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2 clusters · 2 sources · 22 days · First seen about 1 month ago · Last updated 20 days ago

Dominican Republic economic and labor informality

Overview

The Dominican Republic maintains a high level of economic and labor informality. Data from the Central Bank indicates that between April 2025 and March 2026, the average labor informality rate was 54.2% of the employed population. This sector includes various roles such as street vendors, artisans, and service workers who earn income directly from customers without traditional payroll structures.

Regarding business structures, Fernando Pinales, president of CODOPYME, reported that the country hosts more than 400,000 informal companies. This exists alongside approximately 1.2 million formal micro, small, and medium enterprises. Central Bank data suggests the informal sector accounts for 50–60% of all businesses and over 65% of national employment. Pinales has called for government policies to reduce informality, improve financing access, and resume dialogue on labor-code reform to boost growth.

Entities

Dominican Republic · Confederación Dominicana de la Micro, Pequeña y Mediana Empresa (CODOPYME) · Central Bank of the Dominican Republic · Fernando Pinales

Timeline

20 days ago

[BUSINESS] 2 sources
Dominican Republic labor informality reaches 54.2%
Data from the Central Bank shows that 54.2% of the Dominican Republic's employed population worked in the informal sector between April 2025 and March 2026.
about 1 month ago

[BUSINESS] 4 sources
Dominican Republic has 400,000 informal firms, says CODOPYME chief
CODOPYME president Fernando Pinales says 400,000 Dominican firms operate informally, representing 50‑60% of businesses and over 65% of jobs, and calls for policies to formalize the sector.

Sources

m.n.com.do · n.com.do