Juan Federico Fischer, Andersen’s Managing Partner in Uruguay, appointed to Aguada Park Free Trade Zone’s board

Juan Federico Fischer, Andersen’s Managing Partner in Uruguay, was appointed to the board of directors of Aguada Park Free Trade Zone. Aguada Park is one of Uruguay’s leading free trade zones (“zonas francas”), a strategic sector of the country’s economy, representing between 5% and 7% of the country’s GDP in recent years.

Uruguay’s free trade zone legislation was enacted over 30 years ago and the country has developed a dozen free trade zones, most of them logistics-related, and three of them (including Aguada Park) services-oriented.  Global companies establish offices in these tax-exempt environments and sell services to clients worldwide.  The most common services are financial, trading, software, BPO and shared services.

Businesses operating from Uruguay’s free trade zones are exempted from all taxes (current and future ones), including income tax, VAT, import duties and social security tax on foreign workers.  The legislation allows 25% (and in some cases up to 50%) of employees to be foreign nationals.

Aguada Park, founded in 2007 by U.S., European and local investors, is Uruguay’s first services free trade zone and it is strategically located across from Montevideo’s port, next to Uruguay's main telco provider, and two miles from the country’s financial district.  Over 80 companies operate within Aguada Park, employing more than 3,000 people with an average age of 29 years.

For more information on Aguada Park, follow: www.aguadapark.com

Source: Aguada Park