Obligatory payment certificates by Notary Publics

April 1, 2022

On this March 29, the General Directorate of Internal Taxes (DGII) published General Norm No. 07-2022, which regulates the application of the enforceability of the payment certificate by Notary Publics.

1. Obligatory payment certificates

According to the precepts established in Article 64 of Law No. 155-17 and the provisions of this General Rule, public notaries must execute notarial acts and legalize the signatures of an act under private signature, as long as their clients provide them with reliable payment proof for the settlement or payment of the acts or operations, based on the thresholds established in the same rule, which are: 

  • Constitution or transfer of real estate rights for an amount exceeding one million Dominican pesos (RD$1,000,000.00).   
  • Constitution or transfer of rights over motor vehicles, aircraft, and vessels for an amount exceeding RD$500,000.00.   
  • Transfer of ownership of watches, precious jewelry, either by piece or by lot, and works of art, for an amount exceeding RD$450,000.00.   
  • Acquisition of tickets to participate in games with a wager, contests, or raffles, as well as the delivery or payment of prizes for having participated in such games with a wager, contests, or raffles, for an amount higher than RD$250,000.00. 

2. Reliable payment certificates

The reliable payment certificates may consist of the following:  

  1. Photostat copy of the check paid.   
  2. Photostat copy of the receipt of the national or international transfer.   
  3. Receipt of deposit made over the counter to a bank account.   
  4. Credit card payment receipt.   
  5. Debit card payment receipt.   
  6. Certification issued by an entity of the national or international financial market (duly apostilled and translated into Spanish by a court interpreter).   
  7. The appraisals or certifications of the registrars for the cases of swap. 

3. Conditional sales of movable and immovable property

When the parties agree that the right of ownership will not be acquired by the buyer until all or a certain portion of the price has been paid, the notarial instrument must indicate the partial payments at the time of signing and how they were made, as well as establish the remaining payments and how they will be made. 

4. Exchange or dation in payment

In the contracts or documents through which an exchange or dation in payment is made where the delivery of a real estate or one of the movable goods mentioned in Article 64 of Law No. 155-17 is agreed upon, the contract or document must establish the reliable proof of payment. 

5. Preservation of certified proofs of payment

The certified proofs of payment shall be required by notaries public for conservation purposes only. Such notaries should keep such proofs for at least ten (10) years, according to the provisions of Article 30 of Regulation No. 408-17. 

6. Effectiveness

The provisions outlined in this General Regulation shall become effective one hundred and eighty (180) days as of March 29, 2022. 

Source: DGII 30/03/22