US, Dominican Republic start tax info exchange

Santo Domingo.- The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Dominican Republic’s Internal Taxes Agency (DGII) have begun a process to exchange bilateral financial and tax information, as part of the on Foreign Accounts Tax Compliance Law (FATCA).

A delegation of the IRS’ International Cooperation Program led by its senior manager Aziz Benbrahim met with DGII officials and financial technicians during two days to establish the protocols to protect the tax information exchanged between the two agencies.

The work included a bilateral assessment of policies, practices, procedures and technological firmness to protect confidential tax information both the US and Dominican Republic’s tax administrators.

The FATCA requires that financial institutions in other countries with operations in the US make available bank accounts of citizens of that country to US tax authorities, to verify their tax compliance if required.

Among the people subjected to such provision, approved in 2010, but steps are now being taken to enact it, are US citizens and legal residents and those classified as companies, estates or trusts in the US.