Reimbursement for businesses hit by the water emergency

The DDEC Secretary determined that, under the Administrative Bulletins OE-2025-044 and OE-2026-28 in force, and exercising the powers conferred by Reorganization Plan No. 4-1994 and the Incentives Code, it was appropriate to establish this Economic Recovery Program to assist small and medium-sized merchants affected by the drinking water emergency, mitigating the economic impact suffered and helping stabilize their operations. The instrument is Administrative Order No. DDEC 2026-03-Amendment A. The Order applies to merchants whose economic activities have been directly affected by this situation, generating significant operating losses, and who operate a location within the areas affected by the interruption of drinking water service arising from the break identified and recorded in Administrative Bulletin 2026-28. Disbursement is made by electronic transfer and is subject to the availability of funds in the Economic Incentives Fund (FIE).

The Order defines a Small and Medium Merchant as any business meeting two criteria concurrently: generating sales volume of $350,000 or less, and employing 25 or fewer people full time or the equivalent. For the purposes of this Order no prior PyME certification issued by the DDEC is required; eligibility is determined by those criteria at the time of application. You must also show that the business operates from commercial premises, that it was actively operating when the water service interruption began, and that it complies with Puerto Rico’s laws and regulations. The commercial establishment must be located in one of the sectors identified in Executive Order OE-2025-044, Administrative Bulletin OE-2026-28, or in any official AAA communication acknowledging the situation, including the municipalities of Aguas Buenas, Bayamón, Caguas, Canóvanas, Carolina, Corozal, Guaynabo, Gurabo, Juncos, Loíza, Naranjito, Río Grande, San Juan, Trujillo Alto and Vega Alta, or any other municipality the AAA formally identifies as affected. Duplication of benefits is prohibited: the applicant must certify that they have not received or applied for other government or federal funds to cover the same expenses, and if they receive duplicate assistance they must repay the DDEC the corresponding amount.

• Generating sales volume of $350,000 or less and employing 25 or fewer people full time, concurrently.Verified against the official source
• Operating from commercial premises and having been actively operating when the water service interruption began.Verified against the official source
• Being located in one of the sectors or municipalities identified in OE-2025-044, Bulletin OE-2026-28 or an official AAA communication.Verified against the official source
• Certifying that you have not received or applied for other government or federal funds for the same expenses.Verified against the official source

• The Programme’s official form, with a certification describing the damages suffered and another that all the information is true and correct.
• Copy of the Hacienda Merchant Registry Certificate showing the establishment is located in an affected municipality.
• Copy of the most recent quarterly employee withholding return.
• Certification of tax return filing for the last five tax years and a Hacienda no-debt certification or payment plan.
• CRIM no-debt certification for all concepts and ASUME no-debt certification.
• Municipal License or evidence of its payment in the municipality where you operate, current photo ID, and Permiso Único or carta consulta.
• If a corporation: Certificate of Organization, Certificate of Compliance (Good Standing), IRS letter with the EIN, and a corporate resolution authorizing the representative to apply and sign.

1. 1

   Step 1: Check whether your business fits, because the threshold is lower than you think

   This programme does not use the DDEC’s ordinary PyME definition. Here a Small or Medium Merchant is a business generating sales volume of $350,000 or less and employing 25 or fewer people full time, and both must be true at once. And there is one sentence that saves work: the Order says expressly that the applicant is not required to hold a prior PyME certification issued by the DDEC, because eligibility is determined at the time of application.

2. 2

   Step 2: Confirm you are in an affected area

   The establishment must be in one of the sectors identified in Executive Order OE-2025-044, Administrative Bulletin OE-2026-28, or in any official AAA communication acknowledging the situation. The Order names Aguas Buenas, Bayamón, Caguas, Canóvanas, Carolina, Corozal, Guaynabo, Gurabo, Juncos, Loíza, Naranjito, Río Grande, San Juan, Trujillo Alto and Vega Alta. Notice how the list ends: "or any other municipality the AAA formally identifies as affected". If your town is not among the fifteen but the AAA acknowledged it, do not rule yourself out: ask.

3. 3

   Step 3: Gather the invoices from 1 June 2026

   The Order sets that date as the point when the emergency worsened, and says expenses incurred from 1 June 2026 may be reimbursed by submitting evidence and signing the corresponding incentive contract. Look for everything you paid because of the water outage from that point on.

4. 4

   Step 4: These are the expenses that count

   The Order lists, without limiting itself to them: purchase of bottled or tanker-delivered water for the establishment’s operational use; purchase or rental of water storage equipment or backup mechanisms for water outage emergencies, such as tanks and portable cisterns; loss of or damage to inventory, raw materials or perishable goods directly attributable to the service interruption; disinfection, cleaning and restoration costs for the facilities as a consequence of the lack of drinking water; and any other emergency operating expense the DDEC determines eligible under the Programme’s purposes and the evaluating committee approves.

5. 5

   Step 5: Gather the documents

   Copy of the Hacienda Merchant Registry Certificate showing the establishment’s location in an affected municipality; copy of the most recent quarterly employee withholding return; certification of tax filings for the last five tax years; Hacienda no-debt certification or payment plan; CRIM no-debt certification for all concepts; ASUME no-debt certification; Municipal License or evidence of paying it in the municipality where you operate; current photo ID; and Permiso Único or carta consulta. If you are a corporation, everything in the corporation’s name, plus the Certificate of Organization, the Certificate of Compliance (Good Standing), the IRS letter with the EIN, and a corporate resolution authorizing the representative to apply and sign the contract. If you owe any government entity, present evidence of a current payment plan and show it is up to date.

6. 6

   Step 6: Certify you are not collecting twice

   Duplication of benefits is prohibited. The applicant must certify that they have not received or applied for other government or federal funds to cover the same expenses covered by this incentive. And if they receive duplicate assistance, they must repay the DDEC the corresponding amount. If you already collected those same expenses from an insurer or another programme, do not include them.

7. 7

   Step 7: File on the Single Business Portal

   The DDEC set up a five-step application process. Filing: complete and file the official form available on the Single Business Portal (SBP), together with the required documents. Evaluation: an Evaluating Committee designated by the Secretary evaluates applications under the Order’s criteria. Notification: the DDEC notifies in writing or electronically the approval or denial determination, stating the grounds. Signing the incentive contract: applicant and DDEC sign it through the DDEC’s official electronic platform and it is recorded at the Oficina del Contralor. Disbursement: signed contracts receive the incentive by electronic transfer, subject to the availability of funds in the FIE.

Applications are filed on the Single Business Portal (SBP), which the DDEC links from its Economic Recovery Program page. The DDEC’s physical address is 355 F. D. Roosevelt Ave, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918.

• Ruling yourself out because the business has no DDEC PyME certification, which this Order does not require.
• Ruling yourself out because your municipality is not among the fifteen named, when the Order accepts any other the AAA identifies.
• Claiming expenses from before 1 June 2026.
• Claiming expenses already covered by an insurer or another federal programme: that is duplication of benefits and must be repaid.
• Not keeping the invoices for bottled water, tanker deliveries or cleaning.
• Forgetting the perishable inventory that was lost, which is an express eligible use.
• Filing without the corporate resolution when the applicant is a corporation.

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

• Departamento de Desarrollo Económico y Comercio (DDEC)

  DDEC

  www.ddec.pr.gov