Immigration law enforcement - Take care !

windeguy wrote:

No, Planner,  overstay fees are not part of the law.  They are an administrative work around to handle those who overstay.  Dr Guzman of Guzman and Ariza , a prominent law firm in the DR,  has confirmed that the overstay fees are not part of the law.  He has posted this information on DR1 some time ago.  If they were a part of the law , you could construe that paying them absolves you of any risk in the future with DR immigration . Paying exit fees each time you leave simply allows the DR government to make some additional money off you but that payment gave you no legal protection.

I remember that when the new inmigration law was changed didnt come into efect because was waitting for a reglamentation about how will be apply those rules, so the overstay fee is part of that reglamentation of the inmigration ministery.

JRP55 wrote:

2 sometimes 3 months

Was it POP?

Did he make several overstay visits during a calendar year?

Any idea what may have flagged him up for denied entry?

thecolonel wrote:

In order to show my great respect for the burocrats of the dr, and to eliminate the stress on myself, what I think ill do the next time I leave the country and pay the 4000 peso shakedown, is NOT COME BACK, and spend my money next time in a place where im more appreciated, in one of the countries competing for gringo easy money.  Ifvone or two million of us do the same, they might realize that they're shooting their own wieners off.

With all the respect can you tell me how works your country? whay they do with people that overstay their visas?

ducketts wrote:

All I know is I can for for example to Costa Rica, no problems, I can stay for 3 months-no overstays.

I don't understand why the DR authorities make it so difficult for most law abiding citizens who spend money in their country.

One should be able to apply for a tourist visa in ones own country for 3-6 months.

I agree must hav esome options of diferent kind of visas, hopefully they do it.  For example when I visited Costa Rica in 2015 they wrote in my stamp 25 days, last time I went to mexico they wrote in the inmigration form that you must return when you depart at the airport 180 days and if you loose that card you have a lot problems at the airport, Wile visitting Argentina they wrote in my stamp 20 days, then I went to Paraguay for 1 night and returning they wrote 90 days in my stamp, While visitting Sint Marteen they make me a lot questions, has to show my credit cards, money, they called the hotel to ask if was true they my hotel was already paid., Im 10000% sure If I were brake their inmigration rules and staying more than the time they let me next visit I will be returned from the airport.   

So from my point you can not demonize DR because could or is starting to enforce inmigration laws, every country that I have visitted do it, so we have also the right to do the same thing.

JRP55 wrote:

You can only apply for 2 month visa In your home country

A 2 month visa from the home country has not possible from a country that enters on a tourist card, like the USA or Canada. Unless something has changed.  For those people  the tourist card  is for 30 days. 

People from tourist card countries can try to get an extension by visiting migracion.  It is not easy to do at all. The vast majority will never attempt to do so.

JRP55 wrote:

That is not true I applied for 60 day visa at Dominican consulate in NY it took 11 days to receive the cost was about 400 US,you must pay for FBI background check,pay for all your documents to be translated in Spanish and then pay to have them appostiled

Most people would never do all of that.  Going to the DR Consulate,  apostiles to FBI documents,  paying $400, etc.  I have never heard of anyone doing that previously just to visit the DR for 60 days.

It sounds you you applied for a DR residency visa which starts in the DR Embassy in your home country and then  you have 60 days to start DR residency after you enter the DR. That is my guess.

What exactly was the visa called that you got?

JRP55 wrote:

Residencia application visa

Thanks. That is what I thought.  It is not something a visitor is going to apply for.  As far as I know, there is no way for a visitor from a tourist card country to request a longer TOURIST visa period from their home country. That would be the snowbird type of visa that currently does not exist.

And yes, I understand that with Residency Visa it can take longer to process your residency than the two month validity of the visa. The point is that with that Residency Visa, you have two months to start the residency process.   As long as you started your residency before two months expires, you are "in the system".

ducketts wrote:

That's true for DR.  However not true for US or Oz or many other countries.  If I want a 3 or 6 months visa to Oz, I just apply on line.  The result is almost instant.

They really need to change their approach.  If they want more visitors to spend money they need to open up their system, albeit controlled.

What we think really does not matter. We are not going to force them to change their approach.  That is obvious since I have been watching this situation for 16 years now.

As I mentioned,  snowbirds are such a small part of the equation that there is little focus to change the system. It is talked about, and then nothing is done.  Pay the exit fee and leave while being at some risk for overstaying is the current situation. Maybe some day it will change, but with history as a guide, there is little motivation to change it.