Special economic zone

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A special economic zone is a mostly spatially delimited geographical area within a state for which there are legal and administrative facilities for investors .

These usually concern customs and tax law , but sometimes also other areas of law such as environmental , labor or social law . A distinction is made between industrial parks , free trade zones (FTZ), export processing zones (EPZ), free economic zones (FEZ), free ports and enterprise zones ( urban enterprise zones ).

The goal of establishing such a zone is usually to increase domestic and foreign direct investment . These should also set economic and technological impulses for the development of the “ hinterland ”.

There are special economic zones in the People's Republic of China , India , North Korea , Uruguay , Russia , Vietnam , Moldova , the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan, among others . In the Trikont states, they were established with the help of the World Bank since the 1950s. The Ukrainian city of Slavutych , a "replacement" for the city ​​of Pripyat , which was contaminated by the Chernobyl disaster , was also declared a special economic zone.

Argentina

The special economic zone Tierra del Fuego (Argentine part) has led to the strong economic development of the cities of Ushuaia and Río Grande since 1972 .

Germany

After the unification of Germany was established , economic experts disagreed as to whether a special economic zone should be set up for rebuilding the East . For example, a government-appointed panel of experts around the former First Mayor of Hamburg Klaus von Dohnanyi pleaded for the establishment of such a zone. However, other politicians found them unenforceable under tax and collective bargaining law and with regard to EU law.

Honduras

Honduras also has special economic zones under the abbreviation "ZEDE" (Zone for Employment and Economic Development) = zones for work and economic development. An attempt is being made there to organize parts of the country under completely private-sector framework conditions.

India

In April 2000, the Indian government decided the eight state-owned export processing zones ( Export Processing Zones - EPZ) in special economic zones ( Special Economic Zones along the lines - SEZ) in China to convert. These are located in:

Later on, special economic zones were also set up in Indore ( Madhya Pradesh ), Jaipur ( Rajasthan ) and Calcutta (West Bengal), 61 more were approved and are in the planning or expansion phase.

No customs duties are levied in the Indian special economic zones . The companies located there have free access to the Indian domestic market. In addition, the government offers a number of other incentives such as tax breaks or even tax exemptions over a certain period of time as well as statutory exemptions. The aim is to attract foreign investors and build internationally competitive, export-oriented industrial companies.

Iran

After the end of the Iran-Iraq war in 1989, the Iranian government sought to boost the ailing economy. To this end, the first five-year plan for economic, social and cultural development was drawn up. As a result of this program, seven free trade zones and several special economic zones were established to attract foreign investors. There are special rules and laws in these areas. Certain Iranian laws do not apply in some areas and there are no restrictions on foreign investor capital.

There are currently (April 2016) seven free trade and industrial zones :

Cuba

In the special zone for development at the industrial port of Mariel , a good 40 kilometers west of Cuba's capital Havana, particularly favorable customs and tax regulations for foreign investors have been in place since November 1, 2013. The special economic zone also posed a challenge to the US, which had maintained an embargo against Cuba for decades . Cuba seems to have just succeeded in establishing an international trading port 120 nautical miles off the coast of Florida .

Lithuania

North Korea

Following the Chinese model and with South Korean investments, four special economic zones have also been established in North Korea since 2000 :

Poland

There are a total of 14 Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in Poland, the term of which extends into 2020. The first European SEZ was the Łódź Special Economic Zone .

Russia

Officially there was only one special economic zone in Russia in the 1990s : Jantar near Kaliningrad . Due to the lack of industrial settlement in the Kaliningrad Oblast during the Cold War, a law on a special economic zone was passed in 1991. In 1996 an improved law was passed because the structures had not achieved the hoped-for success due to inefficiency and corruption. In 2006, the status of the special economic zone was finally set to last for 25 years. A special gambling zone in Kaliningrad is currently being discussed.

At the beginning of the 21st century, an intensive discussion about special economic zones began in Russia. The idea of ​​setting up several special economic zones in Russia based on the Chinese model (especially in Siberia and the Far East) is attributed to ex-Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov in his role as President of the Russian Chambers of Commerce and Industry. In 2005, under the presidency of Vladimir Putin , a corresponding law on special economic zones was passed in the Russian Federation, which stimulated competition in the various oblasts. A federal agency for the management of the special economic zones has been established, which is responsible for the implementation of the program.

By the end of 2010, 25 special economic zones had been designed and confirmed, including a .:

Ukraine

United Arab Emirates

Special economic or free trade zones (FC) were z. B. in Dubai , Ra's al- Khaimah , ( Ras Al Khaimah Free Trade Zone ) Ajman and Fujairah . This is the only place where companies can be founded without domestic shareholders and preferential conditions apply to their taxation. How differentiated the system of free trade zones is now can be shown using the example of Dubai (as of mid-2009):

  • Jebel Ali Free Zone ( free zone , surrounding areas far into the hinterland)
  • Dubai Internet City FZ (no content restrictions)
  • Dubai Media City FZ (international productions, no circulation)
  • Knowledge Village FZ (unconditional offshoots of international universities)
  • Dubai Airport FZ (like free port zone, large surrounding areas)
  • Gold and Diamond Park FZ (jewelry trade)
  • Cars and Automotive FZ (cheaper automobiles)
  • Metals and Commodities FZ (promotes the handling of raw materials)
  • Dubai Silicon Oasis FZ (a Silicon Valley clone, tax reduced)
  • Dubai Maritime City FZ (Maritime Services, Tax Reduced)
  • Dubai Aid City FZ (international health offers, tax reduced)

People's Republic of China

The Special Economic Zones of the People's Republic of China

In the Chinese special economic zones, special stands for the economic system and economic policy . This means that the central government gives the special economic zones the right to pursue a specific economic policy. There are special tax breaks for investments in the special economic zones.

The economic system of the special economic zones is based on the following four principles:

  • Construction is done to attract and use foreign capital
  • The predominant economic subjects are Sino-foreign joint ventures and partnerships, as well as foreign companies
  • The production is primarily intended for export .
  • Economic activities are determined by the market .

Special economic zones have a special status in national planning (including financial planning ) and have the same rights as a province in their economic administration. The local government of a special economic zone has the right to legislate.

List of special economic zones:

In addition, the People's Republic has declared the entire coast from the Korean to the Vietnamese border (with the exception of the mouth of the Huang He) as an open coastal area and the following ports as open coastal cities (all of them former treaty ports ):

In addition, numerous inland cities were reopened.

There are doubts among economists as to whether the majority of the 60 or so special economic zones will return the invested amounts as tax revenue.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Anselm Waldermann: The idea of ​​making East Germany a special economic zone is old - experts don't think much of it. An evergreen of the economic politicians Berliner Zeitung , April 6, 2004
  2. ↑ No particular peripheral or island location: Special Economic Zone East would contradict EU law Handelsblatt , April 7, 2004
  3. ↑ Norbert Peche: It is the people themselves. How the upswing in the east can still succeed. Ch. Links Verlag, Berlin 2007. Reviewed by Uwe Stolzmann Deutschlandradio Kultur , September 12, 2007
  4. ↑ Special economic zones in Honduras: The reinvention of the banana republic on deutschlandfunk.de from November 22, 2017.
  5. ↑ Corruption overshadows "Charter City" in Honduras on amerika21.de from Aug. 25, 2015.
  6. ↑ sezindia.nic.in - Special Economic Zones in India (English)
  7. ↑ Cuba opens special economic zone in the port of Mariel
  8. ^ Stephan Kudert , Marcin Jamrozy: Polish Special Economic Zones: Opportunities and Risks for German Entrepreneurs June 8, 2010
  9. ↑ Brigitte Jaeger-Dabek: Poland: Success Story Special Economic Zones Poland Magazine, April 12, 2013
  10. ↑ Sonja Volkmann-Schluck: Poland: We drive to Lodz Tagesspiegel , July 27, 2007
  11. ↑ Special Economic Zones in China China9.de, accessed on March 30, 2017
  12. ↑ In conversation with: Victor Shih, Northwestern University: China's debts are bigger than perceived ; FAZ of March 12, 2010 , accessed on June 10, 2011