The federal government on Monday announced a range of tax incentives designed to attract companies to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec trade corridor between Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, and Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz.
The Finance Ministry (SHCP) said in a statement that among the “significant tax incentives” on offer to companies that invest in the 10 new industrial parks to be established in the Interoceanic Corridor is a “complete exemption” from the requirement to pay income tax during the first three years of operation.
Companies will only have to pay 50% of regular income tax during their subsequent three years of operations, the SCHP said, adding that the discount could reach 90% “if established employment goals are reached.”
The ministry also said there will be an opportunity for “accelerated depreciation of investments” during a company’s first six years in operation, and that business operations conducted in the isthmus region will be exempt from value-added tax (VAT).
“In addition, the recovery of VAT paid on purchases made outside … [the isthmus region] will be allowed for four years … [and] companies will be able to access existing foreign trade benefits, such as the exemption of VAT on temporary imports of supplies, 0% tax on the export of goods and services, and administrative facilities that reduce costs,” the SHCP said.
The ministry said that the tax incentives are designed to “promote economic development in one of the most disadvantaged regions of the country – the southeast.”
They will be available to companies that operate in a range of sectors including automotive, energy generation, semiconductors, medical devices, pharmaceutical, agro-industrial, machinery, information technology and petrochemicals.
“For the government of Mexico, regional development and growth of laggard economic sectors are a priority, particularly in the most disadvantaged or marginalized areas,” the SHCP said.
“The objective is to reduce regional inequalities and promote investment in … [the isthmus], creating jobs and opportunities with decent wages for the local population,” it said.
President López Obrador said last week that a tendering process for the 10 industrial parks planned for the Isthmus of Tehuantepec will be launched in the middle of June.
The Interoceanic Corridor project also includes the modernization of the railroad and highways between Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos, and the expansion of the ports in those cities.
The establishment of the trade corridor – touted by the government as an alternative to the Panama Canal – will allow Mexico to become a “wold shipping power,” Navy Minister José Rafael Ojeda Durán said last week.
The navy is contributing to the project and will be given control of the trade corridor once it is completed.
López Obrador said last Thursday that freight trains will begin running on the new trans-isthmus railroad in August and that passenger services will begin at a later date.
With reports from El EconomistaÂ
