The Junta Central Electoral (JCE) suspended the identity card emissions to new registers until 2016 elections are over. Therefore, foreigners cannot complete their naturalization process until the end of the electoral period.
Oath ceremonies will be held normally and foreigners can receive their birth certificates, but cannot obtain their identity card or passport until this period concludes.
[January 2016]
The Global Destination Cities Index has listed Punta Cana as the Latin American tourist city with the highest spending. Visitors reportedly spent US$2.7 billion in Punta Cana, more than in any other Latin American city.
Next were Buenos Aires and Mexico City with US$2.3 billion, Sao Paulo with US$2.2 billion and Lima with US$1.5 billion.
Interestingly, Punta Cana was fourth in number of visitors, behind Lima, Mexico City, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro (tied for third place) and then Punta Cana.
Punta Cana was the most visited tourism destination in the Caribbean and Central America.
[January 2016]
The Mexican investors in the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Punta Cana have announced plans to build a 40-story, 400-room high rise hotel, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Santo Domingo on Av. Abraham Lincoln and Calle José Andrés Aybar in the Polígono Central, an attractive location for shopping, restaurants, night life and city offices. In partnership with All Inclusive Collection, the full-service hotel, scheduled for opening in late 2017, will have 400 hotel rooms and suites and a state-of-the-art casino.
The construction of what will be the tallest building in Santo Domingo is due to begin before April 2016, the investors told President Danilo Medina after a meeting at the Presidential Palace.
“The Dominican Republic is the region’s most visited country and continues to be the top performing destination in the Caribbean. In fact, the country received 19% of the record number of 26.3 million visitors to the Caribbean region in 2014,” said Nelson Parker, vice president of casino development, Hard Rock International in a Hard Rock International press release. “The decision to bring a full-service hotel and the brand’s second Caribbean casino to the Dominican Republic is a testament to the country’s remarkable strength in tourism.”
Hard Rock is showing its confidence in Santo Domingo. Frank Maduro, vice president of Marketing for All Inclusive Collection states: “We’ve had overwhelming success with our resort in Punta Cana, and are thrilled to continue our collaboration with Hard Rock International and introduce Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Santo Domingo. The vibrant atmosphere of the destination, matched with our luxury offerings and unique amenities, will make for an unforgettable and fun experience for all travelers.”
[January 2016]
The Dominican Republic exported US$670.1 million worth of textiles from October 2014 to the same month in 2015, an increase of 8.45%. In addition the export of clothes increased from US$220,528 million in 2014 to US$231,729 in 2015.
The increase in textile exports from the Dominican Republic showed the biggest growth of all the countries that are members of the DR-CAFTA free trade agreement, followed by Guatemala with a 7.56% increase, Haiti with 4.98% and El Salvador with 3.88%.
The sale of clothes from Nicaragua and Costa Rica both declined by 3.88% and 54.94% respectively.
Across all the DR-CAFTA countries the value of exports of clothes to the United States increased by 2.55%. The Dominican Republic is in twentieth place based on the value of textile exports and 17th place based on square meters of material.
[January 2016]