During the past Danilo Medina administration it was easy to get a Dominican passport. It took about a week for a regular request and around 12 hours for those paying the VIP extra. The cost for a VIP passport wasn’t much more than that for the regular passport.
All that changed with the Abinader administration. There have been several directors. Scandals of corruption and irregularities have been the norm, too.
Despite the coverage in the press, everything has stayed the same and the long delays are the norm. There is no practically no such thing as a VIP passport, unless you have very good contacts.
The latest director is Digna Reynoso, the wife of the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Alfredo Pacheco, a high-ranking ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) activist.
Diario Libre has editorialized again, speaking up for the thousands of people who apply online and then have to visit the Passport Office several times and wait months to get a passport.
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Diario Libre
11 December 2023