The Zona Franca de Iquique, known by the

acronym An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...

Zofri (in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Free Zone of Iquique), is located in the coastal port city of

Iquique Iquique () is a port city and commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Pampa del Tamarugal, which is part of the Atacama Desert. It has a population of 191,468 ...

, in

Iquique Province Iquique Province ( es, Provincia de Iquique) is one of two provinces in the northern Chilean region of Tarapacá. Its capital is the port city of Iquique. History Until October 2007, the Province of Iquique was composed of 7 communes: Alto Hospic ...

of the

Tarapacá Region The Tarapacá Region ( es, Región de Tarapacá, ) is one of Chile's 16 first-order administrative divisions. It comprises two provinces, Iquique and Tamarugal. It borders the Chilean Arica and Parinacota Region to the north, Bolivia's Oruro D ...

, northwestern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

History

It was created under the

Military government of Chile (1973–1990) A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

Augusto Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (, , , ; 25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean general who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, first as the leader of the Military Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1981, being declared President of ...

on June 25 of 1975, and

zone Zone or The Zone may refer to: Places Climate and altitude zones * Death zone (originally the lethal zone), altitudes above a certain point where the amount of oxygen is insufficient to sustain human life for an extended time span * Frigid zone, ...

Ordonnance In French politics, an ''ordonnance'' (, "order") is a statutory instrument issued by the Council of Ministers in an area of law normally reserved for primary legislation enacted by the French Parliament. They function as temporary statutes pend ...

, in order to support the economic development of the area, as far as jobs and economic integration is about. It has become an important center of trade in foreign countries in the region as

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

and

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

. Its strategic location allows it to be the entrance and exit to products that make trade between the

Mercosur The Southern Common Market, commonly known by Spanish abbreviation Mercosur, and Portuguese Mercosul, is a South American trade bloc established by the Treaty of Asunción in 1991 and Protocol of Ouro Preto in 1994. Its full members are Argentina ...

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

, and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. The ZOFRI administration, by law transfers the equivalent of 15% of its revenue to municipalities in the

and

Arica y Parinacota Region The Arica y Parinacota Region ( es, link=no, Región de Arica y Parinacota ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions. It comprises two provinces, Arica and Parinacota. It borders Peru's Department of Tacna to the north, Bolivi ...

Business lines

Among its business lines include: *Logistics service: receiving merchandise, documentation management, transportation, inventory and shipments. *Real Estate Business: sale or lease of industrial land and lease space at the mall. This line of business represents 75% of revenues.

Administration

ZOFRI S.A. Is the management company and operator of the Zona Franca de Iquique, in concession for 40 years, signed with the State of Chile. Its property is in the hands of

CORFO The Production Development Corporation (CORFO, from es, Corporación de Fomento de la Producción de Chile) is a Chilean governmental organization that was founded in 1939 by President Pedro Aguirre Cerda to promote economic growth in Chile. ...

(over 70% of shares) and the rest in private investors. Its shares are traded on the

Santiago Stock Exchange The Santiago Stock Exchange (SSE) ( es, Bolsa de Comercio de Santiago), founded on November 27, 1893, is Chile's dominant stock exchange, and the third largest stock exchange in Latin America, behind Brazil's BM&F Bovespa, and the Bolsa Mexicana ...

The zone consists of a 240 ha enclosure built north of downtown

known as the «walled enclosure» or «industrial district». Inside a 1650 operating companies that trade goods free of duties and taxes, with annual sales of U.S. $ 2.1 billion (2006). Goods can be stored, processed, finished or sold without restriction. It also has a mall (Mall ZOFRI) of 30,000 m² where more than 600 stores (known as "modules") offer various retail products, highlighting

Perfume Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Th ...

, appliance, electronics, equipment

computing Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and development of both hardware and software. Computing has scientific, e ...

cigarettes A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhaled via the oppo ...

liquor Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or hard ...

toys A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and pet ...

and

costumes Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people. The term also was tradition ...

. Currently the ZOFRI has entered a new expansion that will include more than 1,000 new stores and a new station

Fast Food Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold in a restaurant or store with frozen, preheated or precooked ingredien ...

. ZOFRI S.A. has other assets in the nearby commune

Alto Hospicio Alto Hospicio is a Chilean municipality and commune located next to Iquique, in the Iquique Province, I Region. It is a fast-growing popular area in the heights of Iquique and has a population of 94,254 according to the preliminary result of the ...

, with 129 ha in area, and

Arica Arica ( ; ) is a Communes of Chile, commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The ...

, a city 310 km north of

, 122 ha. The 50% of its revenue comes from leasing and sale of commercial and industrial land. The other 50% is obtained the lease of commercial and service delivery. ZOFRI has been the engine that has driven the economy of this city. Currently generates over 20,000 direct and indirect jobs. One attraction of the city is to go shopping at the Mall ZOFRI where visitors to the city can take up to U.S. $ 1,200 (or 900 €) in free merchandise from payment of customs duty of 6%, Alcohol Law and Tax

tax A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...

19%. Sales mainly abroad are:

and

. Its imports are led by

(

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

), representing 60% of purchases of ZOFRI. The main products are automobiles, machinery, equipment and apparel.

Tax and customs benefits

Companies operating in ZOFRI have the following franchises: * Exemption from payment of the First Category tax. * Exemption from payment of VAT (Value Added Tax) in operations conducted under the free zone regime. * Exemption from payment of VAT (Value Added Tax) for services provided within the enclosure Zofri. From a customs standpoint goods remain within the precincts of Zofri are considered as if they were abroad, therefore the goods leaving the premises ZOFRI to destinations abroad are not taxed. For sales within Chile, there is differentiated tax treatment for sales on the I region or the rest of the country.Memoria Anual Zona Franca de Iquique S.A. – 2007, página 34

References

External links

* �
Official website of Zofri—Zona Franca of Iquique

Infographic about Zofri Trade Free Zone Chile
* �
Soy Iquique
{{coord, 20, 12, 25.47, S, 70, 08, 00.99, W, type:landmark, display=title Iquique Economy of Chile

• In typography, a bullet or bullet point, , is a typographical symbol or glyph used to introduce items in a list. For example: *Point 1 *Point 2 *Point 3 The bullet symbol may take any of a variety of shapes, such as circular, square, diamo ...

Geography of Tarapacá Region 1975 establishments in Chile Architecture in Chile