Maria Abreu: This is something that focuses a lot on the conduct of the citizen in their country. They're going to want a clearance from the country. They're going to want a clearance from here. They submit that file to Interpol. They want to make sure we don't have international criminals coming here.

Salman Siddiqui: Welcome to the Investment Immigration podcast by you UGlobal.com, with weekly in-depth interviews with the world's leading investment immigration professionals. Welcome to another episode of the Investment Immigration podcast, brought to you by Uglobal. I'm your host, Salman Siddiqi from Berlin. So today we are going to focus on the Dominican Republic and the investment immigration opportunities there. Now the country offers various types of residencies, including something called the temporary residency, the permanent residency under the ordinary track. And there's also the permanent residency under the investment program. So we're going to find out what is the difference between all of these and which one makes more sense for which kind of applicant. So to discuss all of this, I have a very special guest. Her name is Maria Abreu. She's the CEO and managing attorney of Abreu and Associates, and she's joining us from the capital of Dominican Republic. Welcome to the show, Maria.

Maria Abreu: Well, thank you. Thank you for inviting me. I'm happy to be here.

Salman Siddiqui: So please give us an overview of the various residency options available for foreigners in the Dominican Republic, because most people are not really aware of the options there.

Maria Abreu: Well, the most common forms of residency, I would say, are the temporary residency, which is what the majority of the people come to the country with or for. First of all, before we get into that, the residency process is comprised of two parts. If you're coming for residency, first you have to apply for a residency visa or business visa in the Dominican consulate in the country of origin or of legal residence. So, for example, if you're born in, let's say, us, but you're legally residing in a country in Europe, you can through the Dominican consulate in the country where you have legal residence, you can apply for a residence visa. So after the consulate is submitted a file and approves the residence visa and issues it. Now there's a second part. You have 60 days to get to the country for the second part, which is the residency. Now temporary residence C is issued for one year. After that year you renew it. Now let's just clarify that the renewal process is not as extensive as when you're applying for the first time. You don't have to provide all those documents. You don't have to submit to a medical exam. It is a simple process that does not take more than two weeks. It's more about paying the renewal fee to the government than anything else. Okay. And then that status, you hold it for five years, the first year, then you renew every year for four years. On the fifth year, you can now apply for a change of status so you can go from temporary residency to permanent residency under the ordinary track.

Maria Abreu: Now we call it the ordinary track because we're going to explain that a little bit more ahead. That residency, permanent residency comes as a result of holding five years of temporary status. Now that residency is renewable every four years and it is permanent residency every four years. You do have to undergo a medical exam. You don't have to do an extensive file. But besides paying the government fees, you undergo a medical exam and then you get it renewed for another four years. Okay, so that's permanent. That's the only way to get to that residency. You first have to hold five years of temporary. Now the fast track. And it's funny because our firm coined that phrase about what, 12 years ago. We call it the fast track for two reasons. First of all, people who apply for residency under the investment program, because that's what the fast track is. They go from having visa straight into permanent residency. That's permanent status after holding that status between six months to two years, depending on the category that you're under, you can apply for citizenship, okay. And we're going to get into the kind of investments that you can make. So six months after being issued that residency, you can apply for citizenship. So that's what we call it the fast track because it's a fast route into citizenship. Now that residency is renewable after the first year and then every two years thereafter, the renewal of that permanent residency does not require medical exams at all.

Salman Siddiqui: But, you know, that's where I'm getting to get a little confused. So if you're saying permanent residency, then why is there a renewal thing to begin with? Shouldn't permanent residency mean that it's just you have a permanent residency card and you just then wait for citizenship?

Maria Abreu: Then all residencies are have an expiration date. We have definitive residency, which is renewable over ten years, permanent under the ordinary track every four years, permanent through investment every two years. Every form of residency, regardless of what country you're in, has to be renewed at some point. It is not. The only thing that is not renewable is citizenship. Once you. Citizenship in any country. That is your status. Of course you don't have to renew. You're done. The only thing you're renewing is your passport, and that is applicable in any country around the world. Now, I talked about definitive residence. Definitive residency is a residency that people are entitled to when they've held permanent status for ten consecutive years. So if you've been in the country like me for 20 and you didn't go for citizenship, you just kept. And I know people that they've had permanent residency forever for the years they've been living here. If you don't want to deal with that every four years, you can apply for definitive residency and then your renewal is every ten years. There's also residency under the volunteer program. There are people because as we know, the Dominican Republic is a country that is developing infrastructurally, I would say socially becoming more where you have.

Maria Abreu: We work with a an organization that provides free dental care and training things of that nature. So anyone who wants soul searching and just come to the country to volunteer to just involve themselves, whether it's missionary work, whether it's work with an NGO, you can come in as under the volunteer program, basically, that's not a residence visa. What the consulate issues is a one year business visa. And then once you enter the country, we apply for residency as a temporary worker, as a volunteer. And then there's the temporary worker, okay. That's the person that comes in hired by a company that's registered in the doctor, whether it's a branch of a foreign company that's legally registered or just a Dominican company that offers a job to a foreigner. So that type of residency will depend upon their work status here. Now, if for some reason, you know, the foreigner stops working for that company and is hired by another one, that's fine. They could still hold their status. But that residency depends upon their work status.

Salman Siddiqui: Okay, right. And since our podcast focuses on investment immigration side of things. So I think you would like to hear more about the fast track that you mentioned. And also to understand whether, say, for example, an investor is willing to put in the time, you know, they have the time to explore options and they can even go for what you call the ordinary track for permanent residency. So how do they make that decision that there is the fast track of permanent residency, and then the other ordinary track in terms of the money that they have to put in, in terms of the investment threshold that there is, what major difference are there between the two? If you could explain that point?

Maria Abreu: Of course. I'm about to give you great news. First of all, let me just lay the groundwork here by saying that 90% of what we represent is residency through the investment program. That's what we specialize in as of years ago, in fact, we have a podcast ourselves. We have conferences twice a year that we host. We just had one in February over by the capital at the Crowne Plaza, and we focused on that form of residency. Let me tell you why. Our program here in the Dominican Republic is exceptional. Now, it just so happens that years ago, the residency under the investment program was reserved for people who invested in the doctor a minimum of 200,000 US or more, or for multinational companies and their executives incomes 2007 and the president at that time enacted an incentive law, an immigration incentive law, that qualified other foreigners that met certain criteria to have that same type of residency. Now, what is the criteria that this incentive law establishes? First of all, any pensioner, a retired person that earns 1500 US or more per month qualifies for permanent residency under the fast track through the investment department. Any foreigner who earns passive income in the amount of 2000 or more per month, 2000 US or more per month, and has had this passive income for five consecutive years, can also qualify. The passive income can be in the form of a privately owned company. We know that several people have their own businesses. They have rental income from properties that they rent out. You have annuities, you have dividends coming in from stocks, bonds. If they've had this source for five years and it's 2000 minimum, they qualify. So when you talk about investment residency, everybody's mind goes. Medically to how much they have to invest. They don't realize that they may already qualify for this form of residency without having to invest $0.01 based on the income that they are already generating, be it from a pension or be it from passive income abroad back home.

Salman Siddiqui: That's a great option.

Maria Abreu: It absolutely is. But it's about to get better. The doctor has no residency requirement. And what do I mean by this? You're not required to live here. You're not required to spend a minimum amount of time in the country to hold residency status. Now, a good number of my clients don't live here, and they're not planning to live here anytime soon. But they want a plan B, they want to diversify many reasons. So they'll have residency status here because of the incentives that it provides. They'll have bank accounts, they'll have investments in the country, but they don't live here. When do they come to the doctor, either to visit or when it's time to renew residency. So imagine a country with a program where, based on what you already earn, your current profile, you can qualify for privileged residency, and you don't actually have to spend time in the country. You're being able to diversify without having to make major changes in your life. And that's what most of my clients are looking for.

Salman Siddiqui: And just speaking of from what you just said. So for example, your clients, they might not necessarily live there or decide not to physically be there, but once they do for their summer break or, you know, just to escape the winters, for example, they want to be there. I'm assuming they would want to buy property there. Is there a real estate option by which they can also gain residency? No, it's not necessary. But for investors who want to have a physical property, there, what kind of options does Dominican Republic offer to them?

Maria Abreu: Well, if that investment of the 200,000, that would be the key. If you buy a property that's 200,000 minimum, then you're making an investment, okay. And that qualifies you for residency. If you're looking to branch out in your business, let's just say and you register a company here and the capital is 200,000, that also qualifies you if you invest in the bond market. And the bond market is great because right now the return is about 7 to 9%, if you leave it in your national currency is about 6 to 7%. And that's guaranteed. Not only you get a nice return on your investment, but it will qualify you for residency. Now, getting back to the option of investing the 200,000 that would have to be on a comforter property comforter. Let me just explain what it is. Yes, it is a certification that's provided to real estate projects that attract foreign investment. Now here again, years ago, it was just an incentive provided to hotel projects, to resort projects because they attract foreigners. It attracted, you know, tourists. But now since times have changed, the doctor has changed with it. A lot of these complexes. So people buy them for Airbnb purposes, but they simulate what you would call a resort. They have social areas, they have pools, they have jacuzzis. So whoever stays in the Airbnb has access to these common areas. And it's like a hotel, and a lot of them even have restaurants and so on and so forth. So now, as of 2010, the Ministry of Tourism now extended this incentive to those projects, those developments that attract foreign investors that want to, you know, get an investment property, rent it out as an Airbnb, get comforter.

Maria Abreu: Now, what is the conflict tour incentive? Well, tax free, straight across the board. You are not paying the 3% transfer tax that you have to pay when you buy the property. So if you buy a property in the D.R., pay it off right? You are handed the title in the name of the seller that, along with the sales contract and other documents, is submitted to the registry office. Right. And then after a process, the title comes back in your name showing that you are the new title owner. But to get to that, you have to pay a 3% transfer tax, meaning 3% of the worth of that property in order to get that process done. So with the comforter, incentive and Investment residency to buy, you are exempt from paying that 3%. You're exempt from paying the 1% property tax. So any property over right now I believe is a. Hundred and 58,000, you have to pay an annual 1% property tax to the government with the comforter incentive. You're exonerated from that. I see you are also exonerated from paying taxes on the income generated by the property. So if you're renting it out as an Airbnb, that income is tax free. You are also exempt from paying the capital gains tax, which could be up to 25%. So you're exonerated from paying all of those taxes straight up across the board. And here's the shark repeal for 15 years. So if you buy in a complex that's comforter a certified guaranteed, you qualify for residency under the investment program.

Salman Siddiqui: And how does one qualify for that? What exactly is the government looking there in terms of the profile of the candidate? What are the things that disqualify a candidate?

Maria Abreu: Well, we already discussed the financial side of it. We already talked about what you have to show the $200,000 investment in the country. Pension 1500 minimum per month. Passive income 2000 minimum per month. What can disqualify a candidate? Legal troubles. Okay, if they present a clearance. And I've seen these by the way. Right. That are thick as a book showing there's a recurrent behavior toward criminal conduct that might be a problem if the occurrence was one but less than five years ago. That may also be an issue. Depending on the crime that was committed. The degree of what was done will also, you know, weigh into the decision. Something that would also disqualify an applicant is if they are found to have a communicable disease, meaning hepatitis, HIV. Now, when I say disqualified, it doesn't kill the possibility of having residency. It adds to the process. You would have to show that you're being treated, that you're being medicated, that you're under medical care. If a person with these maladies can show that they're receiving medical care, that it's under control, then you know you will have your residency free and clear. And they also now this part is non-negotiable. If they find traces of drug use of illicit drug use. Because I have to say, there are people that take like pain medications after a surgery. You know, those medications have traces of opiates you can prove, look, I have a prescription and that's why I take it. And that's why you found that's a different story. But if you're in perfect health and they find large traces of marijuana of any type of opiate, any type of drug that would affect judgment, then that's an automatic denial, no reconsideration.

Salman Siddiqui: But in terms of this entire due diligence process and from start to finish in the fast track program, how much time does it usually take? Are we talking about a year long wait before one gets the permanent residency through the investment track, or can this be done within six months? What is the time frame that you can.

Maria Abreu: Be done within six months, and it should be a shorter time, by the way, because the law establishes that within 45 business days, the residency under the fast track is done. But after Covid, there's so many delays and I can't really explain why that is, because if you think about it, Covid is about four years out now, you know, so we're still feeling it. It's never gone back to the pre-COVID stage. And so this is why it's been a bit more challenging. We have to say six months at the least.

Salman Siddiqui: And you've been in the investment immigration space for I'm assuming a long time right?

Maria Abreu: Yes, about 15 years. Wow.

Salman Siddiqui: So in these 15 years, I want to know this from you. What kind of change in trends have you seen in terms of which investment residency route clients usually take? Is it still the real estate route, or is it just by showing their income they get the residency? What are the kind of changes have you observed in these 15 years?

Maria Abreu: I have to say that after Covid, real estate has shot up and was a bit surprised because, you know, the cost of materials went up, of labor, went up. After Covid, importing became a little bit for a while there. It was challenging. So the cost actually had to be adjusted to reflect increases. It's amazing it now would turn into a fever pitch. It was popular before, but now it turns into a fever pitch and I couldn't quite make the connection because during Covid I said, well, I thought logically it would be affected the opposite direction. But no, the contrary has been true. So now people, they're investing more in real estate more aggressively. You have people not buying one unit but two and three. And now there's so many developments in. The country has gotten to the point where the areas that they were beautiful areas, but they didn't have quite the popularity than, say, Punta Cana, Bavaro, La Romana. And now these places have become popular and just developments are popping out of everywhere.

Salman Siddiqui: And that means more business for you. Then that's good for you, isn't it?

Maria Abreu: It does. And as a matter of fact, in our conferences we feature these are investment conferences. So naturally we're going to have a selection of developments that we have vetted to come and, you know, talk to people. And these are developments that are being headed up by foreigners who've been in the country for years and years. So it's the favorite, especially because, interestingly, you don't have to have legal status in this country to buy property that's not required. You could be a foreigner with no residency. Now, foreigners want the residency, obviously, because they want the incentives, because the same incentives that comforter provides, so does residency. So if you become a resident, you're a pensioner, you have passive income, you become a resident and you buy any property, even if it doesn't have comforter. Guess what? You're not paying any of the above. Also, have residency. Have the freedom to buy with or without comforter. So that's why they choose it. But you don't have to have residency to buy a property.

Salman Siddiqui: That's true for a number of countries actually. Even now, for example, in Germany. But I want to understand from you is in your experience, are you seeing a shift from investors who are now not just interested in, say, residency, but now also moving towards citizenship? You know, the option of having dual citizenship, is that something you have observed?

Maria Abreu: That's something that has increased considerably. In fact, I have people that come through the door and they're like, I want to be a citizen. So they already come in with the goal of having a second passport. And I think that has to do with the world climate. I think that people are feeling now that having more options as far as citizenship is just a smart move in case things get difficult wherever they're living or where they're from, they have an option to go somewhere else where the political climate, economic climate is not as dark. So a lot of the people that come to me are preppers. They call them preppers. They want a plan B, and.

Salman Siddiqui: When we transition from permanent residency to citizenship, if you could explain the process there, you did mention how many years it can take to permanent residency and how it can lead to the renewal processes and all that. But in terms of the citizenship, how does that really work? Do they have to prove, for example, language skills? Is that a must that they have to do? Is there anything else that comes into play? So if you could just talk more about that. Sure.

Maria Abreu: I want to say in law you have what is established by the law and you have what is the custom. We're all lawyers are used to that. What is done. So even though legally the person should speak Spanish, in practice it does not matter, because at the interview itself, if you don't speak the language, you're provided an interpreter to assist you. Now, what is the real focus of the state? First of all, your residency has to be up to date, so you cannot be a person that has an expired residency and move forward with naturalization. It has to be current and it has to be six months from the expiration date. They also look for solvency in the country. They are providing you with citizenship. So they want to know that you have a bank account with a minimum of 2,000 USD in there. They want to know whether you own a property, whether you own a vehicle, if you don't, well, show the bank account and then we will get a guarantor that has a property and a vehicle that will guarantee you during the citizenship process. Also, they will do the interview. Basic questions to test your knowledge of the country. Who was the president? What are the colors of the flag and even though there are about 20 questions, they only ask about three.

Maria Abreu: So the truth has to be said, right? So and the most important part, and this is something that focuses a lot on, is the conduct of the citizen in their country. They're going to want a clearance from the country. They're going to want a clearance from here. They submit that file to Interpol. They want to make sure we don't have international criminals coming here, or people with a tendency toward legal misconduct. They place a lot of importance on that. Just so that, Ian, even for the residency, that's important. Basically, when we submit a file in and the file is accepted, the foreigner will come to a first appointment and be fingerprinted by an agent. It's not the immigration Department that does the process. It's a State Department called Police and Interior Affairs. And so then after about four months after that, they're scheduled to come in for an interview. And then about. 30 days after that is the old ceremony. The old ceremonies are held three times a year. Okay. And after that, they get a naturalization certificate. With that certificate, we now rescind the residency status because that person is a citizen, and we get their Dominican cedula and passport.

Salman Siddiqui: And do you have to renounce your previous citizenship for this?

Maria Abreu: No. Well, not in most countries like the US, no. Canada, no. Most countries around the world. I hear in Germany they require. But most countries accept dual citizenship. I know that, you know, the countries in Europe, US, Canada, most of my clients have it and there's never been a problem.

Salman Siddiqui: I also want to understand from you the difference between, say, a natural born Dominican public person and a naturalized citizenship that one gets through the process. Are there any differences, or do they enjoy the same rights? Once they get that.

Maria Abreu: Enjoy the same rights? Citizen and citizen. And I just want to explain the difference in the way that it is said, is just to explain how that person arrived to the status of a natural born citizen is a person born into the Dominican Republic, to Dominican parents, or to parents with legal status. So that's a Dominican born citizen, and naturalized citizen is a person who obtains citizenship through a legal process. But it's the same thing, same rights. And they can.

Salman Siddiqui: Pass on their citizenship and their residency to their children.

Maria Abreu: Then now the natural born citizen can grandfather their children in without the need for residency. The naturalized they will have to become residents. But a day after they get the residency, now they can pass the citizenship. So if you are a natural born citizen, like I have clients. Oh, my dad or my mom was a Dominican and I do what is called a transcript ation process. A transcription process is when the apostille birth certificate of that foreigner is presented, along with the Dominican birth certificate, an ID of the Dominican parent, and now they produce, after their due diligence, a transcribed Dominican birth certificate making that foreign child of Dominican citizen a citizen themselves. Now that takes about anywhere from 30 to 90 days. And that person, if they have kids now, they can be transcribed. But if you were a resident and then you became naturalized, your kids would have to go through first residency and then they could become citizens. But as I said, it's an abbreviated process because it's quick. You don't have to go through timeframes. Oh, let's wait six months and then do this. Let's wait a year and do that right away.

Salman Siddiqui: You mentioned about how a lot of people invested in resorts and bought commercial properties like hotels there. Are you still seeing that and how do you advise your clients how to understand and negotiate contract terms with developers in the Dominican Republic? I understand it can be a tricky process because there are some clauses which might, you know, hurt their interest. It might suit the developer, but not necessarily the client. So if you could just explain that to as well.

Maria Abreu: Okay. Well, the first thing that I want to communicate to all the people looking at this podcast, reprogram, because one of the things that foreigners, you know, the mentality that they come to the country with is, well, in the US, they do it this way. I'm like, yes, but the US is one country and the D.R. is another. Two different countries, two sets of laws. So you have to deprogram yourself. You cannot come to the doctor thinking that things are done in any way similar to how they're done back home. Back home, a realtor has to be licensed. They have to go through testing. So you don't need an attorney involved in that process here. A housewife could decide one day. You know what? I want to supplement my income. I think I'll sell property now. And they could do it. And while I'm not trying to discredit realtors because through the constant sale of properties, they'll come across different scenarios and have a basic understanding of the law. It's not the same as an attorney. So you do need an attorney. You do. Today I was speaking to one of the largest realtors in Punta Cana that came to me with a situation. I'm like, you can't do that. You got to stop doing that because that practice can bring you a serious problem. If consumer affairs were alerted and they didn't know that their developers and I'm talking about a developer that's heavy in Punta Cana, and I'm of counsel to them. So first of all, the due diligence that needs to be done on a property, especially a property that has been.

Maria Abreu: Previously owned. There are certain responsibilities that you want to make sure have been met, like paying the property tax. You want to make sure that person's been paying the property tax, because if not, it's going to accumulate. And that could add up quickly. I want to also know the judicial status of that property. So I want to see is there litigation pending? Was there litigation that gave way to a sentence that has not yet been carried out? Is there any kind of lean against that property? So the first thing I'm asking for is a copy of the title, because based on the title of that property, I'm able to get all the certifications I need to make sure that property is free and clear to get sold or transferred. The other thing is, in this country, again, there's law and there's custom. So let's get a little bit into that in this country. It is very common, especially in the rural areas, for people to have possession of a property but not be the title owners. So these are people that have had this property for years and years. They've lived there, but they're not the title owners. Okay. Again, back in 2007, a log came out. Anybody in a property that wants title ownership has to have the property survey. In other words, measured. You then have to pay the transfer the taxes on that property, then file for a title under your name.

Maria Abreu: Many did it, others did not. So if a person does not have the title ownership of a property, they don't have a right to sell it. And if they sell it to someone else, you don't own it. You have the possession of it, and you have people that go to these camps because they're beautiful. The rural areas in this country are gorgeous. So they'll go there and they're like, hey, they sold me a piece of land. I'm like, where's the title? There's no title. We have a contract. I'm like, then you got nothing. Delicate matter, delicate matter. So you want to make sure that the person that's selling you the property has title ownership of it, and you prove that by a title. Now we got things to do. We have to go to the registry office. We have to go to Dominican Internal Revenue Service. We got to see that everything is in order. Once that due diligence is done now we can sit down and talk about a contract and let's start the payment process. But one thing I wanted to say, while I'm carrying out my due diligence, which I like to give myself 30 days, I don't need 30. I never take 30. But it's good to give yourself a cushion. There's this little habit that's formed in the country where now, in order to reserve a property, they're asking for an exorbitant amount of money. 10%. 20%. I'm not doing that.

Maria Abreu: A reserve is a small amount. So a three grand to keep it off the market for a month. And if I don't buy it at the end of that time, you give me my money back. Plus the small penalty for having it off the market, that's a reserve. But talking to me about percentages without a sales contract, I won't allow that. And I can't tell you how many knock down drag outs I've had with developers and sellers, because they want to come up with things that exposes the buyer. Got to be careful with that. And it's not because they're looking to cheat folks. I want to say this ignorance of the law. Ignorance of the law. The sellers are not lawyers. Like the developer that I spoke to this morning. I'm of counsel to them, very honest people. They work on time. They do excellent work. They're not lawyers. What do they know what they were doing? So a lot of times people do things because it's become a custom and they're unaware that the law doesn't allow it. It's not people looking to cheat you. It's ignorance. They don't know. And then the other thing is, a lot of these clauses favor the seller, especially when we're talking about pre-construction sales. So when you buy pre-construction we understand you're buying a property, a payment plan is put into place. But this is something that we will be delivered a year, two years down the line. You especially have to be careful with these contracts.

Salman Siddiqui: Maria, we're coming close to the end of our podcast. But before I let you go, I also want to know from you. It seems to me there is some work that needs to be done from the government side also to protect investors, or they should be more safeguards. But since you've been there on the ground for so many years, I want to understand from you, is there a need for the government to come up with a better immigration policy for foreign investors, and are you expecting any new changes or new, perhaps visas for foreign investors and entrepreneurs in the near future? In the Dominican Republic?

Maria Abreu: What I'm expecting is more incentives. This country is aware that a good part of the economy is supported by tourists and now by foreign investors. So every day they're introducing incentives. They're becoming more flexible. Well in the application of the rules. The regulations. Okay. They're opening the door to make the process easier and more accessible. So in the future. Absolutely. One visa I know is coming down the line is going to be a snowbird. I see that coming really soon. That will be about people who want to come to the seasonally, meaning the winter months, like half a year here and half a year back home. I see that's going to come in the future. But for the foreign investors that are coming here, buying property, setting up accounts, I see many incentives that are coming down the line. I can't exactly discuss it because these are still closed door conversations, but the climate for those looking to come to the as a second option is going to become very, very pleasant. As much incentives as they have in place now is going to get a whole lot better. So that decision of which country to go to or which country to diversify in is going to be hands down the choice when all of this takes place. Because the government, since the inception of this current administration, their focus has been foreign investment. That's been the focus, right? And they did a lot to bring in and and kind of smooth out the process so that people felt better about getting residency, about setting up accounts, about buying property. And I have to say, one of the questions that you talked about was high net worth individuals. They are all looking at the doctor, all of them. And I mean around the world. I'm seeing it as a trend now in the Caribbean we have the highest growing economy. Right.

Salman Siddiqui: But are you seeing people from other countries apart from the US and apart from interest, say, from the Europe? You've been there for 15 years. You said so. Have you seen applicants from other parts of the world, like, for example, I don't know, the Middle East or China? Now increasingly we're starting.

Maria Abreu: To get people from the Middle East. Yes, okay. A lot. Okay. As a matter of fact, the consulate in Dubai has been quite busy. One of the things that we suggested bring the cost down to legal documents, because legalizing documents in the Emirates is more expensive, comparatively speaking. It's a more expensive process. So we're like, listen, guys, you're getting value. They're all coming down here. So bring down the cost a little bit.

Salman Siddiqui: And the government listens to professionals like you. Or is there like, you know, a barrier there?

Maria Abreu: No, they absolutely do because the Dominican Republic is a neutral zone. I want you to understand nobody looks at the a political agenda. Were they going it's one of these countries where everybody knows that whoever comes here is to invest is to change. Theirs is to take in the sun like the doctor is a non-threatening. So when we talk to them, they do listen to us. We do have a good relationship with that consulate. So yeah.

Salman Siddiqui: Thank you so much for being part of the show. Maria, we have to thank you for having me stop it there because.

Maria Abreu: It was a pleasure.

Salman Siddiqui: Yeah, I'm same here. And I hope to see you again in our podcast in the future and talk more about investment, immigration opportunities in Dominican Republic. And maybe, you know, when those new options come up that you talked about shortly ago, we'll do a new show on that. So thank you so much again and want to, in the end, give a shout out to our listeners that please stay tuned. We'll be bringing you more programs and more episodes on investment immigration options around the world. So stay tuned and thank you. Thank you. You've been listening to the Investment Immigration Podcast by Uglobal.com. Join us again soon for more in depth conversations exploring investment immigration opportunities from around the world.

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