The Dominican Republic Is About to License Real Estate Agents

For the whole of its modern property boom, the Dominican Republic has had no licensing requirement for real estate agents. No exam, no register, no regulator. A country that sells billions of dollars of property a year to foreign buyers has regulated the profession selling it about as tightly as it regulates freelance photography.

That is now moving. On 23 April 2026, the Dominican Senate approved in first reading a bill to regulate real estate intermediation and deceptive property advertising. It is working its way through the legislature.

Here is what is actually in it, based on the Senate's own account and the reporting of the sector press.

Where the Bill Stands

Approved in first reading by the Senate on 23 April 2026. Sponsored by senators Rafael Barón Duluc, Félix Ramón Bautista and Eduard Alexis Espiritusanto.

Dominican legislation requires two readings in the Senate before the bill moves to the Cámara de Diputados, where it repeats the process. So it has cleared one of four legislative stages. It is real, it has momentum and sector backing, but it is not law, and the text can change.

Key Takeaway: Nothing in this article is in force yet. We update this page as the bill moves — check the date at the bottom.

What It Would Require

Everyone in the Chain Gets Regulated

The bill covers agents, agencies, promoters and developers — anyone habitually engaged in intermediating or promoting property. That last category matters in the DR, where a great deal of property is sold off-plan directly by the developer's own sales team rather than by an independent broker. Those teams would be covered too.

Two exclusions: owners selling their own property directly, and licensed lawyers providing legal representation.

Mandatory, Annually Renewed Licences

Every habitual intermediary would need an operating licence, renewed annually. The bill contemplates several categories:

• Real estate agencies — organised businesses providing intermediation services
• Affiliated or associated agents — professionals working under an agency or network
• Independent agents — practitioners operating on their own
• Developers and promoters — a special commercialisation and intermediation licence for those who build projects and sell them directly

Minimum Training and Education

The bill sets minimum training hours and requires at least a secondary school diploma, with differentiated training levels for different specialisations.

This is the provision with the largest practical consequence for the profession, and it is why the training infrastructure that already exists matters. AEI, the national association, has been running its CBR-01 and CBR-02 certifications, bootcamps and workshops voluntarily since long before this bill existed — see our profile of the association. A voluntary programme becomes a great deal more valuable when the state requires the hours.

A Regulator With Teeth

MIVHED — the Ministerio de Vivienda, Hábitat y Edificaciones — would design, regulate and supervise real estate intermediation, through a dedicated Department of Registration, Control and Real Estate Intermediation. Licences would be issued by a General Directorate of Registry, Control and Real Estate Intermediation.

Violations would be graded minor, serious or very serious, with fines and licence revocation available.

A Free Public Register

Two registers, both publicly accessible at no cost: one of licensed intermediaries, and one of sanctions imposed on violators.

For a buyer, this is the most valuable clause in the bill. Today, checking an agent means running several manual checks. Under this law it becomes a single lookup — and, crucially, you could see not just whether someone is licensed but whether they have been sanctioned.

Deceptive Advertising Becomes an Offence

The bill defines misleading advertising as any information, communication, message or commercial practice that induces or could induce error in the consumer about a property's characteristics, availability, price or sale conditions.

Penalties: fines of up to 50 minimum salaries, plus suspension of operations or of the agent's or promoter's licence.

Anyone who has spent time on Dominican listing portals knows why this clause exists. Properties advertised at prices that evaporate on contact, square-metre figures that quietly include the terrace and the parking space, "beachfront" applied generously, and listings that remain live months after the property sold.

Agents Must Know Their Limits

Where ownership is unclear or the legal situation is complex, agents would be required to refer clients to a lawyer.

This mirrors an obligation already in AEI's code of ethics, and it targets the most expensive category of Dominican property mistake: proceeding on an agent's assurance that a title is fine. Our due diligence guide covers what that verification actually involves.

Fiscal Traceability

Registration and supervision are also framed as tools against tax evasion and money laundering, by making intermediation traceable.

This has a second-order effect worth flagging. Under-declaring the sale price on the deed to reduce transfer tax has been a persistent Dominican practice. A regulated, registered intermediation layer makes that harder to do quietly — which is relevant to how much transfer tax and closing cost you should actually budget for.

What It Means If You Are Buying

Nothing changes today. Until the bill completes its passage and takes effect, there is no licence to check. Verify the way you would have verified last year.

Ask anyway. An agent's answer to "what will you need to do to comply with the new intermediation law?" is informative. The ones who are already trained and associated will tell you exactly. The ones who are not will not know what you are referring to.

Expect the market to thin. Minimum training hours plus an academic requirement plus annual renewal will push some part of the informal agent population out. That is the point of the law, and it is good for buyers.

Pro Tip: Do not expect licensing to fix pricing. A licensing regime regulates conduct and competence. It does not tell you whether a property is worth the asking price — an agent can be fully licensed, fully ethical and still bring you something priced well above what comparable properties in that zone actually trade for.

That remains your job, and it is what our valuation tool and fair price check exist for.

What It Means If You Are an Agent

The direction is clear regardless of the final text: documented training becomes a licensing input rather than a personal preference. Hours accumulated now, through an established certification track, are hours you are not scrambling for later. AEI's CBR programme is the most developed existing route.

We Will Keep This Updated

The bill needs a second Senate reading and two readings in the Chamber of Deputies. We track it and update this page as it moves.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you need a licence to be a real estate agent in the Dominican Republic?

Not yet. As of August 2026 there is no licensing requirement. A bill approved in first reading by the Senate on 23 April 2026 would require every habitual intermediary to hold an annually renewed licence issued through MIVHED, but it has three further legislative stages to clear.

What is the Ley de Intermediación Inmobiliaria?

It is the proposed Dominican law regulating real estate intermediation and deceptive property advertising. It would license agents, agencies, independent practitioners and developers, set minimum training and education requirements, create a free public register of licensed intermediaries and of sanctions, and penalise misleading advertising with fines of up to 50 minimum salaries.

Who would regulate real estate agents in the Dominican Republic?

MIVHED, the Ministry of Housing, Habitat and Buildings, through a dedicated Department of Registration, Control and Real Estate Intermediation. Licences would be issued by a General Directorate of Registry, Control and Real Estate Intermediation.

When will the Dominican real estate licensing law take effect?

There is no date. The bill has cleared one of four legislative stages — a first Senate reading — and needs a second Senate reading plus two readings in the Chamber of Deputies before it can become law.

Would developers selling their own projects need a licence?

Under the bill as approved in first reading, yes. Promoters and developers who participate directly in selling or commercially managing their own projects would need a special commercialisation and intermediation licence. Owners selling their own individual property are excluded.