The constitution provides for freedom of religion and belief. A concordat with the Holy See designates Catholicism as the official religion and extends to the Catholic Church special privileges not granted to other religious groups. Non-Catholic religious groups may register as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) with the attorney general’s office, the Ministry of Finance and the Directorate General of Customs for tax purposes. Non-Catholic groups continued to state they received less government funding and could not access the same preferential customs duties and visas as the Catholic Church. Some groups reported they had difficulty acquiring duty waivers from the Ministry of Finance. Non-Catholic missionaries and religious leaders could not obtain visas under the same immigration category as Catholic religious leaders, which non-Catholic groups said made it more expensive and difficult to bring missionaries to the country.
There were no reports of significant societal actions affecting religious freedom.
U.S. embassy officials maintained ties with religious representatives and faith groups, meeting with leaders from the Catholic Church, the United Dominican Council for Evangelicals, which represents the Protestant community, officials from the Jewish community, and leaders from the Muslim community, to discuss religious freedom and tolerance.