Although the majority of Haitians enter the Dominican territory illegally, the issuance of visas at Dominican consulates in Haiti has increased significantly in recent years, especially multiple one-year business visas (negocios múltiples) which allow a consecutive stay up to 60 days after each entry and which are issued for business trips and professionals.

According to a report prepared by the National Institute of Migration, during the period from 2006 to 2015 (10 years), 593,066 visas were granted (1 visa on average every 2 minutes on all Dominican Consulates in Haiti during the opening hours), of which 408,118 multiple business visas; 142,070 single tourist visas; 27,913 for studies; 8.287 for multiple tourism; 1,756 for work; 90 for residences; 11 for simple business and 4,821 for diplomatic, official and courtesy missions.

The report also indicates that 65% of people born in Haiti live in urban areas and 33% in rural areas. 75% of Haitian migrants live in four major areas: the National District and the province of Santo Domingo (33.5%); Cibao Norte (18.5%); Cibao Noreste (12.1%) and Yuma (10.8%).

In terms of education, until 2015, 55,175 Haitian have students enrolled in the pre-university sector (public and semi-official educational institutions) a number that far exceeds other nationalities. (see 2013 figures on https://www.haitilibre.com/article-14488-haiti-education-plus-de-12-000-etudiants-haitiens-dans-les-universites-dominicaines.html )

At university level alone, the Haitian population is also the majority compared to other foreigners, in 2015, of the 10,676 enrolled, 6,945 (65%) were Haitians.

Concerning the causes of illegal Haitian entry into the Dominican Republic, the report cites several causes, among others: the demand for Haitian labor in certain sectors (agriculture, construction, domestic staff ...); the costs and difficulties of obtaining visas (for lack of documents), the porosity of the border and the economic difficulties that have existed in Haiti for decades.

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23502-haiti-flash-cost-of-the-dominican-visa-explanations-of-the-consulate.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23472-haiti-flash-bad-news-the-cost-of-dominican-visa-increases-by-more-than-50.html

SL/ HaitiLibre