U.S. Foreign-Trade Zones Board


  FTZ Home
  FTZ Act
  FTZ Regulations
  Annual Report to Congress
  Site Map
  Contact Us
  Glossary
  Links

FTZ logo
Notices and Board Orders
  Online FTZ Information System (OFIS)  
 
  FTZ Home   Commerce
  Treasury   CBP
 
G e n e r a l  -  P u r p o s e   Z o n e   A p p l i c a t i o n s

The required pre-docketing copy of the application should be sent to our dedicated e-mail address: ftz@trade.gov.

Alternative Site Framework (ASF) Application Format Traditional Site Framework (TSF) Application Guidelines
Checklist

Each customs port of entry is entitled to at least one zone project. Additional zone projects may be approved if it can be shown that the existing project is not adequately serving the public interest.

General-purpose zone sites must be located within 60 miles or 90 minutes driving time of the outer limits of the customs port of entry.

Usually applicants are state and local agencies or public type corporations. Port authorities and economic development agencies are the most prevalent. Corporations submitting applications must be qualified to apply for a zone grant of authority under the laws of the state in which the zone is to be located.

If an application involves a state where inventory is subject to personal property taxation, the application should contain, as an attachment, correspondence from the affected parties (e.g., local school board) indicating their views on the impact of your proposed activity.

Zones are intended to provide a special customs-related service to the business community, giving them greater flexibility in the customs phase of their international competitiveness. An objective of the zone program is to encourage commercial and industrial operations in the United States that would otherwise have been conducted abroad for customs reasons, including export activity. Zones should help create employment, not simply divert it from one region of the country to another.

When an application has been filed, the FTZ staff publishes a notice in the Federal Register opening a public comment period. The applicant also must publish notice in a local newspaper describing the proposal.

There is no fee for an application for the first zone project at a port of entry. The fee for additional general-purpose zones is $3,200. The Federal Tax ID number is 91-2014781. Checks should be made payable to:
U.S. Department of Commerce ITA.

Required Number of Copies: The original, one paper copy and an electronic copy (Adobe PDF format preferred). If you cannot submit a PDF-format copy, you may submit a MS Word-format copy. Note that, in either case, the electronic copy must include color maps and scans of the signed versions of all letters.

Applications should be sent to: Andrew McGilvray, Executive Secretary, Foreign-Trade Zones Board, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Ave., NW, Room 21013, Washington, DC 20230



Export Assistance Centers | Export.gov | ITA Privacy Policy