do business in the Dominican Republic - Pellerano & Herrera

DOING BUSINESS INTHE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC8,000 original products of the region, with the exception of a negative list ofapproximately 50 items.Apart from the progressive liberalization of the movement of goods and services,the agreement seeks to promote the active participation of private economicagents in order to widen the commercial relations between the parties, includingthe promotion of joint investments.This agreement entered officially into effect on March 2002.FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH CENTRAL AMERICADuring the Extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government celebratedin the Dominican Republic on November 1997,the Presidents of Central Americaand the country decided to initiate negotiations for the signature of a free tradeagreement.These negotiations ended with the signature on 16 April 1998, in thecity of Santo Domingo, of the Free Trade Agreement Central America-DominicanRepublic. The signatory countries were the members of the Central AmericanEconomic Integration System, formed by Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras,Nicaragua and Guatemala.The treaty, which provides for the free movement of goods and services, as wellas the equal treatment of investments, is compatible with WTO principles andwith the creation process of the FTAA. It grants reciprocal and immediate tradeliberalization to all goods, apart from a limited list of products that are subject toa process of progressive incorporation to the free trade.This agreement opened to the Dominican Republic a potential market of closeto US$30,000 million, and more than 40 million consumers. Congress ratified thisagreement on March 2000, and it has already entered into effect in relation to allcountries.ASSOCIATION OF CARIBBEAN STATES (ACS)The Association of Caribbean States (ACS) was created in 1992 after the Summitof Heads of Government of CARICOM. Its members come from three economicgroups: CARICOM, Central America, the Group of Three (Colombia,Venezuela andMexico), and four independent countries: Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti andSuriname.The primary goals of the ACS are the adoption of programs to increase and consolidatethe economic relations between its members, as well as the developmentof strategies that increase their comparative advantages. For such purposes theACS seeks to establish a free trade area among its members, to provide for jointnegotiation with other economic blocks and international organizations, and todevelop transport and communication facilities.50TRADE AGREEMENT WITH PANAMAIn August 2002, during the 11th Meeting of the FTAA Trade NegotiationCommittee held in Santo Domingo, the governments of Dominican Republic and