International Business
In today's global economy, Greater Fort Lauderdale provides an appealing home for multinational corporate and regional headquarters. Centrally positioned in the Western Hemisphere with a diverse pool of well-educated multicultural professional talent, Greater Fort Lauderdale is an inviting location for Latin American, European, Asian and African companies seeking to serve the U.S. and North American markets.
Key business advantages include convenient access to NAP of the Americas global communications hub, and an Eastern time zone location, which makes it easier to hold video and audio conferences with corporate offices around the world.
More than 1,450 multinationals representing 59 nations have offices in the South Florida regional market.
Leading international companies with facilities in Greater Fort Lauderdale include the following:
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Foreign Trade Zones (FTZs)
There are two FTZs in Broward County - FTZ 25, which is located in Port Everglades, and FTZ 241 which is located at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (FXE) and various Broward County Sites.
Companies utilize FTZs in order to reduce operating costs associated with a U.S. location that are avoided when operating from a foreign site. This cost reduction allows firms to maintain cost competitiveness in their U.S. based operations.
Advantages of operating within a Foreign-Trade Zone include:
- Import duties are not paid until the goods leave the Zone.
- Re-exported goods are never entered into U.S. commerce and are not subject to Customs duty.
- No duty is paid on scrap, waste, or damaged goods.
- The company has the use of the duty dollars for the limited time the goods are in the FTZ.
- The final duty rate paid is that of the component part or of the finished article, whichever is lower.
- Products transferred from Zone to Zone are duty free.
- Most merchandise subject to quotas may be held in a Zone until quotas open.
- Customs review of security procedures and Federal laws governing unauthorized removal of Zone merchandise deter theft.
- Due to increased security, discounted cargo insurance rates (up to 40% less) have been negotiated.
For more information on FTZ 241, please contact:
Krystal Permanan
FTZ No. 241 Zone Administrator
[email protected]
For more information on FTZ 25, please contact:
Jorge Hernandez
Port Everglades Director of Business Development
[email protected]
South Florida Consular Corps
South Florida has one of the nation's largest consular corps, providing a multitude of services to international residents, visitors and businesses. More than 100 foreign consulates, foreign trade offices and bi-national chambers of commerce operate in the region, providing market information and helping to forge professional connections that foster business growth.
For more information, visit the state of Florida Economic Development Organization, SelectFlorida or visit the Directory of Consulates, Bi-National Chambers and Sister Cities in Florida
To discover why companies like American Express, BlackBerry, DHL and Citrix call Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County home, please call the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance's International Business Project Manager at 954-627-0132.