What is a Foreign Trade Zone?

Authorized by the Foreign-Trade Zones Act of 1934, a FTZ is a federally approved location within the United States, which is considered outside of US Customs territory where domestic and foreign merchandise may be placed without formal Customs entry and without payment of duties and taxes. While most FTZs are located near ports of entry, you don’t have to relocate your facility to a special location to use the FTZ program. The program is available to most U.S.-based companies and can be established in industrial parks, distribution centers and warehouse facilities. FTZs can be multi-user facilities or specific to one company’s use.