Guide to Customs Clearance of Goods Exported to the United States: Process and Precautions

During the process of exporting goods to the United States, there are various choices of trade methods. In some cases, the USImport Clearancecustoms clearance fees and taxes are paid by the consignor. In this case, the US customs clearance company will require the Chinese exporter to sign a POA power of attorney before shipping, which is similar to the customs declaration power of attorney used in our country for customs declaration.

The specific customs clearance methods can be divided into two types:

Customs clearance in the name of the US consignee: This method requires the US consignee to provide a POA to the freight forwarders US agent, and at the same time, the consignees Bond is also required.

Customs clearance in the name of the consignor: This method requires the consignor to provide a POA to the freight forwarder at the port of shipment, and the freight forwarder then transfers it to the agent at the port of destination. The US agent will help the consignor apply for an importers customs registration number in the United States, and at the same time, the consignor needs to purchase a Bond.

Regardless of which customs clearance method you choose, there are some key elements that need attention:

Customs clearance must be carried out using the US consignees tax number (Tax ID, also known as IRS No.). IRS No. (The Internal Revenue Service No.) is a tax identification number registered by the US consignee with the Internal Revenue Service in the United States.

In the United States, customs clearance cannot be carried out without a Bond, nor can it be carried out without a tax number. Both of these are necessary for customs clearance.

For the customs clearance process, we need to pay attention to the following steps:

Customs declaration: After the customs broker receives the arrival notice, if the documents required by the customs are also ready, it can apply to the customs for clearance within 5 days before the expected arrival at the port or arrival at the inland point.

Prepare documents: Specifically including the bill of lading (B/L), commercial invoice, packing list, arrival notice, etc.

Transshipment: If customs clearance is carried out inland, transshipment is required. We need to provide the I.T.#, effective date, place of departure and place of termination. The inland customs will use the I.T# to control and release the goods.

The steps for releasing goods are as follows: In the previous ABI system, the shipping company terminal was directly connected to the customs. Now, after the trial implementation of AMS, some shipping companies can be directly connected to AMS.

Terminal/shipping company releases goods: The terminal is connected to the shipping company. If the freight is prepaid and the bill of lading is surrendered by telex release, as long as the customs releases the goods, the terminal will automatically release the goods to the trucking company.

Inland release of goods: After customs clearance, the shipping company will give a PICK UP#. After the agent gets this PICK UP#, it will notify the C/. The trucking company will pick up the goods with this number.

In general, for enterprises and individuals who want to export goods to the United States, understanding the above - mentioned customs clearance methods, precautions and processes is crucial for the smooth completion of the trade process.