A Free Zone is defined as the area of land of a nation, physically delimited and subject to a special tax and customs regime. This territory is dedicated to the production and marketing of goods for export, as well as the provision of services related to international trade. For customs laws, free zones are considered Exempt Areas. The purpose of this geographical area is to attract foreign investment, connect the national economy with the international one, seek economic freedom and investments to generate labor, promote the greatest possible technological update, among others.
It should be noted that free zones have a long historical tradition in international trade, its existence around the 1500s.
The free zone can be classified according to the activity that takes place within them;
- Industrial Free Zone: where the production, assembly or any type of economic improvement of goods for export or re-export predominates.
- Free Trade Zone of Services: this is where the provision of services related to international trade (transport, insurance companies, etc.) is found.
- Commercial Free Zone: it governs the commercialization of national and international merchandise destined for export or re-export, without carrying out activities that change the characteristics of the product or alter its origin.
The countries with numerous free zones are the United Kingdom (14), Cape Verde (12), Argentina and Uruguay (9), Germany and Colombia (5), Spain, Italy, Turkey, Peru (4), among others.
