A tropical dependency is another name for a colony of exploitation. Such colonies were created by European countries not for settlement, but for economic gain. They are based on the labor of native populations and the products created thereby. As their name implies, they were often located in tropical regions, where production of valuable cash crops was lucrative.

Europeans did not kill native populations, for they were integral for maximum profit. Often they hardly even tried to control the local cultures, and were usually isolated from them, present only for the money.