David William

In general There is no legal requirement that importers must hire a Licensed Customs Broker. Many successful importers, though, choose to utilize the services of Customs Brokers so their goods are imported properly without delays. Importing overseas from Europe is a fast moving endeavor. Although importing from Europe is not complicated if you have a Customs Broker working for you to keep tabs on your shipment and filing the proper documentation. Working with a Licensed Customs Broker is the best way to make sure your import documentation is filed correctly and penalties are avoided. Customs Brokers can help your imports arrive safely and file your paperwork. They afford you peace of mind while you avoid import process hurdles. So, personally I would prefer to hire custom broker.

When goods enter the country from overseas, it is considered an importation and must be cleared by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). When an individual or company purchases goods from an overseas supplier, CBP considers them the ultimate importer. The ultimate importer can clear the goods or have a Customs Broker clear them on their behalf. Customs uses three distinct types of numbers as “importer numbers”: Employer Identification Number (EIN, or IRS number) – as assigned by the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to corporations, partnerships, Limited Liability Companies (LLCs), government agencies, sole proprietorships, and assorted other types of entities. Social Security Number (SSN) – as assigned by the IRS to individuals. Also used by some individuals operating sole proprietorship, who do not have a separate EIN for their business. Customs Assigned Number – as assigned to persons or other entities which do not have either an EIN or a SSN. So long as any of these types of numbers remain valid, and are used at least once within every 12 months for automated customs transactions (such as customs entry filing), they will normally remain as active importer numbers in customs’ importer records. If your importer number is still active, but it will be more than 12 months since your last entry by the time your new shipment arrives, work pro-actively with your broker to update your customs importer record to keep it active.

Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZ) are secured, designated locations around the United States in or near a U.S. Customs Port of Entry where foreign and domestic merchandise is generally considered to be in international commerce and outside of US Customs territory. As a result, activated businesses in an FTZ can reduce or eliminate duty on imports and take advantage of other benefits to encourage foreign commerce within the United States. The benefits associated with zone use will vary depending upon the type of operation involved and authority granted by the Foreign-Trade Zones Board and Customs. Zones may provide some or all of the following benefits: duty exemption duty deferral, duty reduction or inverted tariff, merchandise processing fee (MPF), reduction, streamlined logistics, quota avoidance. Other benefits: better inventory control and security lead to better compliance with CBP requirements; customs supervision may result in lower security and insurance costs. Duty payable on FTZ merchandise does not need to be included in the calculation of insurable value, again lowering insurance costs. Reduced transportation costs may also result from streamlined logistics. Harbor Maintenance Fee is paid quarterly instead of at the time imports arrive. Merchandise Processing Fees are paid at the time goods leave the zone.