Concession agreements confirmcommitments on the part of sponsoring governments to deliver policy reforms toareas run by the Startup Society concessionaires, They further set out theConcessionaires’ responsibilities for funding and operating projects thatbenefit from the new policies. Finally, the agreements commit theConcessionaire to land rent-sharing and infrastructure asset transfersbenefiting the host community.
For a phased Startup Society project,the Guidebook recommends three Concession agreements:
● Quickstart Concession (with the localPartner as concessionaire);
● Endowment Zone Concession (with alocally-established Community Land Trust as concessionaire); and
● Expansion Area Concession (with StartupSociety Venture as concessionaire for an agreed period, after which itsconcession transfers to the local Land Trust).
Generalpolicy reform principles for all concessions
● Reforms should attract both businesses and residents. Policy reforms should enable theConcessionaires to create business areas and residential developments toattract people on a short- and long-stay basis.
● Fast-track reforms should focus on a Quickstart and Endowment Zone site. Such policies should permit thedeveloper to use low cost, movable buildings as well as off-gridinfrastructure. This approach allows the venture to keep early financial riskto an absolute minimum. (Movable business and residential structures also canbe relocated to other areas as a fallback, if the first location does notprosper.)
● Deeper reforms should follow for large expansion areas. Far-reaching reforms can be activatedautomatically as soon as the initial pilot site succeeds. The deeper reformsattract large inflows of outside capital to pre-agreed expansion areas. Theyenable the Startup Society to grow into a very large development.
The reform opportunities listed here areoffered as a menu of options. The Venture and its chosen local partner canselect those that they feel are best suited.
“Low” Reforms (for Quickstart and Endowment Zone concessions)
The Startup Society at the outset should focus on low-hanging fruit – policy reforms that can be rapidly adopted,delivering, immediate benefits for the local Quickstart partner and to theCommunity Land Trust-held Endowment Zone.
Reforms benefiting businesses
Elements of an initial business reform package include the followingprocedural changes:
● Posting all forms, regulations andapproval policies on the web;
● Presenting all procedural steps ineasy-to-follow online diagrams, enabling investors and residents to visuallyunderstand how to interact with the public sector;
● Assuring automatic incentive eligibilityfor qualifying companies without discrimination based on size or ownership; and
● Committing to time-guaranteed responseand approval processes.
Substantive policy changes include:
● Recognizing the freedom of full andpart-time entrepreneurs to contract for work in online marketplaces;
● Respecting the right of entrepreneurs toearn and hold currencies of their choosing (including crypto-currencies andPaypal accounts);
● Allowing the Concessionaires to offeronsite and online courses and certifications;
● Allowing the Concessionaires to offeralternative wellness and health care services to residents and visitors, and toprovide telediagnostic support and Continuing Medical Education courses tolocal health practitioners;
● Allowing theConcessionaires to constructor bring in portable dwellings that meet international standards to providebusinesses with office or commercial space;
● Allowing the Concessionaires to offermarket-priced local area network and global telecommunications/Internet accessfor full and part-time business users;
● Allowing the Concessionaires toself-provide other innovative private solutions for energy, electrical power,transportation, and water/waste treatment.
● Allowing the Concessionaires to provideand market Estonia-style “eResidency”-style opportunities, for individuals and firms that seek tovirtually affiliate with and operate online businesses in the Startup Society;
● Allowing the Concessionaires toestablish mediation and binding arbitration provisions regarding onsite andvirtual business disputes that may arise; and
● Providing tax relief – on an automaticbasis and for a duration to be mutually-agreed upon – from both existing andany new levies.
Reforms benefiting Quickstart and Endowment Zone residents
● Allowing Concessionaires to establishground lease-based Homeowners Associations and/or Condominium Associations,with covenants committing residents to share the costs of common infrastructureand services;
● Establishing an “Ecovillage” zoningcategory, under which theConcessionaires can offer private solutions forenergy, roads and transportation services, microfarming, and water/wastetreatment that satisfy international health and safety standards;
● Allowing the Concessionaires to bring inportable dwellings and recreational vehicles that also satisfy internationalstandards (e.g. ANSI 119.2 or 119.5) to provide short-stay or ongoingresidential accommodations;
● Lifting the minimum square footrequirement for such accommodations;
● Lifting the maximum length of stay insuch dwellings (many jurisdictions now allow only seasonal stays), provided thehomes have adequate insulation for year-round living, and comply withinternational sanitation and heating/ventilating/cooling standards;
● Streamlining the inspection andpermitting process for new construction of small homes on foundations, and forobtaining occupancy permits;
● Providing timely public utilityinterconnections, should such be requested by the Startup Society;
● Authorizing residents to operatehome-based businesses, provided they sign and adhere to a pre-agreed Code ofGood Conduct; and
● Allowing the Concessionaires toestablish mediation and arbitration provisions binding on all residents regardingdisputes that may arise.
“High” Reforms (for Expansion Area concession)
The policy changes in this bundle should incorporate the baseline reforms to beactivated in the pilot Quickstart areas. But they go farther so as to help anow-marginalized location stand out as a world-class opportunity for IntegratedStartup Society development.
General principles
To ensure market-sensitive development at little or no cost to the hostgovernment, the following overall framework ideally can apply in the expansionarea(s):
● At nominal upfront cost, the StartupSociety Venture receives a 50-70 year leasehold to improve and develop idlepublic lands or other properties;
● The government allows the venture toprivately plan, finance, and operate real estate developments on these leasedsites as tax-free autonomous communities;
● The government agrees that the StartupSociety venture may create self-administering contractual codes of conduct toensure against transgressive behavior, through covenants signed by allbusinesses and residents;
● The government agrees that the StartupSociety venture may put some or all of the development opportunities on theleased sites up to transparent and open global tenders, and to share upfrontand ongoing proceeds from these tenders on a pre-agreed formula with thefounding local partners; and
● The government recognizes that theStartup Society may use choice-of-jurisdiction provisions via ULEX (similar toDubai’s International Financial Center and Honduras’s ZEDE allowing participantsto choose among globally-recognized legal frameworks when entering contracts oradjudicating disputes);
● The government agrees to introduceperformance-based bonuses for oversight bodies after the Singapore flexi-wageNational Bonus precedent. This rewards civil servants with annual budget andsalary increases proportional to the Startup Society’s overall economicperformance, including growth of ground lease revenues.
eGovernance in the Expansion Area
As a way of ensuring a clear alternativeto shortfalls in public institutions, the government can be asked for reformsenabling the Startup Society expansion area to enjoy:
● Online mediation and dispute resolutionservices;
● Online company formation and reportingsystems;
● Recognition of digital notarization, contracting,and authentication distributed ledgers, digital signatures and contractsexecuted in digital originals;
● Property titling/deed registry systemsusing distributed ledger platforms (e.g. Blockchain/Holochain); and
● Online permitting and licensing provisions(defined by the Startup Society venture and implemented with highly respectedand accountable eGovernment service providers).
Infrastructure and utilities in theExpansion Area
The government can agree to the following reforms to bring market-basedinfrastructure and utilities to the Startup Society’s expansion area:
● Full demonopolization oftelecommunications and other utilities within the Startup Society expansionarea on the basis of technical non-interference and mutually-agreed interconnectionrights under a “baseball rules” or similar final arbitration system. Othertelecommunication incentives include spectrum privatization (on a leaseholdbasis), Intelsat coordination assistance, and access to Intelsat or othermultilateral carrier signatory pricing for private providers in the area.
● Private road, rail, port and/or airportsub-concessions, including “open skies” policies for international airportslocated within designated large Startup Society areas. (Note:when a world-class policy reform bundle is agreed to, the Startup Societyventure may agree to convey privately developed infrastructure assets over anagreed period via Build-Operate-Transfer agreements benefiting institutions andresidents of the host country).
Business freedoms in the Expansion Area
For businesses (including real estate developers) operating in theexpansion area, the Government can agree to the following policy reforms:
● No license required for import or export(instead, the Startup Society should institute a through a written agreementwith Government a “negative list” of prohibited imports);
● Lifting of Customs duties, quotas, orother trade barriers on all non-prohibited goods destined for use within theStartup Society or for re-export to global markets;
● Spot check and electronicaudit/inspection of cargos by accountable global contracting services, ratherthan routine physical examination by traditional bodies (in cases where Customscorruption has been rampant);
● All official inspections of businessesto be conducted with body cameras or other video recording devices, encryptedand streamed to a mutually-agreed independent “data vault” service (to beopened under due process procedures in the event of suspected abuse by anyparty);
● Full freedom of subcontracting;
● No price or margin controls on goods orservices;
● Liberalized labor codes, except withregard to worker health and safety provisions. Note: the easing of constraintson hiring, firing, and compensation can be limited to expansion areas where theStartup Society developer agrees to vest employees (or organizations of eachemployee’s choosing) as recipients of shares of annual ground leases in theexpansion area, or as beneficiaries of Build-Operate-Transfer agreementsconveying ownership of infrastructure assets in that area over time;
● Tax holidays or radical reduction oftaxes for businesses;
● “One stop” approval processes for businessstartups;
● Automatic work permits foremployer-sponsored candidates passing background check procedures as mutuallyagreed to by the host government and the Startup Society venture;
● All environmentally responsible serviceindustries (including financial and insurance services, learning ventures andnonprofits), commercial ventures, manufacturing, and storage/distributionoperations are welcomed, unless they are in breach of the Startup Society’sCode of Conduct and/or applicable provisions of the host country’s criminallaw; and
● Automatic authorization in the expansionarea of Startup Society-approved Research and Development initiatives in healthcare and life sciences, provided that the initiatives pose no risk to citizensof the host community and country and that they agree to open sourcepublication on a timely basis of their research progress.
Freedoms for Private Residential Communities in Expansion Area
As a means of , the government agreesthat the Startup Society expansion area may apply:
● Automatic authorization in the expansionarea of Startup Society-approved tourism and residential developments thatcommit to adhering to pre-agreed Codes of Conduct;
● Providing relief from local taxes forhomeowners, to the degree that the Startup Society arranges to self-provideinfrastructure and services in the expansion area without expense to surroundingtaxpayers.
● Investor visa and economic citizenshipopportunities for global investors,entrepreneurs and economic migrants seeking to become residents in the StartupSociety expansion area (applicants seeking residence would be approved unlessthey fail background check procedures as mutually agreed to by the hostgovernment and the Startup Society venture).
Concession Framework for Expansion Area Development
The following provisions are the basisfor a Concession to privately develop the Expansion Area as a World City. Theprovisions below are intended to make [AreaName] an unsurpassed location forbusiness and residential development.
I. INTRODUCTION
The Concept
The Expansion Area Concession is for amulti-used development site (as large as __ square kilometers) benefiting fromexceptionally liberalized economic policies. Businesses operating in the Expansion Area will not be subject to thetraditional regulatory system. Instead,the Expansion Area Concession Authority (referred to hereafter as World CityAuthority) will administer and regulate activity within the ExpansionArea. In addition to a liberalregulatory environment, businesses operating in the Expansion Area Concessionwill not be subject to any taxation. Expansion Area businesses will not be allowed to deliver goods in thenational customs territory of the host country without paying applicableCustoms duties. Expansion Area Concession companies will, however, be allowedto provide services to host country entities. When providing such services, host country entities will comply with allhost country regulations for dealings with non-domestic companies.
The Benefits
The Expansion Area Concession willfacilitate international trade and investment between the rest of the world andthe host country. The Expansion Area Concession will reduce barriers tocurrency exchange, international communication, foreign direct investment inthe host country and investment abroad by host country companies, and otherareas in which the host country is in need of a liberalized area to facilitateits dealings with foreign entities.
As the Expansion Area Concession will behost to global companies, the Expansion Area Concession will provide suchcompanies with a highly trusted business environment. As Expansion Areacompanies become more familiar with the host country, they will begin to investor bring other investors directly into the host country.
II. PROPERTY RIGHTS ANDADMINISTRATION
[CountryName] Regional Administrationwill commit to allowing administration of the Expansion Area Concession by[ConcessionaireName]. The Government orits assignees will retain ownership of all public land within each ExpansionArea Concession, leasing the land at nominal cost to [ConcessionaireName]. [ConcessionaireName], in turn, shall subleaseparcels to Expansion Area businesses and residents. A standard portion of the annual ground leaserevenues from the subleases shall be shared by [ConcessionaireName] with theEndowment Zone Community Land Trust and the host country government. Thepre-set portions shall be [___ percent and ___ respectively].
A. World City Authority
1. The Government or other [CountryName]assignees shall retain ownership of all public land in the Expansion AreaConcession, but lease the land and all publicly owned buildings and facilitieswithin it at a nominal price to [ConcessionaireName] property managementorganization, called the World City Authority, for a period of [__] years.After this period expires, the ExpansionArea Concession shall convey to the Endowment Zone Community Land Trust. TheTrust henceforth will receive the full benefit of the ground lease revenueearnings and ownership of all privately-funded infrastructure developed underBuild-Operate-Transfer agreements between the ConcessionaireName and its chosensubconcessionaires.
2. Prior to the end of its long-termlease, the World City Authority shall sublease the Expansion Area land toConcession investors and businesses.
B. Composition
The World City Authority will becomposed of nine (9) members. Twomembers shall be representatives of the [CountryName’s] Ministry of Finance,one member shall be a representative of the [CountryName’s] central bank, andsix (6) members shall be representatives of [ConcessionaireName]. At least three of the [ConcessionaireName]members shall be citizens of the host country. All members of the World City Authority shall have either an educationin economics or business and/or at least seven years relevant experience inbusiness or economics.
C. Lease Revenues
1. Ten percent of the annual sublease revenues paid to theWorld City Authority by Expansion Area Concession investors and businessesshall be shared with the host country.
2. Such revenues paid by the World City Authority to thehost country shall be retained by the host country.
D. Property Rights
Any improvements in the Expansion AreaConcession during the period of the World City Authority lease, includinginfrastructure, buildings, housing, and other facilities, shall be owned andoperated by the World City Authority, its designated developers, and/or itssublessees in good standing. At the end of the 99-year World City Authoritylease period, however, ownership over all such improvements shall revert todesignated private sector development and training institutions in the hostcountry, and shall be included in any re-lease to the World City Authority.
E. Powers
1. The World City Authority will be responsible forenforcing the Expansion Area Concession regulations. The World City Authority will be responsiblefor enforcing mandatory Expansion Area Concession regulations as well assupervising self-regulating institutions in the Expansion Area Concession.
2. The World City Authoritywill superviseany host country agencies and authorities whose jurisdiction includes theExpansion Area Concession. The WorldCity Authority will be responsible for insuring that all applicable hostcountry legislation in enforced in the Expansion Area Concession.
III. EXPANSION AREA BUSINESSES
The host country should allowauthorization for establishment of Expansion Area Concession businesses andenterprises to be granted by the World City Authority through a one-stopapplication process for registration and certification. Expansion Area Concession businesses shouldbe allowed to pursue any of the following business activities:
A. Activity in the Expansion AreaConcession
The following activities will bepermitted in the Expansion Area Concession:
Residential Communities
Resorts
Commercial and retail businesses
Agroindustries
Banking and Financing Activities
· Taking of Deposits (all deposits must be denominated in aforeign currency)
· Foreign currency transactions
· Lending
· Leasing
· Factoring
· Issuance of Credit and Debit Cards
· Financial Engineering
· Issue and Underwriting Activities
Insurance
· Direct Insurance Activities
· Re-Insurance
· Brokerage
· Captives and Captive Management
· Fund Management
Management of Funds
· Corporate Investments
· Pension Funds
· Assurance/Insurance Company Funds
· Corporate Treasury
Trading and Brokerage Operations
· Futures and Options
· Equities
· Bonds
· Risk Transfer Instruments
· Commercial Paper
Financial Consulting
· Financial Consulting
· Auditing and Accounting
· Legal
Back Office Operations
· Data Processing
· Clearinghouse Operations
· Communications
· Information Services
· Share Registration
· International Electronic Gaming Operations
Assembly and Manufacturing Operations
· Apparel and electronic assembly
· Mineral and agricultural processingoperations
· Other light and heavy assembly and manufacturing
Supporting Infrastructure and ServiceProviders (including subconcessionaires responsible for roads, airport, port,electrical power, water/sanitation, and other utilities and amenities approvedby ConcessionaireName).
B. Business Entry
1. The World City Authority shallmaintain a procedure for completing registration and certification within onemonth from the submission of the appropriate application. Applicants whose registration and certificationapplication are approved by the World City Authority will be issued anExpansion Area Concession Business License valid for 99 years, unless revokedby the World City Authority.
2. Registration and certification shallbe open to any law abiding private or public entity, body, group, or individualthat specifies an intent to pursue a lawful business activity within theExpansion Area Concession, and agrees to abide by all applicable legal mandatesand to maintain good behavior. The entity, body, group, or individual willprovide the following as part of its application:
a) general information regardingits history and ownership;
b) details of the proposedbusiness;
c) staffing requirements;
d) financial/capital structure;
e) detailed financial projectionsand a business plan;
Neither the host country nor the WorldCity Authority will exclude entry into an Expansion Area Concession by any lawabiding applicant except if the World City Authority is convinced that theinformation provided to it by the applicant is false or has beenmisrepresented. Should the World CityAuthority deny an application, it will provide the applicant with a detailedexplanation as for the denial. Theapplicant will have the opportunity to submit an appeal to the World CityAuthority. Should an applicant submit anappeal, the World City Authority will have 30 days to review and decide theappeal.
C. Business Functions and Responsibilities
1. Expansion Area Concession businesses shall be free toengage only in the business, professional, financial or commercial activitydescribed in the Expansion Area Concession Business License issued by the WorldCity Authority.
2. The host country shall not require any license or permitto engage in any business, industrial, professional, financial, or commercialactivity, other than the Expansion Area Concession Business License.
3. In the case of telecommunications services, the WorldCity Authority shall arrange for or provide all necessary equipment andservices for the installation, testing, operation, distribution, andmaintenance of telecommunications equipment and services within the ExpansionArea Concession. In the act of designating the Expansion Area Concession, theGovernment shall grant to the [ConcessionaireName]-led development consortiuman exclusive license to build, operate, maintain communications facilities,networks and systems for and within the Expansion Area Concession, to providetelecommunications services for the Expansion Area Concession, and to transferor assign any such right to individuals or enterprises of the World CityAuthority’s choosing. ConcessionaireName has rights to conclude agreements forinternational cable landing rights, mobile phone services, transbordermicrowave or other electronic or optical communications services. In caseswhere the World City Authority or its assignees as applicable) desires toobtain services from (or coordinate alternative satellite system usage with)multilateral organizations such as INTELSAT and INMARSAT, the host countrygovernment shall assist the World City Authority in its requests for suchservices or coordination. The host country government shall pass through to theWorld City Authority (or its assignees as applicable) the most favorable ratesfor circuits available to national signatories for INTELSAT and INMARSATinternational telecommunications services, with a markup equivalent to no morethan five (5) percent of the respective circuit charges paid by the hostcountry signatory. The host country and the World City Authority (or theirassignees as applicable) shall grant mutual rights of interconnection to theirrespective communications systems, on condition that the terms and conditionsfor such interconnection are cost-based and reasonable, and that net amountsowed in settlements are paid on a monthly basis. The host country governmentand the World City Authority shall ensure that their telecommunications systemsdo not interfere in an injurious manner with the telecommunications systemsoperated by each other, or those operated by private parties to whom the hostcountry government or World City Authority may transfer or assign theirrespective telecommunications rights.
4. Powers of Expansion Area Concession businesses shall inparticular include the right to engage in the activity specified in theExpansion Area Concession Business License, subject to applicable health,safety and environment regulations.
IV. TAXATION
Within the Expansion Area Concession,there will be no taxation. This shall include, but not be limited to, thefollowing policies.
A. Income Taxes
1. Within the designated Expansion Area Concession, the hostcountry shall not impose any income tax, corporate, business, or company tax,capital gains tax, or any other tax on income arising or produced in theExpansion Area Concession, whether accruing to businesses, workers, or otherindividuals.
2. The host country shall similarly not impose any tax ondividends paid on shares in companies devoted to developing property within theExpansion Area Concession or to operating any other business enterprise in theExpansion Area Concession, nor shall it impose any capital gains tax or othertax on the sale of shares in such companies.
B. Property Taxes
1. The host country shall not impose any property tax, landappreciation tax, development tax, building tax or other tax on real propertywithin the Expansion Area Concession.
2. The host country shall not impose taxes on personalproperty of any kind within the Expansion Area Concession.
3. The host country shall not impose any wealth tax or assettax of any kind on Expansion Area Concession businesses.
C. Sales or Lease Taxes
1. The host country shall not impose any sales tax, excisetax, purchase tax, transaction tax, value added tax, turnover tax, consumptiontax, or other tax on any good, service, personal property, or real propertywithin the Expansion Area Concession, sold by Expansion Area Concessiondevelopers or businesses to nonresidents of the host country or to otherExpansion Area Concession developers or businesses.
2. The host country shall not impose any lease tax, rentalpayments tax, sales tax, purchase tax, transaction tax, value added tax, turnover tax, or other tax of any kind on the sale or lease of real property withinthe Expansion Area Concession to any business or individual, citizen ornon-citizen.
D. Payroll Taxes
The host country shall not impose anypayroll taxes on employers or employees in the Expansion Area Concession,including social insurance taxes, retirement benefits taxes, health benefitstaxes, unemployment compensation taxes, or workman’s compensation taxes.
E. Other Taxes
The host country or any subdivisionthereof shall not impose any municipal taxes or fees, permit fees, consentfees, official or planning fees, or other taxes or fees, including user fees onExpansion Area Concession developers, businesses, or residents.
V. FOREIGN EXCHANGE
The host country should allow fullfreedom of any foreign exchange transaction and of the transfer of capital andprofits into and out of the Expansion Area Concession, without taxation orregulatory restriction. This shall include,but not be limited to, the following policies.
A. Currency Exchanges and Transactions
1. Each Expansion Area Concession developer or businessshall be free to exchange any currency for any other currency at whatevermarket rate could be obtained.
2. Each Expansion Area Concession developer or businessshall be free to perform any transaction or enter into any contractualcommitment in any currency. This shallapply as well to purchases from host country businesses or individuals outsidethe Expansion Area Concession, and to payment of wages and salaries toExpansion Area Concession employees.
3. Each Expansion Area Concession developer or businessshall be free to make investments, draw profits, or borrow in any currency.
4. Each Expansion Area Concession developer or businessshall be free to open and hold bank accounts and deposits in any currency.
5. The term “currency” as used above shall includeany voluntarily adopted medium of exchange, including gold bullion and electroniccash.
B. Movement of Capital
The host country shall not imposeexchange controls or other restrictions on movement of funds into or out of theExpansion Area Concession. This shall inparticular allow Expansion Area Concession developers and businesses toexpatriate profits from the Expansion Area Concession to any other country andto reinvest funds held in the Expansion Area Concession anywhere else in theworld.
C. Taxes
The host country shall not impose anycurrency conversion tax or other tax on foreign exchange transactions or on anymovement of funds into or out of the Expansion Area Concession.
VI. REGULATION
The host country should commit tominimal, if any, regulatory restrictions involving the economic aspects of commercialtransactions, but shall maintain regulations protecting public health andsafety to the extent necessary. This shall include, but not be limited to, thefollowing policies.
A. Price and Profit Controls
1. The host country shall maintain no restrictions regardingthe price of any good, service, or real or personal property sold within theExpansion Area Concession, or regarding interest charged on any financialinstrument.
2. The host country shall maintain no restrictions regardingthe rent charged for any real or personal property leased within the ExpansionArea Concession.
3. The host country shall maintain no restrictions regardingthe margin or profits that may be received for the sale or lease of any good,service, or real or personal property within the Expansion Area Concession.
B. Labor Regulation
4. The host country shall not apply its labor laws andregulations to employment within the Expansion Area Concession, except forregulations regarding the health and safety of workers.
5. As a result, no restrictions or requirements regardingunionization, collective bargaining, or strikes, shall apply within theExpansion Area Concession.
6. No minimum wage law or other controls over the amount ofwages shall apply within the Expansion Area Concession.
7. No requirements regarding the hiring or dismissal ofworkers shall apply within the Expansion Area Concession.
8. No requirements regarding minimum work hours, overtimepay, holidays, vacations, sick leave, severance pay, or any fringe benefitsshall apply within the Expansion Area Concession.
9. No requirements regarding worker participation in managementor commercial decisions shall apply within the Expansion Area Concession.
10. Individuals shall be free to engage inany work, employment, activity, or profession within the Expansion AreaConcession that does not involve physical force or fraud, without obtaining anysort of Governmental license or permit.
11. Any civil matter regarding disputesbetween employer and employee shall be resolved through the general arbitrationsystem of the Expansion Area Concession. No special labor code or labor arbitration body, even if existing in thehost country, shall have jurisdiction in the Expansion Area Concession.
12. Citizens of the host country outside ofthe Expansion Area Concession shall be free to accept and pursue any lawfulemployment within the Expansion Area Concession.
C. Financial Regulation
Regulations of the host country regardingbanking, security transactions, and insurance transactions shall not applywithin the Expansion Area Concession. Instead, activities within these areas shall be regulated by industrycodes developed by mutual agreement of the firms in each industry.
D. Zoning and Land Use Regulation
1. The host country shall not apply any zoning or land useregulations within the Expansion Area Concession.
2. The World City Authority shall haveauthority to require covenants addressing the concerns usually dealt with byzoning and land use regulation.
E. Health, Safety, and the Environment
The host country shall continue todefine the standards it chose regarding desired outcomes in public health,safety, and the environment within the Expansion Area Concession, under acommitment that regulations or covenantsto achieve those outcomes shall be no more restrictive or burdensome thannecessary to achieve those outcomes.
VII. IMPORTS INTO THE EXPANSION AREA
A. Customs Duties and Taxes
The host country shall impose no customsduties, tariffs, entry taxes, consumption taxes, registration fees, stampedduties, value added taxes, transaction taxes, or other taxes, on imports intoan Expansion Area Concession for use by Expansion Area Concession developers orbusinesses.
B. Permits, Licenses and Restrictions
1. The host country shall not require Expansion AreaConcession developers or businesses to obtain any import licenses in order toimport into the Expansion Area Concession.
2. The host country shall not impose any import quotas orprohibitions on imports into an Expansion Area Concession to Expansion AreaConcession developers or businesses, except for
a. substances whose use or manufacture is prohibited withinthe host country; and
b. military arms, equipment, weapons, explosives, andsimilar items.
3. 3. The host country shall not impose any domestic contentrequirements on goods or personal property imported into the Expansion AreaConcession.
VIII. EXPANSION AREA VISAS
The host country should commit toallowing free entry and exit of people who pass pre-agreed background checksinto or out of the Expansion Area Concession, to work, to provide services, tonegotiate and conduct transactions, to visit, and to stay with friends andrelatives. The host country shall nothave to grant citizenship to any such entrants or allow them to enter the hostcountry outside the Expansion Area Concession. This shall include, but not be limited to, the following policies.
A. Access to the Host Country
For entry into the host country, avisitor shall have to comply with any current, generally applicable entry andimmigration requirements of the host country.
B. Access to the Expansion Area Concession
1. The host country shall allow the World City Authority to grant ExpansionArea Concession visas to any applicant, without restriction, including citizensof the host country.
a. These visas shall allow the applicant to enter theExpansion Area Concession for as long as the applicant chose, for any lawfulpurpose.
b. The visas shall not be limited to workers, but shall beallowed to any business or non-business visitor.
c. The visas shall be immediately available at an ExpansionArea Concession entry office that was always open, requiring only registrationof basic identification information.
2. Upon exit from the Expansion Area Concession, the visitorshall turn in the visa, and shall obtain a new one for any later entry.
3. The Expansion Area Concession visa shall not allow entryinto the host country outside the Expansion Area Concession.
