When you need the name of a freight forwarder who handles the government export paperwork for your exports, (or the reverse for imports)... you can just call freight forwarders in any phone book, google, or...
you can find one already in the business...
Get the HTS number for barrels, then go to the directory of US exporters...
to find one in a library near you...
and enter your zip...
you'll get a listing of libraries that have it...
if not near, then call the library and see if they will look up your hts # for names of exporter, or if they will email you a .pdf of the page...
Then cross reference the name on the list with freight forwarders... (simply google each name, and any that comes up a freight forwarer, necessarily is ex[ert in your product area...
Contact that freight forwarder... and ask away, have them inform you what documents are necessary...
The same process of imports...
3 comments:
I checked the US Dir of Importers for my HTS # and found 800 names on the list. Yikes! Might be easier for me to call everyone from google search and ask them if they have an expertise in my HTS. I'm still going through the list to see if any names sound like actual customs brokers. Is it common to ask a customs broker for references and then call those references? Should I only allow myself to work with a customs broker in my area?
Also, my local library does carry the US Dir of Importers but it was not listed on the worldcat.org link. If you look up your zip code and don't see anything close by, I would advise calling local libraries and double-checking.
-sash
John,
You've mentioned Expeditors and Kuehne & Nagel in the past. Both these companies have offices in my area. Would you say they are a safe bet? As a first-time importer, is it better to have the the customs broker deal with ALL the logistics? For now, I should just focus on developing a product that gets orders. Then, as I gain experience I can re-allocate my resources with regards to logistics. Your thoughts?
-sash
Hey Sash,
Yes, you cannot go wrong with expeditors int'l... and yes, have them handle all logisitics, and worst case scenario costing.
Good tip on double checking the world catalog... best plan is to have a custom broker in the port city where your goods will arrive... (if not the same city as you...) and sure, check references...
John
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