Free economic zone

Area with limited taxes

"Free port" redirects here. Not to be confused with various places named Freeport.

"Porto franco" redirects here. Not to be confused with Brazilian city Porto Franco.

"Zona Franca" redirects here. Not to be confused with Barcelona, Spain district Zona Franca – Port.

This is currently being merged.
After a discussion, consensus to merge this  into Free-trade zone was found. You can help implement the merge by following the instructions at Help:Merging and the resolution on the discussion. Process started in May 2023.

|

You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Spanish.  (September 2020) Click [show] for important translation instructions.

* Consider adding a topic to this template: there are already 1,010 articles in the main category, and specifying`|topic=` will aid in categorization.
* Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article.
* You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is `Content in this edit is translated from the existing Spanish Wikipedia article at [[:Es:Zona franca]]; see its history for attribution.`
* You may also add the template `{{Translated|Es|Zona franca}}` to the talk page.
* For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.

|

Free economic zones (FEZ), free economic territories (FETs) or free zones (FZ) are a class of special economic zone (SEZ) designated by the trade and commerce administrations of various countries. The term is used to designate areas in which companies are taxed very lightly or not at all to encourage economic activity. The taxation rules and duties are determined by each country.[1] The World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM) has content on the conditions and benefits of free zones.[2]

Some special economic zones are called free ports. Sometimes they have historically been endowed with favorable customs regulations, such as the free port of Trieste.

## Definition

[edit]

The definition should be understood in meaning The International Convention on the Simplification and Harmonization of Customs Procedures (Revised Kyoto Convention) uses the term “free zones” which the revised convention describes as “a part of the territory of a Contracting Party where any goods introduced are generally regarded, insofar as import duties and taxes are concerned, as being outside the customs territory”.

According to the World Bank,[3] the main types of special economic zones are:

1. Free-trade zones (FTZ)
2. Export processing zones (EPZ)
3. Free economic zones (FZ/FEZ)
4. Industrial parks/estates (IE)
5. Free ports
6. Bonded logistics parks (BLP)
7. Urban enterprise zones

## History

[edit]

An early type of special economic zone was free ports, these historically were endowed with favorable customs regulations. In modern times, free port has come to mean a specific type of special economic zone, for example LADOL.

All "free ports" in the world were permitted by the respective states, save the Free Port of Trieste that with the signing of the 16th Resolution of the Security Council of the United Nations[4] (10 January 1947) and the signing of the Treaty of Peace with Italy[5] (10 February 1947, ratified 15 September 1947) was put territorially under the sovereignty of the United Nations itself. As cited on Annex VIII, Article 3, paragraph 2: "The establishment of special zones in the Free Port under the exclusive jurisdiction of any State is incompatible with the status of the Free Territory and of the Free Port". For example, it was not possible to apply the "Italian Law on Ports" in the extraterritorial free zones of the UN Free Port of Trieste with the effect that all actual territorial concessions were null and void.

In 1954, the Free Territory of Trieste was dissolved and given to its neighbours, Italy and Yugoslavia.

## Criminal use

[edit]

The European Union, in 2020, introduced new stricter rules to identify and report suspicious activities at free ports and zones in response to the "high incidence of corruption, tax evasion, and criminal activity", with a further review to take place in the following year, The European Parliament suggested that increasing demand for free ports could be partly a response to global crackdowns on tax evasion. The European Commission in a report said that free ports were popular for the storage of art, precious stones, antiques, gold, and wine as alternative assets to cash, and posed an emerging threat in multiple ways: allowing counterfeiters to land consignments and tamper with loads and paperwork, then re-export the products without customs formalities, disguising the actual origin and nature of the goods and their supplier. The commission said they were also used for narcotics trafficking, the illegal ivory trade, people smuggling, VAT fraud, corruption and money laundering. "Legal businesses owned by criminals remain key to money-laundering activities... free ports are perceived as facilities that protect their clients'' identity and financial dealings, much as private banks used to."

As an example, the commission cited Swiss authorities' 2016 seizure of cultural relics looted from the Middle East being stored in Geneva's free ports.[6][7]

The free port system has been accused of facilitating international art crime, allowing stolen artworks to remain undetected in storage for decades.[8] Freeports' lax regulation enables criminals to operate in secrecy. Freeports may facilitate money laundering and tax evasion by obscuring the real beneficial owners of criminal assets, which hinders authorities' efforts to trace criminal profits and recover taxes.[9]

## List of free economic zones by country

[edit]

Main article: List of free economic zones

## See also

[edit]

* Bonded logistics park \- another type of SEZ
* Free-trade zone \- another type of SEZ
* Free-trade area
* Bonded warehouse
* Four Asian Tigers
* Open Balkan
* Craiovia Group
* CEFTA

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Мarynсhak, Yеvhеn (2019). IMPORTANCE OF A FREE ZONES FOR PUBLIC FINANCES. Theoretical and methodological approaches to the formation of a modern system of enterprises, organizations and institutions' development (1st ed.). Dallas: Primedia eLaunch LLC. pp. 157–158. doi:10.36074/tmafmseoid.ed-1.15. ISBN 978-1-64669-378-8. S2CID 212956756.
2. ^ "WTO Subsidies and Countervailing Measures: overview. Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures ("SCM Agreement")". www.wto.org. World Trade Organization. Archived from the original on 23 December 2020.
3. ^ https://www.zendeq.com/kb/free-economic-zones/#pp-toc-4av3xryf72kn-anchor-1
4. ^ "S/Res/16(1947) - e - S/Res/16(1947)".
5. ^ "Treaty Series Vol. 49" United Nations. Retrieved 2023-12-10.
6. ^ Daniel Boffey (10 February 2020). "EU clamps down on free ports over crime and terrorism links". The Guardian.
7. ^ "Russian war in Ukraine renews pressure on Swiss free ports". 17 June 2022.
8. ^ Rachel Corbett; Julia Halperin; Richelle Simon (30 June 2015). "Experts identify top six scandals amid boom in art crime". The Art Newspaper.
9. ^ Gilmour, Paul Michael (2022). "Freeports: Innovative trading hubs or centres for money laundering and tax evasion?". Journal of Money Laundering Control. 25 (1): 63–71. doi:10.1108/JMLC-01-2021-0002. S2CID 236602615.

## Bibliography

[edit]

* "Specific Annex D: Customs Warehouses and Free Zones", International Convention on the Simplication and Harmonization of Customs Procedures (Revised Kyoto Convention), World Customs Organization, 1999

## External links

[edit]

* List of Free Zones in United Arab Emirates

* v
* t
* e

Designations for types of administrative division

English terms

Common English terms

| Area|

* Insular area
* Local government area
* Special area
* Unincorporated area
* Unorganized area

|

Borough|

* County borough
* Metropolitan borough

Canton|

Half-canton

Capital|

* Federal capital
* Imperial capital

City|

* Autonomous city
* Charter city
* Independent city
* Incorporated city
* Imperial city
* Free imperial city
* Royal free city

Community|

* Autonomous community
* Residential community

County|

* Administrative county
* Autonomous county
* Consolidated city-county
* County seat
* County town
* Metropolitan county
* Non-metropolitan county
* Regional county municipality
* Viscounty

Country|

* Overseas country

Department|

* Overseas department

District|

* Capital district
* City district
* Congressional district
* Electoral district
* Federal district
* Indian government district
* Land district
* Local government district
* Metropolitan district
* Non-metropolitan district
* Military district
* Municipal district
* Police district
* Regional district
* Rural district
* Sanitary district
* Service district
* Educational service district
* Local service district
* School district
* Intermediate school district
* Special district
* in the US
* Urban district

Division|

* Census division
* Police division
* Subdivision of India

Indian reserve/reservation|

* Indian reservation (United States)
* Indian reserve (Canada)

Municipality|

* City municipality
* County municipality
* Direct-controlled municipality
* District municipality
* Neutral municipality
* Regional municipality
* Resort municipality
* Mountain resort municipality
* Rural municipality
* Specialized municipality

Prefecture|

* Autonomous prefecture
* Subprefecture
* Super-prefecture
* Praetorian prefecture

Province|

* Autonomous province
* Overseas province
* Roman province

Region|

* Administrative region
* Special administrative region
* Autonomous region
* Capital region
* National capital region
* Development region
* Mesoregion
* Microregion
* Overseas region
* Subregion

State|

* Proto-state
* City-state
* Federal state
* Free state
* Sovereign state

Territory|

* Capital territory
* Federal capital territory
* National capital territory
* Dependent territory
* Federal territory
* Incorporated territory
* Organized incorporated territory
* Overseas territory
* Union territory

Town|

* Census town
* Market town

Township|

* Charter township
* Civil township
* Paper township
* Survey township
* Urban township

Unit|

* Regional unit
* Territorial unit
* Autonomous territorial unit

Zone|

* Economic zone
* Exclusive economic zone
* Free economic zone
* Special economic zone
* Exclusion zone
* Military exclusion zone
* Free speech zone
* Neutral zone
* Self-administered zone
* Trade zone
* Free-trade zone

Other English terms

| Current|

* Alpine resort
* Bailiwick
* Banner
* Autonomous
* Block
* Cadastre
* Circle
* Circuit
* Colony
* Commune
* Condominium
* Constituency
* Duchy
* District
* Eldership
* Emirate
* Enclave and exclave
* Federal dependency
* Governorate
* Hamlet
* Manor
* Royal
* Muftiate
* Neighbourhood
* Parish
* Precinct
* Principality
* Protectorate
* Quarter
* Regency
* Autonomous republic
* Riding
* Sector
* Autonomous
* Shire
* Sultanate
* Suzerainty
* Townland
* Village
* Summer
* Ward

|

Historical|

* Agency
* Barony
* Burgh
* Exarchate
* Hide
* Hundred
* Imperial Circle
* March
* Monthon
* Presidency
* Residency
* Roman diocese
* Seat
* Tenth
* Tithing
* Viceroyalty

Non-English terms or loanwords

| Current|

* Amt
* Apskritis
* Bakhsh
* Barangay
* Bashki
* Bezirk
* Regierungsbezirk
* Comarca
* Comune
* Frazione
* Freguesia
* Fu
* Gemeinde
* Austria
* Germany
* South Tyrol
* Switzerland
* Gemeente
* Gmina
* Hromada
* Județ
* Kampong
* Kommun/Kunta
* Finland
* Sweden
* Län (Sweden)
* Landskap
* Finland
* Località
* Maakunta
* Megye
* Muban
* Mukim
* Njësi administrative
* Oblast
* Autonomous
* Okrug
* Ostān
* Poblacion
* Purok
* Qark
* Raion
* Savivaldybė
* Selsoviet
* Sitio
* Seniūnija
* Shahrestān
* Sum
* China
* Sýsla
* Tehsil
* Townlet
* Vingtaine

|

Historical|

* Commote
* Gau
* Heerlijkheid
* Komunë
* Köping
* Korale
* Län/Lääni
* Landskap
* Sweden
* Landskommun
* Maalaiskunta
* Nome
* Egypt
* Greece
* Pagus
* Pargana
* Plasă
* Rreth
* Satrapy
* Socken
* Subah
* Syssel
* Zhou

Used by ten or more countries or having derived terms. Historical derivations in italics.

See also
Autonomous administration
Census division
Electoral district
List of administrative divisions by country
Slavic administrative divisions

Authority control databases: National |

* Germany

|

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template