Workflow checklist
- Identify the registry. app.registromercantil.do
- Check access requirements. Account required: Yes. Local ID required: No.
- Plan budget. Price range: USD 0.00. Payment methods: Not published; confirm at source.
- Anticipate friction. Captcha / 2FA: Unknown. English UI: No.
- Plan turnaround. Expected: Unknown.
- Verify recency. Last verified: 3 Sept 2026. Confirm current pricing at the official registry before submitting.
TL;DR. The Dominican Republic commercial registry is the Registro Mercantil, maintained by the regional Camaras de Comercio. https://app.registromercantil.do forwards to a login page titled Camara de Comercio y Produccion de Santo Domingo | Acceder, offering Iniciar Sesion, Crear una cuenta and Recordar contrasena. The search sits behind that login, so fees, payment methods and turnaround are unknown rather than free; confirm at source. An account is needed and the interface is Spanish.
What is the official Dominican Republic business registry?
The Registro Mercantil is the Dominican Republic’s mandatory commercial registry, established under Law 03-02 on Commercial Registration. It records all natural and legal persons engaged in commercial, industrial, or service activities in the country. Unlike a centralised single-registry model, the system is decentralised: each of the 32 provincial Camaras de Comercio y Produccion maintains the Registro Mercantil for its geographic jurisdiction, with the Camara de Comercio y Produccion de Santo Domingo covering the capital and the National District.
Oversight and supervisory authority rests with the Ministerio de Industria, Comercio y Mipymes (MICM, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs), which coordinates standards across the regional chambers. The Camara de Comercio y Produccion de Santo Domingo operates the primary digital platform at app.registromercantil.do and at camarasantodomingo.do.
The registry covers sociedad anonima (SA), sociedad de responsabilidad limitada (SRL), partnerships, sole trader registrations, and branches of foreign companies. Records for entities registered in Santo Domingo date from the mid-20th century, with digital coverage expanding progressively since the early 2000s.
For intellectual property searches (trademarks, patents), the relevant body is ONAPI (Oficina Nacional de la Propiedad Industrial), not the Registro Mercantil.
What can you search?
https://app.registromercantil.do forwards to a login page titled Acceder. The search fields behind it (nombre, RNC, numero de registro mercantil) and how quickly a status query returns are not shown on that page; confirm at source.
How much does it cost?
| Item | Cost (DOP) | Cost (USD, approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Basic consultation / status query | Unknown | Unknown |
| Registro Mercantil certificate | Unknown | Unknown |
No fee figures, payment methods or turnaround times are published on the login page, so the table above reads unknown rather than free; confirm at source.
Do you need a local account or ID?
Yes. The page is a login, offering Iniciar Sesion and Crear una cuenta. Whether a cedula or RNC is needed to create an account is not stated there; confirm at source.
Is the website in English?
No. The Registro Mercantil platform and the Camara de Comercio de Santo Domingo portal are entirely in Spanish. There is no English interface. Key fields are: “Razon Social” (legal name), “RNC” (taxpayer number), “Estado” (status: Activo, Suspendido, Cancelado), and “Tipo de Persona” (entity type: Persona Juridica or Persona Fisica).
For compliance buyers unfamiliar with Spanish, a basic Spanish-English glossary of registry field names will cover most of the data returned. Machine translation of Spanish PDF certificates is generally accurate for standard corporate registry fields.
What’s the turnaround time?
Unknown. The login page publishes no turnaround time; confirm at source.
Is there an API?
No public API is documented for the Registro Mercantil.
What you legally cannot do
The Camara de Comercio terms of use and Dominican data protection law (Law 172-13 on Personal Data Protection) prohibit:
- Automated bulk extraction of registry records
- Commercial redistribution of certificate data without authorisation from the issuing chamber
- Use of registry data for unsolicited marketing or spam
- Representing chamber-issued certificates as independently verified third-party analysis
Law 172-13 applies to processing of personal data of Dominican natural persons. Compliance buyers conducting KYC or AML checks should document the stated purpose of each registry search as part of their internal audit trail.
Practical tips for foreign compliance buyers
- RNC is the anchor identifier. The RNC (Registro Nacional del Contribuyente) is the primary identification number for all legal and natural persons in the Dominican Republic’s commercial system. It is issued by the DGII (tax authority) but used across the Registro Mercantil and other government databases. Always search by RNC if you have it; company name searches in Spanish may miss accented-character variations.
- Decentralised registry. If your counterparty is registered outside Santo Domingo (for example, in Santiago, La Romana, or Puerto Plata), the relevant Registro Mercantil record is held by that province’s chamber. You may need to contact the appropriate regional chamber separately. The MICM is working toward greater inter-chamber interoperability.
- Annual renewal matters. Dominican law requires annual renewal of the Registro Mercantil certificate. An entity whose certificate lapsed due to non-renewal may still appear in the registry but with a “Suspendido” status. This is a red flag in a compliance context.
- Consult ONAPI separately. If your due diligence extends to intellectual property assets (trademarks, patents), these are held by ONAPI (onapi.gob.do), not the Registro Mercantil. The two registries are separate.
- The Dominican Republic FATF listing: confirm at fatf-gafi.org.
- Understand the SRL vs. SA distinction. The SRL (sociedad de responsabilidad limitada) is common for smaller, closely-held businesses; the SA (sociedad anonima) is used for larger commercial and foreign-owned entities. Both appear in the Registro Mercantil but have different capital and governance disclosure requirements.
Alternatives if you cannot access the Registro Mercantil directly
- Aggregator search (free, indicative only): OpenCorporates indexes some Dominican Republic filings but coverage is limited and lags official data. Useful for a quick name check; not for compliance-grade verification.
- DGII RNC lookup: https://dgii.gov.do blocked automated checks and returned an access-denied page (Acceso denegado / Esta solicitud fue bloqueada por nuestros servicios de seguridad). The RNC lookup screens behind it could not be reached; confirm at source.
Local data suppliers
The Camara de Comercio y Produccion de Santo Domingo is the authoritative source for Registro Mercantil certificates. For credit risk and payment behaviour data, engage a local law firm or accounting firm that can commission a commercial credit inquiry through local banking contacts.
FAQ
Can a foreign company access the Dominican Republic registry directly?
The online path is a login page, and the search behind it could not be reached, so turnaround and DOP fees are not confirmed here; confirm at source.
What is the RNC number in the Dominican Republic?
The RNC (Registro Nacional del Contribuyente) is the primary identification number for companies and individuals in the Dominican commercial system. It is issued by the DGII (tax authority) at the time of entity formation. For legal persons, the RNC is a 9-digit number. For natural persons, it mirrors the cedula (identity document) number. The RNC is the most reliable anchor identifier when searching the Registro Mercantil.
What entity types are registered with the Registro Mercantil?
The Registro Mercantil covers all persons engaged in commerce: sociedades anonimas (SAs), sociedades de responsabilidad limitada (SRLs), partnerships (sociedades en nombre colectivo and en comandita), sole traders (personas fisicas comerciantes), and branches of foreign companies. Foundations and non-profit associations are registered under a separate legal framework and are not part of the Registro Mercantil.
Does the Dominican Republic have a beneficial ownership (UBO) registry?
No public beneficial ownership registry could be confirmed for the Dominican Republic; confirm at source.
How current is the data in the Registro Mercantil?
The registry is updated on a filing-event basis. Companies are required to notify the relevant Camara de Comercio of changes to directors, registered address, and capital within defined legal timeframes. Annual renewal is mandatory. Status indicators in the online portal reflect the most recently filed information, which may not capture very recent changes if the entity has not yet filed the relevant update.
Is the Dominican Republic on the FATF grey list?
Confirm at fatf-gafi.org.
What’s the difference between the Registro Mercantil and the DGII?
The Registro Mercantil is the commercial registry maintained by the Camaras de Comercio; it records company formation, officers, and commercial status. The DGII (Direccion General de Impuestos Internos) is the tax authority, which maintains the RNC taxpayer registry and tax filing records. A company must be registered in both systems to operate legally. The DGII site blocked automated checks with an access-denied page, so its RNC lookup screens and whether that lookup is free could not be confirmed; confirm at source.
Last verified: 2026-09-03. Sources: app.registromercantil.do, which forwards to a login page titled Acceder; camarasantodomingo.do, which is online; dgii.gov.do, which blocked automated checks with an access-denied page. For the full global due diligence framework, see our Global Business Due Diligence Guide.