Organic Law of Areas of Employment and Economic Development in Honduras
In 2013, the National Congress of the Republic of Honduras, approved the Organic Law of Areas of Employment and Economic Development (from now on called ZEDE, by its acronyms in Spanish).
The ZEDE are territorial spaces highly attractive to the national and foreign investment. According to the established law, the ZEDE have a legal personality, are authorized to establish their own politics and normative, and also will enjoy of functional and administrative autonomy. They will also have autonomous and independent courts with exclusive competition within them.
The ZEDE can be created with the objective of developing National and International Financial Centers, International Logistic Centers, Autonomous Cities, International Commercial Courts, Special Districts of Investment, Renewable Energy Districts, Special Economic Areas, Areas subject to a Special Juridical System, Special Agroindustrial Areas, Special Tourism Areas, Special Mining Areas, Social Forest Areas or any other regimen that includes a combination of various of this regimes, to procure the development of investment under inclusive models and other analogs.
The Law establishes that the special fiscal regime of the Areas of Employment and Economic Development, authorized them to create their own budget, the right to collect and manage their own taxes. They will have an independent fiscal regimen and must be oriented to a low tax politic.
It is intended to offer the investors, through the ZEDE, a major juridical security protected by the Constitution, where they will have higher competitive levels. The investors will be able to compromise under politics of free trade and competition, covered by a common or Anglo-Saxon right. They will also have free conversion, free capital circulation, inwards and outwards. The exchange market, gold, securities, futures and goods may freely exist.
As it can be captured from previous descriptions, it is an innovative figure, but that for some characteristics that presents it is not accepted 100% by the population, since the ones who oppose, argue the loss of sovereignty.
It is not our purpose to raise the arguments of the parties, but rather provide information regarding to an approved law that presents attractive conditions for the investor.
Gabriela Aguirre Barahona
Associate
García & Bodán
Honduras