Tips for New Business Importers

If you are about to enter into a business where you will be importing goods into the U.S. on a regular basis, there are some very basic, and very important things you need to be aware of from the start. So many times I've seen start ups fail to do this, only to find themselves missing a deadline with their first and all important client. You can avoid falling into this trap and it's so easy to avoid. The following article will assist you in being proactive in sidestepping some of the most common mistakes new importers make.

First and foremost, be in front of your goods. As soon as you have reached an agreement with a foreign vendor, insist they provide you with the freight carrier's name and contact details here in the United States. Don't allow yourself the luxury of thinking the goods will move through the freight forwarding process and enter U.S. Customs with no effort on your part. The fact of the matter is, that could very well happen, but you aren't going to rely on chance. This is your business we're talking about!

Once your vendor has contracted a forwarding company and provided you with the contact information, you're going to get on the horn. Whether the vendor went with one of the "biggies" (think FedEx, DHL, UPS) or any of the many smaller forwarders, you want to contact that forwarding company right away. Be sure your vendor has provided you with an airway bill number, an excellent commercial invoice, and preferably, a departure date. The first two are key. With an airway bill and a copy of, again, I stress, an EXCELLENT commercial invoice in hand, you are going to call the forwarding company's customer service number.

It isn't necessary from the outset to get assigned to a sales representative from whatever freight forwarding company you will be using, but, hey, if you know you're going to be doing this on an ongoing basis, it might not be a bad idea, either. Either way, you want to speak to someone who can assist you to shepherd your goods into the country. One of the first things you should do is provide the forwarding company with some hardcopy verification of your company Employer Identification Number (EIN). Various forwarding companies will accept the number in various ways, but to cover yourself, I suggest a hardcopy of an IRS document that has both the company name and the ID number. Customs has the authority to audit your forwarder's information and verify that they have provided a valid ID number and there are hefty penalties for forwarders who cannot provide that, so you're helping them out as well. Bear in mind, your Employer ID number is a matter of public record, so you're not giving away the store by doing this.

If your biz is a Doing Business As (DBA) under your Social Security number, it is acceptable to provide IRS documentation for your Social Security Number, however with the dangers of identity theft, you will want to make sure you are dealing with a very reputable freight carrier. You can find some more details about providing a Social Security number at an article I wrote for folks who are just importing personal goods at

www.associatedcontent.com/article/2478982/why_does_us_customs_want_my_social.html

Bottom line is, this is one of the most frequently requested pieces of information a carrier might request of you.

Next will be your commercial invoice. Does it have your contact information on it? Does it give an accurate, detailed description of the goods you will be receiving? Does it spell your company's name correctly? These are huge issues when your package arrives on U.S. land and your freight forwarder needs to make entry with U.S. Customs and I will address the commercial invoice in my next article. For now, I want you to be prepared to contact your forwarding company BEFORE your goods ever land in the U.S. and provide them with documentation of your company's Employer ID number and an easy way to contact you should they need further information to enter your goods into the country. To your success!