Eighteen months to prepare: the challenge for the real estate sector in the face of the criminal liability of legal entities
The extension for applying certain provisions on the criminal liability of legal entities offers the Dominican real estate sector an opportunity to review its controls, train its teams, and make regulatory compliance a daily practice.
Eighteen months. That is the additional time companies have to prepare for the application of certain provisions of the new Dominican Penal Code relating to the criminal liability of legal entities.
However, there is a question that I consider much more important than knowing the date these provisions come into effect: what are we going to do with those 18 months?
Will we wait until the last minute to review our procedures? Will we continue operating as before, trusting that we will never face a situation that legally compromises our company? Or will we use this time to prepare, train our employees, and develop a true culture of compliance?
The recent enactment of Law No. 88-26, which amends Article 31 of Law No. 44-26, establishes that Articles 8, 9, 10 and 11 of Law No. 74-25 will begin to apply on May 5, 2028, with the exception provided for in Article 393.
This decision represents an opportunity that the Dominican real estate sector should not miss.
The extension is not an invitation to wait
In my professional practice I have learned that many legal conflicts do not necessarily begin with a deliberately incorrect action, but with decisions made without proper guidance, procedures that were never reviewed, or responsibilities that no one assumed in a timely manner.
Therefore, when we talk about prevention, we're not just referring to compliance with a legal requirement. We're talking about protecting companies, investments, assets, and reputations built up over years.
It is important to understand that this extension does not suspend current legal obligations. Real estate companies that are considered obligated entities under Law No. 155-17 must continue to comply with their duties to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
The new regime of criminal liability of legal entities poses additional challenges that must be studied and addressed in accordance with its specific provisions.
What are you going to do with these 18 months?
This is the question I would like to leave on the table for every real estate entrepreneur.
Will you review your company's internal procedures? Will you identify the legal risks associated with your operations? Will you train your agents, employees, and collaborators? Or will you wait until May 2028 to ask yourself where to begin?
Preparing doesn't necessarily mean creating complex administrative structures or incurring disproportionate expenses. It means starting by understanding our business reality and establishing controls appropriate to the size, characteristics, and risks of each organization.
A real estate company should be able to answer fundamental questions:
- Who verifies customer documentation?
- How are operations monitored?
- Who authorizes certain decisions?
- What procedures exist for reporting irregular situations?
- How are the actions of collaborators documented?
If we don't have clear answers, we already know where to start.
A culture of compliance is not built with a manual
One of the biggest challenges for organizations is understanding that regulatory compliance is not simply about having documents filed away.
We can have perfectly crafted manuals, internal policies, and forms, but if our employees are unaware of their content or do not apply them, we can hardly speak of a true culture of compliance.
Prevention should be part of everyday operations.
From acquiring a property to closing a transaction, every procedure must meet criteria of legality, transparency, supervision, traceability and accountability.
Here I want to focus on a fundamental aspect: the training of real estate staff and collaborators.
We cannot demand responsible actions from those to whom we have not provided the knowledge and tools necessary to perform their functions correctly.
Training should not be seen as an expense, but as an investment in the sustainability of our companies.
The union's commitment to the sector's preparation
Legislative transformations also require professional institutions willing to guide and support their members.
From the Association of Real Estate Agents and Companies (AEI), we see this period as an opportunity to contribute to the preparation of the Dominican real estate sector.
As an institution with legal personality, we have an institutional structure from which we can promote initiatives of guidance, training and support for our members.
We are prepared to contribute our experience, promote training opportunities, and develop practical tools that allow companies to understand the scope of these provisions, evaluate their procedures, and strengthen their prevention mechanisms.
We understand that the professionalization of our sector depends not only on new regulations, but also on our ability to anticipate them and responsibly embrace change.
Time doesn't prepare companies. Decisions do.
Eighteen months can be enough time to transform procedures, strengthen controls, and train teams. But they can also pass without us making a single change.
The difference will lie in what we decide to do from now on.
We should not interpret the extension of the deadline as a reason to postpone our responsibilities, but as an opportunity to build stronger, more transparent and legally prepared organizations.
Legal certainty doesn't begin when we receive a notification, face an investigation, or a conflict arises. It begins much earlier, with the decisions we make to prevent them.
The calendar is already ticking.
The question remains the same: what are you going to do with these 18 months?
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