The Uruguayan peninsula of Punta del Este is encouraging investment at Expo, promising that investors can recoup "up to 100% in 15 years" thanks to government tax credits, said John Stuart Leaman, vice president of Destino Punta del Este, on Tuesday.
The organization is at the Uruguay pavilion at Expo to promote investment in the South American nation, which Leaman says has a tax system that has favored foreign investment for more than 30 years.
Punta del Este is a beach resort and city on the southern coast of Uruguay that marks the division point between the Rio de la Plata and the Atlantic Ocean.
Leaman said in 2003 the government extended tax incentives to the tourist sector as well, which has had a direct impact on tourism growth in the country.
"Today in Uruguay there are about three million tourists, almost one for each resident. In the first two months of 2015, 750,000 people visited our country," Leaman said.
The country also pays close attention to the source of investment funding, with tough laws in the area of money laundering.
"Checks are made not only by the government, but also by the banks through which the money enters the country, and also by the Central Bank. Our judicial system is also completely independent and Uruguay is considered by the UN as one of the countries with the least amount of corruption in the world," Leaman said.
He said Uruguay guarantees foreign investors "complete freedom and complete safety in setting up any type of business in our country".
"We trust in foreign investors and they can trust us. They are welcome," Leaman said.
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