Hiring in Dominican Republic? Read on to find out the employment norms (like taxes, payroll and benefits) and EOR (Employer on Record) norms in Dominican Republic.
Employment Norms in the Dominican Republic
The employment norms in the Dominican Republic are governed by labor laws that protect the rights of employees and regulate various aspects of employment such as working hours, minimum wage, health and safety, and termination of employment. The Ministry of Labor is responsible for enforcing these laws and ensuring that both employers and employees are aware of their rights and obligations under the law.
General Information:
- The Dominican Republic's currency is the Dominican Peso (DOP).
- Santo Domingo is the capital of the Dominican Republic.
- Spanish is the official language of the Dominican Republic. Documentation can be in Spanish.
- As of 2022, the GDP of the Dominican Republic was reported to be $218 billion.
Employers must also follow strict hiring procedures and provide social security and other benefits to their employees.
Table of Contents
- Agreements
- Onboarding Process
- Visa
- Minimum Wage
- Payroll Cycle
- Annual Bonus
- Health Benefits
- Working Hours and Overtime
- Leaves
- Social Security
- Taxes for Employers
- Taxes for Employees
- Probation
- Termination
- Severance Pay
- Employees or Contractors
- Final Words
AgreementsOnboarding ProcessVisaMinimum WagePayroll CycleAnnual BonusHealth BenefitsWorking Hours and OvertimeLeavesSocial SecurityTaxes for EmployersTaxes for EmployeesProbationTerminationSeverance PayEmployees or ContractorsFinal Words
Agreements
Permanent job contracts do not require written employment agreements. The requirements for employment contracts are outlined in Article 24 of the Labour Code.
- Should include the parties' entire names, surnames, nationalities, ages, sexes, marital statuses, full addresses, and identification numbers.
- Service that the employee promises to render, as well as the time and location where it will be carried out.
- Salary and terms of payment.
- If the contract has a set end date, how long is it? (otherwise, it will be considered a contract of indeterminate duration).
- Any other clause that the parties have agreed upon, as well as their respective signatures.
Spanish is the Dominican Republic's official language, according to Article 90 of its Constitution. Hence, to be enforceable, all employment contracts must be written in Spanish or translated into Spanish.
Onboarding Process
Here is a glimpse into the onboarding process in the Dominican Republic:
- The Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the overall time to onboard all non-citizens of the country of employment. If it becomes necessary to follow up on the right-to-work evaluation, more time might be needed.
- After being hired in the Dominican Republic employees need to show the following documents:
- National ID
- Bank Details or Bank Book
- If the employee is a foreigner they need to show their passport
- Following are the personal details that employees need to share with the employer:
- Name
- Place of Birth
- Date of Birth
- Address and Telephone Number
- Identification Number
Visa
The Dominican Republic has 2 types of Visas, which are discussed below:
Travel Visa:
- A tourist visa can be sponsored by friends or family and is required for non-US nationals. The initial window is 30 days long. For 30 days, US citizens do not need a visa.
Work Visa:
- You must apply for a business visa before beginning any work related to business. You can apply for business visas at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which issues the visa after carefully reviewing your supporting documentation.
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Minimum Wage
The minimum wage in the Dominican Republic varies depending on the type of organization (private or public), how many employees there are, and how much money the organization makes each year. There is no set legal minimum wage. Still, the monthly minimum payment can range between DOP 11,900 to DOP 21,000.
Payroll Cycle
Workers in the Dominican Republic receive one monthly paycheck, typically on the last day of the month. But some companies are switching to bimonthly cycles, paying staff on the 15th and last day of each month.
Annual Bonus
Bonuses are paid during Christmas. They are often issued around December 20th and are equal to one additional month's pay (also called the 13th-month pay). Taxes are not payable for the bonuses. Employees can also get a profit-sharing bonus worth 10% of the company's net income.
Health Benefits
A three-tiered structure that governs the healthcare system in the Dominican Republic includes:
- The poor, needy and unemployed fall under the subsidized tier. They qualify for assistance from the Dominican Republic.
- Healthcare in the contributive category is paid for by both employers and employees.
- Technical personnel and independent contractors with salaries above the average yearly wage in the country contribute to the funding of the contributive subsidized tier.
Working Hours and Overtime
Check the details on working hours, breaks and overtime in the Dominican Republic:
- Work hours: 44 hours per week or 8 hours per day
- Break: All full-time employees are entitled to a weekly rest period of at least 36 continuous hours, while any employee working for more than 6 hours straight must take a mandatory one-hour meal break.
- Overtime: 3 hours per day of overtime is permitted. Each hour after 9:00 pm is counted towards the overtime pay. On weekends, overtime workers are required to take 36 hours off without interruption.
Leaves
Sick Leaves
There is no distinction between short-term and long-term sick leave under Dominican law. In any instance, and only if the absence due to sickness is longer than 4 days, the Social Security Treasury shall pay the employee a portion of the employee's payment.
Parental leaves
- Maternity leave is seven weeks before and seven weeks after the birth of the child. A total of 14 weeks of leave is granted as maternity leave.
- Paternity leave is granted to male employees for two days.
- There must be three 20-minute breaks every workday for nursing mothers.
Annual leaves
- In the Dominican Republic, annual leave is calculated based on the number of years and actual working days in a year.
- Employees can take a leave of 14 days annually after they have completed one year of employment with a particular employer. After completing five years with the same employer, employees are entitled to get leave of four additional days.
Other leaves
- Bereavement leaves: In case of the death of any family member, an employee can take three days of leave.
- Marriage leave: Couples tying the knot get marriage leave of five days.
Public Holidays (for the Calendar year 2024)
These dates may change as per official government announcements.
- New Year's Day: 1st January
- New Year Holiday: 2nd January
- Epiphany Holiday: 8th January
- Lady of Altagracia Day: 21st January
- Duarte Day: 29th January
- Independence Day: 27th February
- Good Friday: 29th March
- Labor Day: 1st May
- Corpus Christi: 30th May
- Restoration Day: 16th August
- Our Lady of Mercedes Day: 24th September
- Constitution Day: 4th November
- Christmas Day: 25th December
Public Holidays (for the Calendar year 2025)
These dates may change as per official government announcements.
- New Year's Day: 1st January
- New Year Holiday: 2nd January
- Epiphany Holiday: 6th January
- Lady of Altagracia Day: 21st January
- Duarte Day: 27th January
- Independence Day: 27th February
- Good Friday: 18th April
- Labor Day: 1st May
- Corpus Christi: 19th June
- Restoration Day: 16th August
- Our Lady of Mercedes Day: 24th September
- Constitution Day: 3rd November
- Christmas Day: 25th December
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Taxes for Employers
- 7.10% is contributed to Pension Funds
- 7.09% is contributed to Family Healthcare/Health Insurance
- 1.2% is contributed to Labor Risk Insurance
- 1% is contributed to Technical Education
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Taxes for Employees
- 2.87% is contributed to the Pension Funds
- 3.04% is contributed to the Family Healthcare/Health Insurance
- 0.5% is contributed to the Technical Education
Income tax payable by employees is as follows:
- 0% for the income upto DOP 416,220
- 15% to be paid for income ranging between 416,220 - 624,329 DOP
- 20% for the income range 624,329 - 867,123 DOP
- 25% for the income above 867,123 DOP
Probation
There are no probationary periods as per the law of the Dominican Republic.
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Termination
In the Dominican Republic, terminations might be difficult. Contracts can be broken either responsibly or carelessly.
- Terminations made without cause:
- Mutual consent
- By the time the contract expires
- Inability to carry out the duties
- Termination on account of negligence
- An employer acting unilaterally based on: Disciplinary dismissal and performance-based
- Employee's voluntary participation
Severance Pay
Employees in the Dominican Republic might be eligible for severance pay. Service duration, bonuses, and vacation time will all be factored into the severance package.
The standard payment structure is:
- 6 days of severance pay after three to six months of employment
- 13 days of severance pay after six to twelve months of employment
- 21 days of severance pay for employees with 1 to 5 years of service
- 13 days of severance pay after more than five years of employment
Employees or Contractors
- Full-time employees are people engaged by the company and who put in a set number of hours each week. They are paid a set salary, and the company is responsible for covering their social and other benefits while supervising their daily operations. If an employer wants to stop the working relationship with a full-time employee, a termination notice is a must.
- Contractors are independent workers that work on a freelance basis. They are compensated on a project-by-project basis and do tasks as assigned. The company does not demand payment of any benefits. Work can be terminated at any time or with little advance notice.
Final Words
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