Taken from Hoy
SANTO DOMINGO- All foreigners who come to the country to do business must comply with the rules, including paying taxes and contributing to social security, to avoid unfair competition.
This was stated to the newspaper Hoy by the directors of the National Union of Businessmen (UNE): Leonel Castellanos Duarte, president; Ángelo Viro, second vice president; and Miguel Dauhajre, past president, while participating in the Economic Meeting. They urged the relevant state agencies to enforce the laws, especially regarding businesses and importers from China.
“Any foreigner who comes to a country to do business must comply with the established rules. The State must ensure that the commercial sector operates formally. And complaints come and go, but things remain the same,” Viro stated.
The president of the UNE, Leonel Castellanos, stated that one of the country's problems is to promote formal employment and review social security systems, and to ensure that all companies established in the country comply with both laws.
He added that additional efforts are urgently needed to increase tax enforcement and effectively combat tax evasion, because complaints from Chinese businesses are frequent.
“All foreign companies coming to the country must be regulated by the State. They must employ people who pay for security, import goods and pay customs duties, and pay VAT or income tax. Public entities must be vigilant in enforcing the laws. And the quality of the materials they import must be monitored, because some light bulbs they bring in only last three days,” he stated. He emphasized that when these regulations are not followed, it ultimately harms market competition.
Castellanos and Viro argue that a comprehensive tax reform is urgently needed to simplify the tax system, facilitate compliance, and reduce evasion. They also advocate addressing the broadening of the tax base to ensure that more taxpayers are subject to taxation.
