Faced with tariff rearmaments, the tax centers of our country study new operational advantages to strengthen international trade
The undersecretary, Pilar Paneque, showed her satisfaction with the recent Ministerial Order of the Government that gives the green light to the Bahía de Algeciras tax facility
Chaired by the Undersecretary of the Treasury, María del Pilar Paneque, the fifth working meeting of the coordination group of the delegates of the Spanish free zones was held today in Vigo. The person in charge of the Galician facility, David Regades, welcomed the top officials of these institutions, among whom was the delegate of the Cádiz Free Trade Zone, Victoria Rodríguez, who today are once again positioning themselves as spaces that facilitate international trade.
In this meeting in which, in addition to the Undersecretary of the Treasury, Pilar Paneque, the heads of the free zones of Vigo, Cádiz, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Santander and Seville have participated in person, the delegate and the lawyer of the State of the Free Zone of Barcelona have also participated via videoconference.
As explained in the joint press conference given by the delegate of Vigo and the Undersecretary of the Treasury, this morning's work has made substantial progress in the participation of the free zones in the European Ports 4.0 project through a digitalization and software project with the aim of maximizing the effectiveness and uniformity of the procedures in the free zones of Spain, which will benefit greater efficiency in port traffic.
Also, through the Undersecretariat, the seven free zones have committed to developing policies in line with the Sustainable Development Goals and the new computer tool has been analyzed through which the free zones will be connected to the Customs services, an application that will make it possible in June of next year for the free zones to be open to the merchandise clearance needs of the companies that operate through their facilities 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.
Pilar Paneque has mentioned and expressed her satisfaction with the recent Ministerial Order that the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, presented in Algeciras on October 1 that gives the green light to the Bahía de Algeciras tax precinct that will manage the Cádiz Free Zone.
Analyzing the tariff rearms that are taking place on a global scale, either because the new United States taxes come into effect today on the entry into its territory of products from the primary sector, or due to the consequences of Brexit on the 31st, Regades explained that “free zones are presented as a competitive advantage for their territories and in that regard we are studying implementing joint actions to facilitate refund measures for the export of products such as oil and wine that today have become more expensive by 25 percent in its trade with the United States”
The group of seven free zones has also agreed to carry out joint international commercial actions at international fairs and conferences with the aim of promoting the Spanish Free Zone brand. For this international presence, the free zones, which depend on the Ministry of Finance, will also establish lines of collaboration with the Ministry of Commerce and with the ICEX.