Recently the International Monetary Fund, as well as Administrative Minister of the Presidency Jose Ignacio Paliza have talked about the inevitability of a major tax reform for the Dominican Republic. Tax reform in this country is equal to an increase in taxes. It needs to pass in Congress in 2021 to be applied in 2022.
The industrial sector in the Dominican Republic has a different point of view. Circe Almanzar, the executive vice-president of the Industrial Association of the Dominican Republic (AIRD) said on TV that a tax reform is not all that necessary if the government improves the quality of its spending. In her view, more taxes at this time would be counterproductive.
She also noted that the country has a low-risk rating and is certainly able to issue more debt on the international market. She did say those interest payments and the hard currency debt as a percentage of the nation’s GDP are hurting the nation’s ability to develop programs for the poor.
As a solution, Almanzar said that the administration should create mechanisms to cut tax evasion and corruption and reduce the problems in the quality of expenditures; more “bang for the buck,” so to speak.
Almanzar also spoke of the predominance of the informal sector that makes up 50% of all jobs in the country but pays few taxes.
Read more in Spanish:
El Caribe
17 May 2021