Tampa FTZ announces COVID-19 application fee waiver and third-party FTZ service provider annual fee deferral programs

The Tampa Bay/I-4 Corridor Foreign-Trade Zone (TB/I-4 FTZ) project announces the establishment two new programs –the COVID-19 Application Fee Waiver Program and the Third-Party FTZ Service Provider Annual Fee Deferral Program.

COVID-19 Application Fee Waiver Program – From May 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020, all application and activation fees administered by the Tampa Bay/I-4 Corridor FTZ Project will be waived for companies seeking FTZ designation and subsequent FTZ activation. Upon submission, all applications will be reviewed according to the normal TB/I-4 FTZ application process. If approved for FTZ designation, companies will need to establish a Zone Operator’s Agreement with the TB/I-4 FTZ Project before FTZ activity can commence.

Third-Party FTZ Service Provider Annual Fee Deferral Program – All newly approved FTZ designated companies defined as a Third-Party FTZ Service Provider will have annual fees waived until formal activationof their respective designated FTZ sites. In order to have a company’s location designated as an FTZ site, the interested company must submit an FTZ application to the TB/I-4 FTZ Project and if approved establish a Zone Operator’s Agreement with the TB/I-4 FTZ project. A Third-Party FTZ Service Provider is defined as a company/entity that does not own the goods that it manages but provides a service within an FTZ environment associated with the goods that are owned by a different company/entity--services includes, but are not limited to, assembly, kitting, manufacturing, packing, and warehousing/storage.

The establishment of the two new programs is in response to the evolving commercial environment of 2020.  The TB/I-4 FTZ Project wants to ensure that companies located in the Tampa Bay/I-4 Corridor region have access to the FTZ program, which can be leveraged to enhance a company’s supply chain operation, increase a company’s competitiveness in the international market place, and, most importantly, help a company reach its organizational goals.