The Customs Agency (DGA) has announced sweeping results in its campaign against illicit trade and unfair competition, specifically targeting issues tied to Chinese commerce within the country. In recent years, imports from China have boomed, and traditional importers have protested the Asian businessmen were taking advantage of lenience and loopholes to gain unfair sales advantages.
During a recent meeting of the Board Against Unfair Competition and Illicit Trade, DGA representative Rainiero Olivo Bordas detailed a significant escalation in enforcement efforts. Over the last five years, the agency says it has conducted 196 post-clearance fiscalizations, nearly tripling the number carried out by previous administrations.
The stepped-up actions have yielded massive financial returns. Bordas highlighted that the DGA’s fiscalization processes have generated an impact of more than RD$15.215 billion in additional taxes and fines levied against unfair competition in this sector.
A striking assessment of the problem was provided by Iván García, who asserted that Chinese businesses are selling goods worth one billion pesos daily without paying corresponding taxes.
Focusing on import irregularities, the DGA has flagged approximately 16,000 containers identified with a high risk of undervaluation since 2023. These containers were revalued based on reasonable doubt and the rejection of initial valuation methods, resulting in the collection of substantial additional taxes.
To combat the sophisticated illicit networks, the DGA says it has implemented several innovative measures:
• Value fisk measurement during customs clearance.
• The use of X-ray technology and bodycams for enhanced scrutiny.
• Joint fiscalizations with the Tax Agency (DGII).
• Collaboration with international customs agencies to establish best control practices for importers from the Orient.
• The closure of companies found to be involved in illegal practices.
The findings were presented at a high-level meeting presided over by the Minister of Finance Magín Díaz, and the director of the Customs Agency, Yayo Sanz Lovatón. The board includes top officials from key agencies, including the Director of Migration, General Luis Rafael Lee Ballester; the Director of Pro Competencia, Victor Benavides; and the director of the National Competitiveness Council, Peter Prazmowski.
Also in attendance were influential representatives from the private sector, including the president of the Organization of Commercial Enterprises (ONEC), Ernesto Martínez, and Antonio Papaterra, the head authority of the Dominican Association of Hardware Importers.
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CDN
4 December 2025