ARUBA: YOUR NEXT INVESTMENT DESTINATION

ARUBA SECURED FIRST PLACE AS THE MOST ATTRACTIVE INVESTMENT CLIMATE IN THE CARIBBEAN, MARKING ITS THIRD CONSECUTIVE YEAR SINCE THE START OF THE CARIBBEAN INVESTMENT CLIMATE INDEX (CICI) IN 2021.

Aruba is the perfect destination to expand your commercial horizons. While Dutch is the official language of Aruba, most residents speak a minimum of four languages, including English and Spanish, increasing accessibility to markets globally. Located at the southern edge of the Caribbean, Aruba is a strategic gateway to markets like Latin America, North America, and Europe. The Aruba infrastructure includes state-of-the-art seaport and airport facilities that complement excellent transportation of goods and people. With direct flight access and connectivity to major cities in the US and LATAM, Aruba facilitates business travel, trade, and connectivity, making it convenient for investors to access key markets.

Living on the island also provides a unique island life experience while having everything you need within reach. The combination of beautiful beaches, a pleasant climate, and a welcoming community contribute to an enjoyable lifestyle with excellent family amenities. Aruba's island life offers a unique blend of cultural diversity and entertainment options. You can enjoy a vibrant arts scene, cultural festivals, international cuisine, and recreational activities that enrich the quality of life and provide a favorable environment for both work and leisure. Aruba is an ideal place to enjoy a work-life balance; it is easy to see why Aruba is called One Happy Island.

Learn more about Aruba’s investment climate and opportunities. (link to Investment Profile Page)

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ARUBA INVESTMENT PROFILE

ARUBA: YOUR NEXT INVESTMENT DESTINATION

aruba sign Doing business in Aruba means a healthy business climate and a dependable stable government. The island has a high demand and potential for businesses in various sectors. Aruba’s six promising sectors were developed with industry diversification, innovation, and sustainability in mind.

Thanks to streamlined regulations and political stability, Aruba has one of the best business climates in the Caribbean. As a self-governing part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the island of Aruba offers expanding companies the efficiency of the Dutch legal system. In addition, its developing e-Government is committed to easing the bureaucracy of business processing, land permitting and licensure.

Aruba offers a high quality of life, a multilingual workforce and an efficient place to start and scale a business. With one of the highest GDPs in the Caribbean, Aruba's laid-back lifestyle and emphasis on work-life balance allow residents to enjoy their leisure time while pursuing fulfilling careers and businesses. The island's slower pace of life promotes a sense of relaxation and overall well-being.

As the primary driver of new investments in the six promising sectors, the Aruba Investment Agency (ARINA) works with companies to make doing business on the island simpler. With more than 100,000 residents, 2 million visitors a year, and preferential trade agreements with the US and EU, Aruba puts businesses in optimal positioning for international expansion.

ARUBA AT A GLANCE

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KEY ECONOMIC INDICATORS

GDP 2022: $3.4 billion (97.5% compared to the level of 2019)
GDP per Capita: $30,995.51 (2022)
GDP Real Growth Rate: 7.7% (2022)
Total Exports of Goods: US $104.7 million (2022)
Total Imports of Goods: US 1472.4 million (2022)

Source DEZHI: Economic Outlook 2023-2024, May 2023, Central Bureau Statistics Aruba, Foreign Trade Statistics, Central Bank of Aruba

WHY ARUBA?

Talented Workforce

As an investment destination, Aruba is all sunny skies and cool trade winds. No matter where they originate, businesses that relocate to Aruba find a hardworking, well-educated and multilingual workforce with a passion for sustainable innovation and lifelong learning.

Quality Living

Aruba offers a high value living experience on everything from windsurfing at one of the island’s top-rated Caribbean beaches to a night out at the world-class Palm Beach strip. Live safely and comfortably on an island that boasts more character than many major metropolitans around the world. An ideal place to enjoy work-life balance, it’s easy to see why Aruba is called One Happy Island.

Favorable Investment Environment

Aruba is the #1 Investment Climate in the Caribbean as ranked in 2021, 2022, and 2023. As part of the Dutch Kingdom, Aruban businesses enjoy investment protection agreements (IPAs) and exported goods from businesses in Aruba can be free of import duty to the EU and the US.

Business Opportunities

Aruba is safe, modern and reliable for business, with efficient connectivity via both sea and air. The island, strategically located within the southern edge of the Caribbean, offers proximal access to Latin and North American markets. Aruba also fosters an open, market-driven economy with a strong passage to Europe.

INVESTMENT INCENTIVES

Aruba is a democratic country with an efficient legal framework and political stability indicative of a strong business climate. Companies from Aruba can have preferential access to the European market (Overseas Countries and Territories) and the US market (Caribbean Basin Initiative). The Government of Aruba (GOA) has created several tools to help stimulate international investment, such as a competitive profit tax, low import duties on green products, import duty reductions or exemptions for imported raw materials and machinery, low license fees, and the free trade zone regime.

Aruba has several incentives that are noteworthy to investors, including a 10% investment allowance on fixed assets (including purchases abroad) and two tax free zones (including the capital city of Oranjestad and one at Barcadera).

The Government of Aruba also offers incentives for the island’s Promising Sectors:

A dedicated industry area with available long-lease land as established in Aruba’s Spatial Development Plan (ROP) 2019 and its regulations (ROPV) for 2020-2024.
Exemption from import duties on goods for commercial activities in horticulture, agriculture, hydroponics, cattle breeding, fishing, fish farming, or beekeeping.
Tax exemption on profit tax, income tax, and turnover tax (BBO/BAVP/BAZV) for companies with activities in agriculture, horticulture, fisheries, beekeeping, livestock, or fish farming.

HOW WE HELP

The Aruba Investment Agency (ARINA), an operational unit of the Department of Economic Affairs, Commerce and Industry of Aruba (DEACI), is dedicated to helping businesses reach their greatest potential in Aruba. We work closely with strategic partners both on the island and around the world to facilitate business development. As the first port of call for new business in Aruba, ARINA provides free assistance and advice throughout the business establishment, relocation or expansion process. Regardless of the stage of your business, you can count on ARINA for the necessary support and connections to realize your investment decisions.

PROMISING SECTORS

Aruba is committed to driving growth in six promising sectors, including Knowledge Economy, Agriculture, Circular Economy, Creative Industries, Logistics, and Niche Tourism. These industries have been recognized by the Government of Aruba as practical investment objectives for the diversification of the island’s economy. Businesses within these major sectors are stewards of Aruba’s National Strategic Plan, stimulating balanced and sustainable economic growth in the coming decades.

Knowledge Economy

Aruba is matching its strengths in tourism with a knowledge-based economy poised to serve as a testing ground and authority on breakthrough technologies. Anchored by Aruba’s skilled talent, the knowledge economy includes the development, testing, and export of sustainable island solutions to other Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Companies can partner with the Sustainable Island Solutions program at the University of Aruba (SISSTEM), which provides faculty, research centers and laboratories to develop new energies and technology.

Agriculture

Aruba’s agriculture sector is primed for new technological innovations. The island is a reliable agricultural market with abundant sunshine, wind, and modern infrastructure to support green technology applications. Aruba's abundant sunshine and wind for open-air or shade-house production are matched by dedicated land available for agriculture using innovative technology – and the island's strong reputation among visitors presents an opportunity for industry crossover into agritourism.

Circular Economy

Sustainability transcends all industries in Aruba, with government initiatives and policies guiding the island to a clean future based on a circular economy by 2050. Aruba aims to have decentralized sustainable circular economy solutions exported as Aruban knowledge, products, and services to other islands and small communities across the globe as a value-added macro-economic activity. To make this possible, Aruba is bringing together international experts and fostering strategic alliances.

Creative Industries

Aruba’s creative industries – spanning advertising, architecture, arts, heritage & crafts, audiovisual, design, fashion, film, and gastronomy – are an integral part of the island’s economy, cultural preservation, and social development. The island’s cultural diversity and high quality of life come together to attract new creatives and continually inspire those here. Reliable, widespread internet access is suitable for programmers and app developers and Aruba's strong tourism industry supports growth of creative industries and cultural exchanges.

Logistics

Aruba’s prioritization of renewable energy and sustainability is matched by its people power and multimodal infrastructure to move goods by sea, air, and road. In fact, Queen Beatrix International Airport (Aruba Airport) handles all Aruban air travel, with many companies offering daily cargo flights to the US and LATAM. The modern airport is investing in a USD 250 million expansion to accommodate Aruba’s projected position as the largest Caribbean market for air travel by 2030.

Niche Tourism

Tourism is the main force of Aruba’s economy, driven by the friendliness, culture, and innovation of Arubans; year-round sunshine and award-winning beaches; and the island’s focus on sustainability to promote cultural exchange and wellness. One of the most revisited islands in the world, Aruba’s estimated 2 million stay-over and cruise visitors annually is among the highest tourism intensity and density ratios in the Caribbean. The island is particularly well-positioned for medical tourism, travel that focuses on preventative to rehabilitative and curative treatments for addiction, obesity, cancer and mental health and wellness.