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(1) A free zone shall be created, on the proposal of the Government, by a law adopted by the Parliament in accordance with this Law, which shall delimit for this purpose a part or parts of the territory of the Republic of Moldova. The law shall strictly determine the boundaries and configuration of the zone.

(2) The Government shall draw up the general concept for the creation and development of the free zone.

(3) The initiators of the creation of free zones may be central and local public administration authorities, economic agents and various organizations that will submit appropriate proposals.

(4) Proposals for the creation of free zones shall include:

a) the purposes of creation, the types of entrepreneurial activity and the functional orientation of the free zone;

b) the feasibility study on the desirability of creating the free zone;

c) the draft plan for the location of the free zone, coordinated with the appropriate central and local public administration authorities.

(5) The feasibility study on the opportunity to create the free zone shall contain:

a) delimitation of the boundaries of the area;

b) the complex characterisation of the socio-economic potential of the territory, including the production, commercial and social infrastructure and the economic relations with international markets;

c) the justification of the possibility of carrying out the types of activity permitted;

d) indication of the degree to which specialists are available;

e) the draft economic operating mechanism;

f) the justification of the stages and deadlines for the creation of the free zone;

g) the volume of investment required, assessment of sources and their effectiveness;

h) calculation of the expected flow of foreign exchange earnings into the free zone.

(6) Free zones may be created on territories not occupied by real estate, as well as on the basis of enterprises, institutions, organisations.

(7) Free zones may not be created on the basis of enterprises of strategic importance or which carry out or may carry out an efficient economic activity and without the creation of such zones.

(8) Prior to the adoption of the decision on the proposal for the creation of the free zone, an expert appraisal of the appropriateness of the creation of such a zone shall be carried out, which shall be provided by the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure.

(9) The following factors shall be taken into account when carrying out the expertise:

a) the approximate cost of creating and maintaining the free zone;

b) the benefit to the national economy of operating such a zone;

c) the social and economic situation and the degree of labour utilisation in the region where the free zone is to be established;

d) the proximity of the area in question to other free zones;

e) the number of free zones already existing in the country.

(10) The proposal for the establishment of the free zone may be approved only if the expert opinion establishes that the establishment of the free zone will substantially improve the situation in the national economy and that this improvement can be achieved only in this way.

(11) If the proposal on the creation of the free zone is accepted, the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure shall submit the corresponding draft law to the Government for approval.

(12) The free zone shall be deemed to be created after the entry into force of the corresponding law.

(13) The procedure established by the legislation for the creation of free zones shall be duly applied also in case of changing the configuration of free zones, changing their term of operation, as well as in case of creating a sub-zone.