Customs Incentives
Each Freeport customs site is run by a customs site operator. Authorised businesses within the customs site can take advantage of the Freeport customs benefits. Some customs sites will contain multiple businesses, others will be mainly used by the customs site operator.
Businesses authorised by HMRC and operating inside designated customs sites in the Freeport can store or process imported goods. They can then export them or declare them for free circulation (home use) in the UK.
- Authorisation – Permits storage and processing activities under one combined Freeport customs special procedure, instead of multiple authorisations.
- Imports –simplified declaration for non-controlled goods using form C21. Duty can be suspended on imports into a customs site.
- Exports – Duty exemption is available on goods being re-exported from a Freeport customs site.
- Free circulation –flexibility on how duty is calculated for goods processed within the customs site.
- Movement between customs sites – simplified process for moving most goods between customs sites with duty remaining suspended, including sites at other UK Freeports.
- Storage and processing – Goods can be moved between storage and processing without additional declarations. Goods can also be stored under duty suspension until needed.
Tax incentives
There are five direct financial incentives for locating at a tax site. These are a mixture of reliefs (reductions) and deferments
- Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) – Relief on qualifying non‑residential land and property purchases or leases within tax sites (full or partial relief, up to five years).
- Enhanced Structures and Buildings Allowances – allowing accelerated tax relief on construction or renovation of commercial buildings.
- Enhanced Capital Allowances – offering 100% first‑year relief on qualifying new plant and machinery investment within tax sites.
- Non‑Domestic Rates Relief – funded by the Scottish Government for eligible properties or improvements for up to five years.
- National Insurance Contributions Relief – employer National Insurance relief on eligible new employees working within Freeport tax sites, reducing employment costs, and supporting job creation for up to three years per employee.
Key Timescales
Each UK freeport has a ten year window within which to claim the tax reliefs. Sunset dates were set centrally:
- 30 September 2031 in respect of English Freeports
- 30 September 2034 in respect of Scottish Green Freeports and Welsh Freeports
Planning Support
A planning protocol has been agreed, that is a framework committing partners (councils, consenting bodies, statutory consultees, developers, and Scottish Government) to work together to facilitate planning and consenting processes in Green Freeport sites.
This protocol is a non-statutory framework committing all partners to work together to facilitate the planning process, and wider associated consenting processes, in tax sites, custom sites and seed funding projects of designated Green Freeports.
Planning decisions will continue to be made under the legislative framework, in accordance with the development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise.
For Grangemouth, a new Regulatory Hub will be set up to implement this planning protocol.
Seed Capital
The UK Government has provided £25 million in seed capital to the Forth Green Freeport (FGF). This funding was confirmed publicly on 15 January 2026. The £25m seed capital is being match‑funded by project leads, landowners, and local authorities, bringing initial investment to more than £50 million.
The funding is designed to further enhance the investor appeal of key Freeport sites (Rosyth, Burntisland, Leith, Grangemouth).
This is to further enable delivery of early-stage projects focused on:
- Offshore wind
- Alternative fuels, production and distribution
- Modular and advanced manufacturing
- Shipbuilding
- Chemicals production
- Logistics and warehousing
These projects align with Forth Green Freeport’s mission to drive re‑industrialisation, economic growth, and the shift to a clean energy economy.
Government Policy Levers and Tax Benefits:
The National Insurance Contribution Bill was introduced in May 2021. This bill allows for zero-rated employer contributions for new employees at (Green) Freeport tax sites by providing relief on Secondary Class 1 Contributions.
The offer is for 0% employer National Insurance Contributions (NIC) to be paid on the first £25,000 per salary per annum, per eligible employees hired before the tax deadline, applicable for 3 years per employee.
The bill specifies that this tax relief is available for employees that meet the following conditions:
- spend at least 60% of their working time in the special tax site
- have started their employment between 6 April 2022 and before 30 September 2034
- be within the first 36 months of their employment
- not have been employed by the same or a connected employer in the previous 24 months
So, if the above conditions are met, the first £25,000 of salary for each eligible position is exempt from employer NIC, which in 2024-2025 is 13.8%, for the first three years of employment. For avoidance of doubt, employee NIC are still payable.
Qualifying Investment
Timeline
For the Forth Green Freeport, 30 September 2034 is the date by which the business activity must be operational. The reliefs or allowances may continue beyond that date i.e. 3 years for national insurance and 5 years for non-domestic rates.
Designation of the Forth Green Freeport tax sites
Priority Sectors
Priority will be given to businesses within the following sectors:
- Offshore wind
- Alternative fuels, production and distribution
- Modular and advanced manufacturing
- Shipbuilding
- Chemicals production
- Logistics and warehousing
- Creative Industries
Limited exceptions can be considered subject to the investor being:
- complimentary to the priority sectors, or
- providers of ancillary services which support businesses within the FGF area/or
- overall contributors to the FGF objectives
Each investment should provide additionality in terms of net new jobs, investment, and accelerated growth.
Core Committments
Each investor must also sign up to and adhere to the FGF core commitments. Performance against each core commitment will be monitored and evaluated.
Net Zero
To be eligible for FGF benefits businesses must commit to the FGF Net Zero Charter i.e.:
- commit to reach the Scottish Government’s target of Net Zero by 2045
- complete a whole life carbon assessment for their development, and
- demonstrate how they are considering positive net zero choices in the creation of their new development, in line with industry best practice.
Fair Work
The Fair Work Charter sets out expectations for all employers and partners operating within the Forth Green Freeport.
It builds on the Scottish Government’s Fair Work Framework and Fair Work First criteria, and adopts a progressive model of Aspiring, Achieving and Excelling standards across the core dimensions of Fair Work.
The Forth Green Freeport Skills Fund
The Forth Green Freeport Skills Fund is specifically designated to benefit the workforce employed within the tax sites and their supply chains across the FGF area.
Each employer is required to pay 5% of NIC savings towards the Skills Fund for the duration of the time that the NIC savings is available to them
The Skills Fund Contributions shall be payable twice within a fiscal year, in arrears, in respect of Period 1 (April to September inclusive) and Period 2 (October to March inclusive).
Monitoring and Evaluation
Once the investor has commenced operations at the FGF site, they are required to provide relevant data to the FGF to enabling monitoring against the investor performance and commitments. Monitoring data is expected to be reported on a 6 monthly basis, although some data may be required less frequently.
Investor Onboarding
The FGF will engage with businesses, both existing and proposed, to enable them to understand the potential benefits and the requirements commitments.
The FGF is strongly supported by the landowners, local authorities and investment agencies, who each play a key role.
The main steps are anticipated to be:
- Engage – identify and support companies and opportunities
- Screen – assess the potential feasibility and fit
- Review – receive and review a business proposal
- Confirm – details related to net zero, fair work, security etc
- Implement – support the company in seeking tax relief
- Monitor – ongoing monitoring and evaluation
Onboarding starts with an Enquiry Form and concludes with an End User Agreement confirming the agreed site and the company’s net zero, fair work, and monitoring commitments.
Claiming Reliefs
Once an investor has agreed to an End User Agreement it can work with the respective government agencies to arrange the specific exemptions. The FGF can assist here in terms of pre-informing each agency, although the individual investor should seek the exemptions directly through:
- The relevant local authority team, Edinburgh, Falkirk, Fife
- The regional assessor for Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) – https://www.saa.gov.uk/
- Revenue Scotland for Land Building Transaction Tax (LBTT) – https://revenue.scot/
- HMRC for National Insurance (NI)
