G/SCM/N/343/HND  
3 July 2019 
(19-4426) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Subsidies and  
Countervailing Measures  Original:  Spanish  
 
  
SUBSIDIES  
NEW AND FULL NOTIFICATION PURSUANT TO ARTICLE XVI:1 OF THE  
GATT 1994 AND ARTICLE 25 OF THE AGREEMENT ON  
SUBSIDIES AND COUNTERVAILING MEASURES  
HONDURAS  
The following notification, dated 26 June 2 019, is being circulated at the request of the delegation 
of Honduras.  
 
_______________  
 
 
1. Title of the subsidy programme, if relevant, or brief description o r identification of the subsidy  
 
Temporary Import Reg ime (RIT), and Free Zones.  
 
2. Period  covered by the notification  
 
2017. 
 
3. Policy  objective and/or purpose of the subsidy  
 
These incentives are designed to promote exports, attract investment, stimulate production and 
competitiveness, support human development and create jobs.  
 
4. Background and authority for the subsidy (including identification of the legislation  under 
which it is granted ) 
 
The Temporary Import Regime (RIT) was established for the purpose of  strengthening the Honduran 
economy, boosting domestic production and increasing exports, promoting employment  in 
combination with other national and foreign resources, stimulating investment and 
creating  mechanisms for the development of export industries  and increa sing foreign trade by 
fostering  export diversification . This Regime has its legal basis in Executive Decree No. 37 of 
20 December  1984, as amended by Legislative Decree No. 190-86 of 3 1 October 1 986, Legislative 
Decree No.  8-85 of 7 February 1 985 and Decree No. 135-94 of 2 8 October 1 994, which rescinds the 
exemption from corporate tax for enterprises covered by the regime as from that date.  
 
The purpose of the Law on Free Zones was to take advantage of the geographical location of 
Honduras in the  Central American and Caribbean region in order to provide opportunities for the 
development of domestic and international trade, as well as to create more employment 
opportunities through the establishment of commercial and industrial free zones . It has i ts legal 
basis in Decree  No. 356 of 1 9 July 1 976, as amended by Decree No. 131-98 of 2 0 May 1 998, whereby 
the title of the law setting up the Free Zone of Puerto Cortés was changed to Law on Free Zones and 
the benefits and provisions of the law were extend ed to the entire national territory.  
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  5. Form of the subsidy (i.e. gra nt, loan, tax concession, etc .) 
 
The only benefits granted under the special regimes are exemptions from and suspension (in  the 
case of the Temporary Import Regime) of import duties, tax es and internal charges.  
 
6. To whom  and how the subsidy is provided (whether to producers, to exporters or others ; 
through what mechanism ; whether a fixed or fluctuating amount per unit ; if the latter, how 
determined ) 
 
Temporary Import Regime  
 
The beneficiaries of the Temporary Import Regime are natural and legal persons eligible under the 
regime.  
 
Benefits under the Law : 
 
Producers/exporters duly authorized under this regime are not subject, when importing goods, to 
the payment of customs duties or  any other taxes or charges, including the general sales tax on 
imports.  
 
Free Zones  
Free zone benefits are extended to all Honduran and foreign natural and legal persons eligible under 
the regime as users or user -operators.  
 
Benefits under the Law : 
 
Export -based commercial and industrial enterprises, duly authorized at the time of bringing goods 
into the free zones, are exempt from the payment of customs duties, charges, surcharges and other 
taxes and levies directly or indirectly related to customs i mport operations.  
 
Sales and output in the free zone and commercial and industrial property and establishments located 
therein are exempt from the payment of municipal taxes and charges at the end of the fiscal year . 
Similarly, companies established in thi s zone are exempt from the payment of corporate tax on 
operating profits at the end of the fiscal year.  
 
7. Subsidy  per unit, or in cases where this is not possible, the total amount or the annual amount 
budgeted for that subsidy (indicating, if possible, the average subsidy per unit in the previous 
year) . Where provision of per -unit subsidy information (for the year covered by the 
notification, for the previous year, or both) is n ot possible, a full explanation  
 
The nature of the programmes makes any calcu lation of the amount of the subsidy per unit 
impossible . The information requested can therefore not be provided.  
 
8. Duration  of the subsidy and/or any other time -limits attached to it, including  date of 
inception/commencement  
 
The tax benefits currently grante d to enterprises under the RIT and Free Zone programmes  may be 
enjoyed for a period of up to 12 years ; under the RIT, firms are no longer exempt from corporate 
tax, in accordance with Decree No. 135-94 of 2 8 October 1 994. 
 
9. Statistical data  permitt ing an assessment of the trade effects of the subsidy . The specific 
nature and scope of such statistics is left to the judgment of the notifying Member . To the 
extent possible, relevant and/or determinable, however, it is desirable that such information 
include statistics of production, consumption, imports and exports of the subsidized product(s) 
or sector(s ): 
 
a. for the three most recent years for which statistics are available;  
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  b. for a previous representative year, which, where possible and meaningful, should be 
the latest year preceding the introduction of the subsidy or preceding the last major 
change in the subsidy.  
 
ENTERPRISES ELIGIBLE FOR BENEFITS UNDER THE SPECIAL REGIMES  
2017 
Year  Number of enterprises covered  
 Temporary Import Regime 
(RIT)  Free Zones  
2017 198 245 
 
Source:  Secretariat for  Economic Development  (revised figures)/ RIT and Free Zone  data. 
 
EMPLOYMENT GENERATED BY ENTERPRISES COVERED BY THE SPECIAL REGIMES  
2017 
Year  Number of jobs  
 Temporary Import Regime 
(RIT)  Free Zones  
2017 69,950  120,108  
 
Source:  Secretariat for  Economic Development  (revised figures)/ RIT, ZIP and Free Zone  data. 
 
Note: Although the Law on Export Processing Zones (ZIP ) is still in force, there are no enterprises 
currently operating under the regime, since all of the authorized enterprises asked to withdraw in 
order to be able to benefit from the Free Zone regime instead.  
 
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