G/SCM/N/315/HND  
25 October  2017 
(17-5805) 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 3 October 2 017, 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 Regime (RIT), and Free Zones.  
 
2. Period  covered by the notification  
 
2016 
 
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  1986, Legislative 
Decree No.  8-85 of 7  February  1985 and Decree No.  135-94 of 2 8 October  1994, 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 regi on 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 its legal 
basis in Decree  No. 356 of 19 July 1976, 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 extended 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, taxes 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, includin g 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 import 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 this 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 calculation 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 benefits currently grante d to enterprises under the RIT and Free Zone programmes are 
of indefinite duration.  However, under the RIT, firms are no longer exempt from corporate tax, in 
accordance with Decree No.  135-94 of 2 8 October  1994. 
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  9. Statistical data  permitting an assessment of the trade effects of the sub sidy. 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, impo rts and exports of the subsidized 
product(s) or sector(s ): 
 
a. for the three most recent years for which statistics are available;  
 
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  
2016  
Year Number of enterprises covered  
 Temporary Import Regime 
(RIT)  Free Zones  
2016 315 798 
Source : Secretariat for  Industry and Trade (revised figures)/ RIT and Free Zone  data. 
EMPLOYMENT GENERATED BY ENTERPRISES COVERED BY THE SPECIAL REGIMES  
2016 
Year  Number of jobs  
 Temporary Import Regime 
(RIT)  Free Zones  
2016 74,444  133,446  
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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