§ 400.2 - Definitions.

§ 400.2 Definitions.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 89 FR 8527, Feb. 8, 2024.

(a) Act means the Foreign-Trade Zones Act of 1934, as amended (19 U.S.C. 81a–81u).

(b) Activation limit is the size of the physical area of a particular zone or subzone authorized by the Board to be simultaneously in activated status with CBP pursuant to 19 CFR 146.6. The activation limit for a particular zone/subzone is a figure explicitly specified by the Board in authorizing the zone (commonly 2,000 acres) or subzone or, in the absence of a specified figure, the total of the sizes of the approved sites of the zone/subzone.

(c) Alternative site framework (ASF) is an optional approach to designation and management of zone sites allowing greater flexibility and responsiveness to serve single-operator/user locations. The ASF was adopted by the Board as a matter of practice in December 2008 (74 FR 1170, January 12, 2009; correction 74 FR 3987, January 22, 2009) and modified by the Board in November 2010 (75 FR 71069, November 22, 2010).

(d) Board means the Foreign-Trade Zones Board, which consists of the Secretary of the Department of Commerce (chairman) and the Secretary of the Treasury, or their designated alternates.

(e) Board Order is a type of document that indicates a final decision of the Board. Board Orders are generally published in the Federal Register after issuance.

(f) CBP means U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

(g) Executive Secretary is the Executive Secretary of the Foreign-Trade Zones Board.

(h) Foreign-trade zone (FTZ or zone) includes one or more restricted-access sites, including subzonesall sites/subzones designated under the sponsorship of a zone grantee, in or adjacent (as defined by § 400.11(b)(2)) to a CBP port of entry, operated as a public utility (within the meaning of § 400.42) under the sponsorship of a zone grantee authorized by the Board, with zone operations under the supervision of CBP.

(i) Grant of authority is a document issued by the Board that authorizes a zone grantee to establish, operate and maintain a zone, subject to limitations and conditions specified in this part and in 19 CFR part 146. The authority to establish a zone includes the responsibility to manage it.

(j) Magnet site means a site intended to serve or attract multiple operators or users under the ASF.

(k) Modification: A major modification is a proposed change to a zone that requires action by the FTZ Board; a minor modification is a proposed change to a zone that may be authorized by the Executive Secretary.

(l) Person includes any individual, corporation, or entity.

(m) Port of entry means a port of entry in the United States, as defined by part 101 of the customs regulations (19 CFR part 101), or a user fee airport authorized under 19 U.S.C. 58b and listed in part 122 of the customs regulations (19 CFR part 122).

(n) Private corporation means any corporation, other than a public corporation, which is organized for the purpose of establishing, operating and maintaining a zone and which is chartered for this purpose under a law of the state in which the zone is located.

(o) Production, as used in this part, means activity involving the substantial transformation of a foreign article resulting in a new and different article having a different name, character, and use, or activity involving a change in the condition of the article which results in a change in the customs classification of the article or in its eligibility for entry for consumption.

(p) Public corporation means a state, a political subdivision (including a municipality) or public agency thereof, or a corporate municipal instrumentality of one or more states.

(q) Service area means the jurisdiction(s) within which a grantee proposes to be able to designate sites via minor boundary modifications under the ASF.

(r) State includes any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.

(s) Subzone means a site (or group of sites) established for a specific use.

(t) Usage-driven site means a site tied to established for a single operator or user under the ASF.

Zone

(u) Zone means a foreign-trade zone established under the provisions of the Act and these regulations. Where used in this part, the term also includes subzones, unless the context indicates otherwise.

(v)

grantee is the corporate recipient of a grant of authority for a zone. Where used in this part, the term “grantee” means “zone grantee” unless otherwise indicated.

(

w

v) Zone operator is a person that operates within a zone or subzone under the terms of an agreement with the zone grantee (or third party on behalf of the grantee), with the concurrence of CBP.

(

x

w) Zone participant is a current or prospective zone operator, zone user, or property owner.

(

y

x) Zone plan includes all the zone sites that a single grantee is authorized to establish.

(

z

y) Zone site (site) means a physical location of a zone or subzone. A site is composed of one or more generally contiguous parcels of land organized and functioning as an integrated unit, such as all or part of an industrial park or airport facility.

(

aa

z) Zone user is a party using a zone under agreement with a zone operator.

[77 FR 12139, Feb. 28, 2012, as amended at 89 FR 8527, Feb. 8, 2024]