Import Broker Blog
The “Actionable” Cricket
Customs Clearance Stories from the Gallagher Archives. Can you import a used car from overseas? Yes, but only without a passenger! We recently had a client who was moving to the United States from Italy. His employer was very nice and was willing to pay the cost of having this importer’s personal car shipped from [...]
Increase in Section 301 Duties Scheduled for May 10
Section 301 Updates On May 9, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is scheduled to publish a modification to the Section 301 Tariffs increasing the duty rate on the products covered in the September 2018 Federal Register Notice from the current rate of 10% to 25%. According to the notice, these changes are scheduled to take effect [...]
Oh, Yuck! Why we appreciate U.S. Government Regulations
Customs Clearance Stories from the Gallagher Archives. Oh, Yuck! (Or, Why We Appreciate U.S. Government Regulations) As customs brokers, our role is to present import shipments to U.S. Customs & Border Protection for clearance into the U.S. In that process, we also notify any other government agency that may regulate any specific product. For example, all [...]
Cargo Insurance – Do I Need It?
Cargo Insurance: Prepare for the Worst Recently, tragedy struck the Yantian Express, a Hapag-Lloyd container ship, when a container fire broke out from the ship’s deck when it was traveling off the east coast of Canada. On January 3, 2019, a fire started from a single container on the forward part of the ship’s deck, [...]
The Value of a Penny! Lessons in HTSUS Classification
Customs Clearance Stories from the Gallagher Archives The Value of a Penny! Lessons in HTSUS Classification. (Or, why the importer volunteered to pay more for his bottles) A client recently asked his vendor to charge him 1 cent more for the glass bottles he imports. This rather odd behavior was actually a very astute business [...]
Customs 101: What are Quota Shipments?
What are Quota Shipments? Import quota shipments set a numerical limit on how much of a good or product can be imported into the United States during a specific time. Import Quotas are regulatory measures used to encourage or discourage the number of international goods shipped in the USA. Why do they impose these quota [...]
Trying to classify your HTS Code differently?
HTS Code Re-classification After 25 years in the Customs Clearance business, we understand the worry and concern that clients are facing as they try to figure how much the increase in tariff on goods from China is going to affect their business. We have been inundated with calls from importers who are now questioning the HTS [...]
[ALERT] New EPA Regulations of Composite Wood Materials
[CLIENT ALERT] You may have read or heard recently of the new regulations from the EPA regarding Wood Materials being imported into the US (TSCA Title VI regulation on Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products). Gallagher requested and received confirmation from the EPA regarding these new regulations and if/how they would be applied to shipments [...]
Customs 101: Foreign Trade Zones
What is a Foreign Trade Zone? A Foreign Trade Zone is the United States' version of a Free Trade Zone. Essentially, a free trade zone is a geographical area which can provide cost savings for companies involved in import and export activities. In the United States, a Foreign Trade Zone must be in or adjacent [...]
Product Exclusions from Section 301
Product exclusions from the Section 301 (25% China Duty) products Items that were entered in the following HTS codes are potentially eligible for relief of Section 301 duties: 8412.21.075; 8418.69.0120; 8480.71.8045; 8582.10.5044; 8482.10.5048; 8482.10.5052; 8525.60.1010; 8407.21.0080*; 8412.21.0030*; 8419.90.2000*; 8420.10.9080*; 8421.19.0000*; 8421.21.0000*; 8425.39.0100*; 8428.32.0000*; 8428.33.0000*; 8439.99.1000*; 8466.92.5010*; 8481.90.9040*; 9022.14.0000*; 9032.10.0030* The * symbol indicates that specific [...]