. Long story short... I spent one day in a NYC jail before my hearing and then tens of thousands of dollars in a defense. Thankfully, years later that business was sold enabling me to move on to another career.
My point is: OP is an experienced business person and asked for a recommendation so as to comply with a laundry list of government agencies she must comply with. I am not giving advise nor a recommendations but SMH at the notion of trying to do business with a corrupt government. When I broke the ties set down by my former life I saw doves flying in the air. When I read over the list of what needed to be done, by a hired lawyer no less, my immediate reaction was, does everybody doing small business in the DR sign on the dotted line for this kind of exposure? IDK, but I believe not.
There must be another way that business is done in the DR bc I just don't see the DR being squeaky clean on way too many issues.
Sorry I can't give a recommendation as I wouldn't know where to even begin qualifying a lawyer/accountant for this assignment.
But, I do wish OP The Best of Luck.
My point is: OP is an experienced business person and asked for a recommendation so as to comply with a laundry list of government agencies she must comply with. I am not giving advise nor a recommendations but SMH at the notion of trying to do business with a corrupt government. When I broke the ties set down by my former life I saw doves flying in the air. When I read over the list of what needed to be done, by a hired lawyer no less, my immediate reaction was, does everybody doing small business in the DR sign on the dotted line for this kind of exposure? IDK, but I believe not.
There must be another way that business is done in the DR bc I just don't see the DR being squeaky clean on way too many issues.
Sorry I can't give a recommendation as I wouldn't know where to even begin qualifying a lawyer/accountant for this assignment.
But, I do wish OP The Best of Luck.
Interesting comment Johne. To be honest, most business does have all the paperwork in place. You can't get a bank account without supplying all the reams of forms that the bank needs, but when you do that it's reasonably easy - the bank doesn't ask you what you are going to do with the account. Tiny businesses are sometimes run informally but I imagine it's hard because everyone will be asking you for a bit of paper that you don't have - for example, without a bank account, how do you pay for things? And if it's in your own personal name, then you can't reclaim the ITBIS. So you just have to suck it up and get everything registered, and understand the reporting cycles.
This said, there is money to be made here, mainly because prices here are pretty much the same as Europe or the US and wages are so much lower. And because the law is loosely applied shall we say, there are plenty of opportunities for people to make money. Look at the restaurants in Piantini for example, how much they are charging, they are busy every night. Or all the brand new cars buzzing around. There's plenty of people making plenty of money here and they are not all politicians or baseball players.
I tried my best to respond to your request seeking a recommendation for a lawyer/account and nothing more. I didn't want to go OT because I respect your request for "don't need opinions". I get it. I agree there is plenty of money that is made here as I see it and talk to many people in the complex where I live.
Perhaps in another tread down the road we can discuss.
ETA: Clearly you can get a bank account and pay bills in a way that would shield your exposure to oversight. Perhaps the lawyer/account you are seeking should be not inexpensive or very expensive but rather "creative" in the way he will structure your business. And I don't mean shady or a crook. I mean he knows how to solve the problems you and I are talking about because he is very smart. He has done this before.And maybe he is NOT Dominican. And maybe he is not based in the DR. IDK?
Disclosure: Writer sometimes gets high on strong expresso coffee early in the morning and his opinions should be taken with that in mind.
Disclosure: Writer sometimes gets high on strong expresso coffee early in the morning and his opinions should be taken with that in mind.