ABSTRACT
A freeport is a customs-controlled area adjacent to either a seaport or an international airport. It differs from a temporary storage area in that goods can be held under Customs control, that is, under import duty and VAT/sales tax suspension, for an unlimited period, whereas with a temporary storage facility. Free-Trade Zones are generally organised around major seaports, international airports, and national frontiers, areas with many geographic advantages for international trade. They contain clusters of companies involved in Free Zone activities, especially storage, distribution and manufacturing, either for domestic distribution using Tariff Inversion advantages, or for re-export. Corporations setting up in a zone may be given a number of regulatory and fiscal incentives, such as the right to establish a business, the right to import parts and equipment without duty, the right to keep and use foreign exchange earnings, and sometimes income or property tax breaks.
