SANTO DOMINGO. - The automaker representatives grouped in ACOFAVE Monday said new car sales plunged 60% in the first quarter compared with the two previous years, and blamed it on the taxes that raise their final price.
They said that a 10% import duty, a 16% Itebi Tax, and a 17% fee for the first license plate, totals 43%.
ACOFAVE president Fernando Lama said the 20 new vehicle companies employ more than 4,000 direct workers, many of whom could face layoff forced by the crisis.
They request a transitory measure from the Government, to lower the tax on the first plate and to reduce the interest rate.
In that regard ACOFAVE executive director Pedro Henríquez Fernandez said the fall in new car sales compares only with 2004, which he affirms was the worse year.
According to his projection the new vehicle market barely reaches 11,277 units, whereas 11,925 cars were sold in 2004. His statistics show that the import of vehicles has fallen to zero due to the low demand.
The auto dealers Gilberto Marion Landais and Jose Antonio Barreto were also present in the press conference.
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 12:29 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
I have never bought a car in DR. If you try to buy a newer car its a rip off. I have imported three suv's so far and i have saved thousands. Infiniti FX35 cost over 40 k used in DR, I bought one for around 20 k in USA. Hummer H3 cost over 30k in DR, I bought one for under 20 k in USA. BMW X5 costs over 40 k in DR, I bought one for around 20 k in USA. Sure you have to deal with the idiots in customs, but it is well worth it. I wish that they would eliminate the tax in DR, but in DR everyone has their hand in your pocket
From: United States, atlanta GA
i do think they charge was to much in the DR and as you have done i would bring the car or suv with me still works out cheaper with the idiots in customs to bring it over
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 12:41 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Franco,
just remember to tip everyone you see when you go to customs. I always tip them in USD it seems to move the paperwork much faster
Written by: tejada, 20 Apr 2009 12:42 PM
From: United States
How much do you think it'd cost to bring a used 2004-2007 mid-size car or pickup truck (nothing fancy) to DR? I've been thinking about bringing one for my dad.
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 12:50 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
If you can drive it to Florida and send it to Puerto Plata, I have found it cheaper than from NY. If you have a 2004 you should call customs first since the car can not be over 5 years old and It can't be V8. From Florida to Puerto Plata the shipping and insurance will run about $1,600 shipped in a container. Do not ship it if the car is not put into a container, the salt water will make it a rust bucket. You can add another $2,000 to 3,000 to get it out of customs depending on the model. I have never shipped a car Im not sure if a car is cheaper, but the customs tax is based on the value that they have at the customs database
Written by: juanb, 20 Apr 2009 12:53 PM
From: Dominican Republic
What kind of show off an idiot buys a Hummer? I always wanted to know. Bet you have those new blinding blue or yellow headlights also.
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 1:13 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Juanb,
Im not trying to show off but the Hummer H3 is the best off road truck available. You can cross up to 3 feet of water with no problem. I drive that one when I go to the mountains. The way I have it hooked up I dont need a road, I can go off road almost in any spot in DR. I almost sent a Land Rover but the Hummer is a bit better going through rocks and mud
Written by: Lopez31, 20 Apr 2009 1:34 PM
From: United States
Juanb,
I don't think its fair to call anyone an "idiot" just for their taste of cars.
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 2:28 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Juanb,
if you ever drive a hummer off road, you would agree. It won off road truck of the year. I have never driven the Toyota FJ off road, it looks cool and I want to test drive one offroad, but I don't think that its as heavy duty as a H3
Written by: juanb, 20 Apr 2009 3:04 PM
From: Dominican Republic
I try to spend my time, as possible, where there are roads, as bad as they might be.
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 3:19 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Juan,
I have some farm land in the Cibao area. Many times you need an off road vehicle in those areas. Sometimes the rivers flood small bridges and I am still able to cross what a car can not. But even on the road, there are some huge pot holes that hurt your vehicle. Good luck in your Kia
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 4:20 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Ben,
have you heard anything on when the tax on American made cars will be lifted? Under the free trade zone. I keep asking but everyone has a differant idea. Most people have said that 2010 is the scheduled year.
From: United States
x, I will have to get back to you on that. I have a cousin that works down there I will see if I can get some sort of an answer.
Written by: xwill7, 20 Apr 2009 4:41 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Cool,
I know that the Dominican Gov will find another angle in order to recover the taxes from you. LOL
From: Dominican Republic
i always thought that an import duty is to protect the home market. CAn anyone tell me what cars are produced here???
Written by: generoso, 20 Apr 2009 8:36 PM
From: Dominican Republic, United States
FYI:
The DR is violating the DR-Cafta agreement by not honoring the agreed 10-20% reduction in the total price of duties. In other words the duty went to 20% or 10% but then they disguised a new additional tax in the ITBS of 16% and the first placa of over 20% to continue screwing the consumers.
There is a lawsuit pending on this as we speak.
Aduana knows that the lower the taxes the more they collect eventually with more imports, but they are protecting the ACOFAVE automobile manufacturers representatives who are the only ones that get a 43% break in the "valuation" of the import cars. Dealers get 23% LOWER valuation and the consumers get zilch.
Another law protecting the established monopolies to hurt the consumers.
Written by: generoso, 20 Apr 2009 8:42 PM
From: Dominican Republic, United States
xwill7
The Toyota FJ cruiser is a much superior 4 wheeler than an H3, I had both. Do not care about the H3 at all, noisy, sloppily put together, not enough power, rattles, you feel claustrophobic inside.
BTW shipping rates to PP from Miami are as low as $900 with Seaboard.
Written by: anthonyC, 20 Apr 2009 11:12 PM
From: United States
The Toyota FJ or the H3 are marginal at best for off-road capabilities.
That being said for the DR I would go with the Toyota just for parts and service.
Written by: xwill7, 21 Apr 2009 10:07 AM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
generoso,
I am going to test drive an FJ. Its kind of hard to test drive one off road in Chicago, but I will check it out.. With the Toyota FJ I wonder how many feet of water can you cross with no problem??? As for the Hummer H3 I added the cold air intake and put performance headers and exhaust, I felt all the power that I needed, if you still have the H3 you should try that. What shipping company do you use from Miami??? I used Tropical and the charged me $1300 plus $350 for insurance...
From: Dominican Republic, Cabrera
Interesting the 5 year old rule. I have seen advertised in super-carros several vehicles over 5 years from dealers saying recently imported. Is this another case of "one rule for dealers and another for private individuals" or are the dealers lying?
Written by: xwill7, 21 Apr 2009 12:25 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Tejada,
my friend just told me that if you were born in DR you can send a car tax free once every five years. Not sure if this is true but he said that he just sent an SUV with no Dominican tax charged. He might have used the moving to DR tax free law.
Adrian,
super-carros is one of the biggest rip off in DR. They show a 07 Nissan Pathfinder for over $40,000USD. That makes me sick! This is the problem in DR, too many people trying to get rich off of you
Written by: DaniDr, 21 Apr 2009 12:26 PM
From: Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo
Get an FJ Cruiser. I have the TRD model and believe me this truck is unstoppable. Besides, most engine and suspension parts are the same as the Toyota LC Prado, so finding spare parts is easy. That is, if you don't mind the "strange" back doors arrangement.
By the way, I'm not sure if you read the news, Hummer may be sold to chineese companies or even disappear. It wouldn't matter if the H3 is better, I would stay away from it.
Written by: DaniDr, 21 Apr 2009 12:28 PM
From: Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo
About the water crossing, anything above the tire line is risking it with modern cars. If what you want is to cross rivers, you should get a diesel engine, as both the H3 and the FJ have electronic injection.
Written by: xwill7, 21 Apr 2009 12:38 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
But the FJ specs say to use premium fuel. Do you have yours running on propane?
Written by: Bailarin 
, 21 Apr 2009 1:26 PM
From: Dominican Republic
I prefer having to stuff my @*^ between 2 Haitians with chickens on thier laps in a 1992 , 7 passenger Dominican minivan that accomadates 25..... lol . or the back of a motoconcho ! No gas , no tax , no payoffs , no theft ......Vale la pena !
Written by: xwill7, 21 Apr 2009 1:51 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Fo! que bajo, 2 haitians with chickens in an old van. Plug your nose
Written by: DaniDr, 21 Apr 2009 2:03 PM
From: Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo
If you want to achieve the MPG stated on the specs you must use premium fuel. I've used regular without problems and know people that only use regular. As I said, it's the same engine as the Prado, so there are even kits to use propane with it. Note, I don't know why one would buy such a vehicle here to then save on fuel. If you can't pay for the gas don't buy such a big vehicle!
Written by: Bailarin , 21 Apr 2009 2:11 PM
From: Dominican Republic
At 4.00 pm on a hot afternoon in JULY AFTER WORKING 8 hours , its a truly authentic Dominican experience as long as the merengue is blasting . ...(and it costs only 30 pesos..) lol lol .....But if you have enough capital to transport your hummer across the sea , you miss out on these finer parts of the culture lol ! Que alto!
Written by: xwill7, 21 Apr 2009 2:29 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Dani,
Its not to save on fuel, but remember last summer when gas cost around $6 USD per gallon? Propane in DR seems to be the way to go, Last summer I would spend around 5,000 pesos to fill up my FX35. But you are right I have used regular in my Infiniti and it hurts the gas mileage, I found that premium goes further and it feels more powerful.
Written by: xwill7, 21 Apr 2009 2:33 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Balarin,
I think that it must smell like onions in that van, Also, half of the time the drivers are buzzed and drive like someone is chasing them.
Written by: generoso, 21 Apr 2009 3:30 PM
From: Dominican Republic, United States
xwill7
I don't have the H3, got rid of it a while back.
Go directly to the shipping line or through a broker and you should not pay more than $900 and sometimes a lot less. Tell them you want Seaboard marine.
Now those prices are NOT in a sealed container which is not worth it unless you have an antique or very expensive car and want to pay more.
Resale value of the FJ Cruiser is a lot better in DR as well, but don't get the parrot blue color.
Gray, white or black are the best colors.
Written by: xwill7, 21 Apr 2009 3:46 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
LOL. that blue color does make it look like a cartoon car. But I took a red FX35 and people go crazy for it down there. Alot of people say that they had never seen the FX35 in red. Most cars down there are white, black, and gray. I took my FX35 before they got in style, now you see them every where, its becoming like the mitsubishi montero or prado. The FJ is a good idea because there are not as many out there compared to other models.
Written by: abc200, 23 Apr 2009 9:12 AM
From: United Kingdom, Dominican Republic
In view of the recession they should tax cars more highly. The level at the moment -about 45% is similar to the UK and DR is a developing country. Perhaps 70-90% would be better. Old cars could be refurbished and brought up to date - after all a modern car can be made to last one million miles.
S.
Written by: xwill7, 23 Apr 2009 9:46 AM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
abc,
That is a bad idea. No average Dominican would be able to afford a decent car. Do you want the government to keep more of our money for them to spend personally? Stay in the UK with your high tax rates.
Written by: abc200, 23 Apr 2009 10:29 AM
From: United Kingdom, Dominican Republic
Seems the average Dominican is now a long way from being able to afford a car considered decent and a reduction in tax won't help. At least if the government ran or contracted out centres for refurbishment/recycling then there would be employment and the import bill would be reduced. More people would get decent cars, albeit not last years model. Perhaps container loads of scraped cars could be bought from the USA, Japan etc. where they scrap cars early. Fuel efficient models of course.
Lots of Dominicans have a computer thanks to scrap computers being brought in. Taxes are needed for roads, schools, hospitals, defence and many other purposes.
S.
Written by: xwill7, 23 Apr 2009 11:19 AM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Not 70 - 80%!!! They already charge 20+16=36% tax on import cars
Written by: abc200, 23 Apr 2009 11:25 AM
From: United Kingdom, Dominican Republic
Importing cars cannot be high on the list of national priorities.
S.
Written by: xwill7, 23 Apr 2009 11:30 AM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
It might not be important to the gov, but it is for people like me that travel to DR often. When you buy a car in DR you do not know what you are getting, if you import it from USA you have a better idea of the usage that the car has had
Written by: abc200, 23 Apr 2009 11:48 AM
From: United Kingdom, Dominican Republic
You could lovingly recycle a VW Beetle! Find an old beetle in DR and restore - save you thosands!
S.
Written by: xwill7, 23 Apr 2009 12:00 PM
From: United States, El cuarto bate
Cant go off road in a beetle, also don't the older ones have overheating problems?
From: United States, New York/Los Angeles
Hey Guys. First time using this website.
I recently ordered a Brand new 2009 Infinit FX50 (yes, the new 2nd generation) but I would rather have it in Santo Domingo as it's usage would go further for me there then here in the U.S. where I prefer to drive Sports cars. My question is I clicked on the link for Aduana's tax calculator for importing a car to Dominican Republic. The problem is that they my car wasn't on the database as it only went up to the 2008. I understand that my car is a V8. would I have any problems to import it or is it one of those wink wink situations where if you know the right people, it's not much of a issue?
Thanks!
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just remember to tip everyone you see when you go to customs. I always tip them in USD it seems to move the paperwork much faster
Im not trying to show off but the Hummer H3 is the best off road truck available. You can cross up to 3 feet of water with no problem. I drive that one when I go to the mountains. The way I have it hooked up I dont need a road, I can go off road almost in any spot in DR. I almost sent a Land Rover but the Hummer is a bit better going through rocks and mud
I don't think its fair to call anyone an "idiot" just for their taste of cars.
if you ever drive a hummer off road, you would agree. It won off road truck of the year. I have never driven the Toyota FJ off road, it looks cool and I want to test drive one offroad, but I don't think that its as heavy duty as a H3
I have some farm land in the Cibao area. Many times you need an off road vehicle in those areas. Sometimes the rivers flood small bridges and I am still able to cross what a car can not. But even on the road, there are some huge pot holes that hurt your vehicle. Good luck in your Kia
http://www.dga.gov.do/dgagov.net/....at/defaultFormatUno.aspx?TabId=12
have you heard anything on when the tax on American made cars will be lifted? Under the free trade zone. I keep asking but everyone has a differant idea. Most people have said that 2010 is the scheduled year.
I know that the Dominican Gov will find another angle in order to recover the taxes from you. LOL
The DR is violating the DR-Cafta agreement by not honoring the agreed 10-20% reduction in the total price of duties. In other words the duty went to 20% or 10% but then they disguised a new additional tax in the ITBS of 16% and the first placa of over 20% to continue screwing the consumers.
There is a lawsuit pending on this as we speak.
Aduana knows that the lower the taxes the more they collect eventually with more imports, but they are protecting the ACOFAVE automobile manufacturers representatives who are the only ones that get a 43% break in the "valuation" of the import cars. Dealers get 23% LOWER valuation and the consumers get zilch.
Another law protecting the established monopolies to hurt the consumers.
The Toyota FJ cruiser is a much superior 4 wheeler than an H3, I had both. Do not care about the H3 at all, noisy, sloppily put together, not enough power, rattles, you feel claustrophobic inside.
BTW shipping rates to PP from Miami are as low as $900 with Seaboard.
That being said for the DR I would go with the Toyota just for parts and service.
I am going to test drive an FJ. Its kind of hard to test drive one off road in Chicago, but I will check it out.. With the Toyota FJ I wonder how many feet of water can you cross with no problem??? As for the Hummer H3 I added the cold air intake and put performance headers and exhaust, I felt all the power that I needed, if you still have the H3 you should try that. What shipping company do you use from Miami??? I used Tropical and the charged me $1300 plus $350 for insurance...
my friend just told me that if you were born in DR you can send a car tax free once every five years. Not sure if this is true but he said that he just sent an SUV with no Dominican tax charged. He might have used the moving to DR tax free law.
Adrian,
super-carros is one of the biggest rip off in DR. They show a 07 Nissan Pathfinder for over $40,000USD. That makes me sick! This is the problem in DR, too many people trying to get rich off of you
By the way, I'm not sure if you read the news, Hummer may be sold to chineese companies or even disappear. It wouldn't matter if the H3 is better, I would stay away from it.
Its not to save on fuel, but remember last summer when gas cost around $6 USD per gallon? Propane in DR seems to be the way to go, Last summer I would spend around 5,000 pesos to fill up my FX35. But you are right I have used regular in my Infiniti and it hurts the gas mileage, I found that premium goes further and it feels more powerful.
I think that it must smell like onions in that van, Also, half of the time the drivers are buzzed and drive like someone is chasing them.
I don't have the H3, got rid of it a while back.
Go directly to the shipping line or through a broker and you should not pay more than $900 and sometimes a lot less. Tell them you want Seaboard marine.
Now those prices are NOT in a sealed container which is not worth it unless you have an antique or very expensive car and want to pay more.
Resale value of the FJ Cruiser is a lot better in DR as well, but don't get the parrot blue color.
Gray, white or black are the best colors.
S.
That is a bad idea. No average Dominican would be able to afford a decent car. Do you want the government to keep more of our money for them to spend personally? Stay in the UK with your high tax rates.
Lots of Dominicans have a computer thanks to scrap computers being brought in. Taxes are needed for roads, schools, hospitals, defence and many other purposes.
S.
S.
S.
I recently ordered a Brand new 2009 Infinit FX50 (yes, the new 2nd generation) but I would rather have it in Santo Domingo as it's usage would go further for me there then here in the U.S. where I prefer to drive Sports cars. My question is I clicked on the link for Aduana's tax calculator for importing a car to Dominican Republic. The problem is that they my car wasn't on the database as it only went up to the 2008. I understand that my car is a V8. would I have any problems to import it or is it one of those wink wink situations where if you know the right people, it's not much of a issue?
Thanks!