I attended the 2017 CTPAT conference in Detroit (August 29 – 30, 2017). After 2 days of CTPAT’ing, here is a list of my top 10 takeaways including the changes I see coming to the CTPAT program. There is a new name. Notice the – is officially gone, no more C-TPAT (despite all of us being conditioned to using…
Here’s a question. Assume pots and pans from Thailand individually qualify for duty-free entry into the United States under the Generalized System of Preferences (“GSP”). That means they have 35% of their value derived from Thai-origin materials or costs and are shipped directly from Thailand to the U.S. So far, so good. Now assume that…
Why is a culture of compliance seemingly easier to achieve at some companies versus others? Are there basic principles to consider, regardless of the specific regulatory area? Government regulations don’t always “make sense” to the people that need to follow them. Thus, following the rules and regulations aren’t always easy. And if people across an…
Quick Read: A checklist for doing the import right. Once you have crafted a plan on what type of product you want to import, the following tips will serve as a guide in the import process. 1. Like and trust your supplier 2. Determine if you need a license 3. Compute the weights and measurements…
According to Customs Border Protection (CBP), there are now over 11,000 companies participating in The Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism or C-TPAT, a public-private partnership program implemented in November of 2001 following the September 11 terror attacks. The program is voluntary and continues to gain in popularity, providing real incentives to those importers who join. In 2014 alone…
Technology changes the way we do things. At GTC we recognize the need for resources to help you do your work much more efficiently and remain in compliance. That is why we are excited to introduce you to the GTC skill for Amazon Alexa. If you own an Amazon Echo, you know the many different…
In the first of this three-part series, I introduced the challenges of cross-border selling. In Part 2, I’ll dive into some specific pitfalls and lessons learned. Pitfall 1: Total landed costsA colleague living in India purchased some of his favorite products from a professional-looking site. He did not realize the business was US-based because it…
There’s been a lot of news and speculation lately around Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) as the new U.S. administration works to review and renegotiate its agreements with countries around the world and Britain figures out the Brexit implications for its own trade deals. While government and corporate leaders engage in a public discourse about the particulars for various…
In case you missed it; here is a summary of the NAFTA modernization process: The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) modernization process advanced on July 17, 2017, with the release by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) of the NAFTA negotiating objectives summary. Specifically, Section 150(a)(1)(D) of the Bipartisan Congressional Trade…
Executives routinely travel abroad with company-issued or personal laptops, tablets, and handheld devices. It is common to carry product information, presentations, and other information on these devices. For example, a sales executive may have a proposal that includes detailed product specifications as well as information on pricing and delivery. The device itself may contain software…
The customs broker exam will from now on be administered and taken electronically. Yes, no more bubbling in scantron sheets with No. 2 pencils! On June 30, 2017, CBP issued a Federal Register Notice revising its regulations. In addition to automating the exam, CBP also moved the biannual date of the exam to the fourth Wednesday in April…
We’ve been patiently waiting for this announcement since President Trump took office on Friday, January 20, 2017. Some have speculated on whether President Trump’s stance on Cuba would further diplomatic relations following the steps of former President Barack Obama, while the majority have opined that Trump’s next steps could reverse some of the changes made…
