investment incentive

investment incentive, policy implemented by government to promote the establishment of new businesses or to encourage existing businesses to expand or not to relocate elsewhere.

The general aim of investment incentives is to influence the locational decisions of investors and thus to reap the positive effects of foreign direct investment (FDI). Investment incentives may also be provided to shape the benefits from FDI by stimulating foreign affiliates to operate in desired ways or to direct them into regions or industries considered in need of investment. For example, investment incentives may refer to grants to locally based companies for investing in advanced technologies or to subsidies to foreign firms investing in the locality.

There are three main categories of investment incentives, which can be implemented on local, regional, national, and supranational levels: financial incentives, such as various grants and loans; fiscal incentives, such as tax holidays and reduced tax rates; and other incentives, such as subsidized infrastructure, market preferences, and regulatory concessions. The incentives may be selective and discriminate on the basis of size of the investment or its origin. Generally, developed countries and economies in transition frequently employ financial incentives, whereas developing countries prefer fiscal measures. Many developing countries have established free-trade zones, where normal domestic regulatory requirements do not apply.

Investment incentives, however, seem to play a rather limited role in determining the locational pattern of FDI. Nevertheless, they may play an important role in an investor’s decision on the margin—for instance, if a corporation has to decide between more or less similar location alternatives for investment.

With an increasing integration of production on the global scale, FDI expanded enormously from the second half of the 1980s. This was accompanied by a change of attitude toward FDI. Most countries liberalized their policies to attract all kinds of investment from multinational corporations. The increase in different investment incentives is well documented, and it reflects more-intense competition, especially between similar and geographically proximate locations. In this context, a transformation toward the competition state, which aims to secure competitive advantages for capital based inside its borders, is often discussed.

The increasingly competitive orientation of states blurred the distinction between investment incentives and other policies as the concern for attracting or retaining capital became primary in framing different policies and regulations. As the neoliberal environment of low regulation and taxation is often perceived as crucial for attracting capital, critics argue that the competition resulting from these incentives may lead to a regulatory “race toward the bottom.” Thus, a need to regulate investment incentive policies on the global level is often discussed.