Getting Paid & Paying Others: Navigating Nómina, Comprobante de Pago, and Freelancer Invoices with Real-World Spanish
How My First Dominican Paycheck Turned Into a Crash Course in Culture I still remember the sticky Santo Domingo afternoon when I collected my very first sobre manila stuffed with pesos. My boss grinned, thumped the envelope against my palm, and said, “Ahí está tu nómina, James, revísala bien.” I thought I spoke decent Spanish, […]
Everyday Taxes in Spanish: Marbete, Placa, and Municipal Fees You’ll Actually Discuss
The Morning I Failed Inspection and Learned a New Tax Word It was a humid Tuesday in Santo Domingo, one of those mornings when the Caribbean sun jumps the gun and starts baking pavement before breakfast. I had pulled my ten-year-old Suzuki Swift up to the Revisión Técnica booth, still half-asleep, only to watch the […]
DGII Spanish for Humans: Filing IR-1/IR-2, Understanding ITBIS, and Asking for a “Devolución”
Ten years ago, on an August morning that smelled like café de greca and diesel, I walked into the Dirección General de Impuestos Internos (DGII) in Santiago holding a folder full of crumpled receipts, sweaty fingerprints, and naïve confidence. The guard greeted me with a quick “Buen día, jefe”, and I answered with the only […]
Opening & Managing Dominican Bank Accounts: From “Cédula” to “Transferencia Interbancaria”
An Unexpected Lesson in the Banco Lobby The first time I tried to open a bank account in Santo Domingo I walked in wearing my optimistic expat grin and clutching every document I thought I needed. What I did not have was a cédula, the laminated Dominican ID that functions like a golden ticket. The […]
Credit & Loans in the DR: Talking to Banks about “Tasa,” “Cuota,” “Garante,” and “Historial Crediticio”
El banco me puso a prueba: My first Dominican loan interview I still remember the fluorescent chill of the branch on Avenida Abraham Lincoln, the way the security guard insisted on calling me “jovencito” even though I was already 23, and the nervous sweat creeping under my collar. I had marched in that afternoon convinced—naïvely—that […]
Investing & Saving in the DR: Certificates, Pensions, and the Risk-Talk Ritual at Your Local Bank
Un cafecito, a nervous teller, and my first big “plazo fijo” I still remember the scent of burnt espresso drifting through Banco Nacional’s marble lobby in Santiago de los Caballeros. I was twenty-three, fresh off the plane from Michigan, clutching a folder labeled “Certificate of Deposit.” The banker, a middle-aged Dominican who rolled his rs […]
NCF on Your Receipt: Tax Vocabulary at Supermarkets, Pharmacies, and Facturación Electrónica
The Day I Accidentally Claimed to Own a Pharmacy I still remember the cashier at a Santo Domingo farmacia tilting her head when I, after ten years of living in the DR, blurted, “Póngalo a nombre de Farmacia James y Asociados”. I only wanted my business tax receipt—my accountant had nagged me about collecting every […]
Buying Big-Ticket Items in Spanish: Navigating “Inicial,” “Financiamiento,” and Warranty Fine Print
Un arranque personal: el día en que casi pagué demás por una nevera gigante Ten years in Santo Domingo have taught me that the most dangerous part of any purchase isn’t the price tag, it’s the moment you open your mouth. Picture me, freshly arrived from North Carolina, staring at a sleek stainless-steel fridge that […]
Remittances, Exchange Rates, and the Rhythms of Cash: Mastering the Currency Spanish You Actually Need
When My Rent Was Due and the Peso Danced Merengue The first time I wired money from Bogotá to Santo Domingo I felt like I was auditioning for a telenovela about financial panic. I stood in a Dominican remittance office clutching a Western Union reference number, while a line of señoras behind me tapped their […]
Small-Business Spanish Survival: From RNCs to Flujo de Caja
I still remember the sweat rolling down my back in the air-conditioned oficina pública in Santo Domingo. I was twenty-three, clutching a folder full of photocopies, waiting to register my first tiny marketing agency. The clerk leaned over the grimy counter and murmured, “Sin el RNC no eres nadie, mi hijo.” Without the RNC you’re […]