The head of the Customs Office, Miguel Cocco, has announced that the government is going to allow Dominicans resident overseas who are visiting the country for the holiday season to bring US$1500 worth of merchandise into the country duty-free, until 7 January 2006. The announcement was made during a ceremony at the Customs offices at Las Americas International Airport yesterday. The duty-free arrangement is part of Law 9-96 and is applicable at all airports and port facilities in the Dominican Republic. According to the announcement, the US$1,500 does not include an additional US$500 allowance given for personal luggage as usually permitted under the “best international customs.” The announcement came as part of the activities surrounding the welcoming of the first travelers to benefit from the application of Law 9-96 for this holiday season. The law even contemplates the usually chaotic baggage situation, and allows luggage to arrive as much as 15 days prior to the passenger’s arrival or as many as 30 days after the arrival date.