South Korea To Promote Jeju As Offshore Centre

by Mary Swire, Tax-News.com, Hong Kong

29 January 2002

South Korean president Kim Dae-jung has approved proposals for honeymoon island Jeju to become a free-trade area with no visa restrictions and English as an official second language by 2010. As part of a drive to attract foreign investment to the country, a development plan costing $3.6bn will turn Jeju into an international business and tourism centre. The island's airport is to be expanded, its port developed, the road network extended and more housing and hotels built. A science and technology park, duty free shopping malls and 20 golf courses are also planned.

Officials said the country's location between Japan and China made it an ideal base for investors in north-east Asia. "Jeju has lots of advantages compared to Hong Kong and Singapore," said Ida Goh, of Jeju's provincial government. "The nature here is better and it is ideally located, within two hours flying time of Tokyo, Beijing and Hong Kong."

Under a package of laws shortly expected to pass through parliament, tax breaks will be offered to banks and corporations and a business-friendly regulatory regime will be established on Jeju.

It's careless of the British to have missed out on Jeju - they appropriated all the other islands in the neighbourhood suitable for trading and military use. But then in the days of empire, there weren't any 747s, which can make all the difference to a wannabee island.

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