The origin

In SDRA we have assumed an institutional commitment with our regulatory body, with the purpose of collaborating to regularize the operations of radio amateurs in charge of foreigners and nationals residing abroad, both in temporary and definitive operations. In this context, we would like to present this summary on how to obtain a temporary operation permit within the Dominican territory or the validation of your foreign license for permanent residence in our country.

The purpose of this is to facilitate the process of continuing to be radio amateurs and to ensure that they do so within the provisions of the current regulations.

The legal basis

In accordance with the provisions of Article 5 of Resolution No.092-2020 of INDOTEL, which contains the Regulations for the Amateur Radio Service, "any person interested in operating the amateur radio service must apply to INDOTEL for registration in the corresponding Special Registry...".

In other words, all radio amateurs interested in operating within the national territory must be duly registered in the Special Registry of Radio Amateurs and be in possession of the corresponding license, in accordance with the requirements established in the aforementioned regulation.

The options

In a general sense, we can find 2 options through which a foreigner or national resident abroad can obtain the corresponding authorization to operate as a radio amateur within the Dominican territory:

• Temporary Authorization, if the interested party will be visiting the country for a specific period of time, and
• Validation of Foreign License, in case the interested party has established permanent residence in the country.

Both processes are very similar, simple and expeditious. Let's see.

OPERATE WHERE YOU VACATION?

If you are like practically all radio amateurs in the world, whenever you go on vacation somewhere you always wonder if it is possible to take your radio equipment and operate while on vacation. In the case of the Dominican Republic, not only do we offer beaches, mountains, history, culture and cheerful and hospitable people, but we also offer the possibility of operating as a radio amateur while you are in our country, taking advantage of our excellent geographical location.

The norm that governs the amateur radio service in the Dominican Republic (Resolution No.092-2022 of INDOTEL), establishes the form and conditions under which a foreign amateur radio operator can operate while in our country, establishing an extremely simple and agile process for such purposes.

This right is covered by the International Amateur Radio Permit (IARP), as approved by the OAS under the Inter-American Convention on International Amateur Radio Permits, which allows temporary operations of amateur stations in a Member State to persons with IARP permits from another Member State without further review. This permit is granted through the figure of Portable HI, defined in the Regulations as the modality under which INDOTEL registers in the Special Registry for the Amateur Radio Service, by virtue of the reciprocity agreements to which the Dominican Republic is a signatory, foreign natural persons, with temporary stay in the country, who have authorization to operate an Amateur Radio station in their country of origin.

This permit shall have the following characteristics:

• It is contemplated in Article 20 of Resolution 092-2022 of INDOTEL.

• There must be a reciprocity agreement between the Dominican Republic and the country of origin.
• It is granted on a temporary basis
• It will be granted in the equivalent category in the Dominican Republic to that of its country of origin.
• Must comply with the established requirements (listed below).
• Shall comply, while operating, with the regulations of the amateur radio service of the Dominican Republic.
• The request must be made via e-mail to the address indicated by INDOTEL.
• The duration of the permit will be the duration of the operator's permanence in our country and such permit will expire as of right on the scheduled date, without any further action on the part of INDOTEL.
• The distinguishing letters to be used by the operator during his stay will be the national prefix (HI) and the numeral corresponding to the area of stay followed by / and the country code of origin (e.g. HI8/KB8SM).

The requirements for requesting a temporary permit to operate as Portable HI are as follows (Art. 7, paragraph c) of Resolution 092-2022):

• Letter of Request
• Affidavit form, duly completed and signed by the interested party.
• Copy of valid passport
• Copy of the license issued by the country of origin

As mentioned above, these documents are sent by e-mail to INDOTEL, preferably at least 45 days prior to the expected date of commencement of operations. INDOTEL will respond to such request by the same means. In case it is not possible to comply with this deadline, you must indicate the correct deadline for us to make the corresponding arrangements.

ARE YOU GOING TO RESIDE IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC?

Another very common case is that of Dominicans living abroad who return to their country or foreigners who are going to reside in the Dominican Republic permanently and who want to continue developing their amateur radio activities, without losing the rights and privileges offered by their licenses in their country of origin.

For this purpose, our regulation (Regulation 029-2022 mentioned above), establishes what is the Foreign License Validation process, equally simple and agile, as it happens for Portable HI operations. This process applies to national radio amateurs returning to the country or foreigners with definitive residence in the Dominican Republic, who have a license in their country of origin and wish to continue operating in the Dominican territory.

This process will have the following characteristics:

• It is contemplated in Article 21 of Resolution 092-2022 of INDOTEL.
• There must be a reciprocity agreement between the Dominican Republic and the country of origin.
• No need to take a test
• Must comply with the established requirements (listed below).
• Must comply with Dominican Republic amateur radio service regulations.
• The request must be made via e-mail to the address indicated by INDOTEL.
• The duration of the license will depend on the correspondence of the category in the country of origin and its equivalent in the Dominican Republic.

• The distinguishing letters will be the national prefix (HI) and the numeral corresponding to the area of residence followed by / and the country code of origin (e.g. HI8/KB8SM).
• The Certificate issued by INDOTEL shall contain the notation that it is a validation of a foreign license and the country in question.

The requirements for requesting the revalidation of the foreign license are as follows (Art. 7, paragraph b) of Resolution 092-2022):

• Letter of Request
• Affidavit form, duly completed and signed by the interested party.
• Copy of valid identity document
• Copy of the license issued by the country of origin
• Certificate of No Criminal Record or Good Conduct
• 2 photographs 2×2
• Copy of the Residence Card issued by the General Directorate of Migration.

SDRA HELP DESK

Through our SDRA Help Desk, we are at the disposal of any radio amateur interested in obtaining temporary permission to operate within the Dominican territory, as well as for those interested in validating their foreign licenses due to their residence in the country. Likewise, we can help with any questions or requirements about the privileges (bands, modes, power) applicable to each license category and about POTA, SOTA, BOTA, etc. entities.

As the application letter and the application form are in Spanish, our entity provides free assistance in the preparation and completion of these documents for those interested parties who do not speak Spanish, as well as assistance in the presentation and follow-up of their application.

If you would like more information or any assistance or collaboration please do not hesitate to contact us at info@sdra.do.