Monday, April 19, 2010

Do I need an International Carrier Bond?

A question came in through our online chat service today about a company transporting a plane for repairs. The company already had an International Carrier bond on file or Activity Code 3 bond. They didn't know if this bond would allow them to enter the US after their plane was fixed in Costa Rica.

We get questions everyday to where there is a completely unique situation to an importer or carrier. In this instance we told them to make sure and contact the port in which the plane would be returning to. The size of their carrier bond would have been determined at this port as well, when they went to place the bond. The size of the bond usually depends on the port and the aircraft in question. It is our understanding that entrance to this port would not be different from any of the company's other activies and thus would be included under this bond. However, always make sure and double check with the port!

You can find a complete list of port contact information here.

Make sure and add this to your favorites in your web browser. You will be surprised how ofter you will need to access this!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Stop wasting money on single entry Customs bonds.

Multiple Single Entry Bonds or 1 Continuous Bond?

In the past, it was more economical for low volume importers to purchase single entry bonds. However, U.S. Customs is now requiring that if a single transaction bond is used to clear the entry an additional single entry ISF bond to be place. This increases the costs of single entry transactions; however, TRG has the solution.

Since 1991, TRG has provided continuous Customs bonds direct to importers. The continuous import bond will cover every shipment over a one year period (both entry and ISF). TRG offers the following promotional pricing to low-volume importers. Call us today to see how you can save!

Applying for Continuous bond is easy.

 Send TRG a completed 1 page application and Power of Attorney form,
 TRG will contact you with any changes needed on the application,
 TRG will place the bond with U.S. Customs,
 You will provide your broker (or whomever clears your entries) with the new bond number.

It’s really that simple to decrease your import costs! Don’t pay the high costs of single entry bonds. If you are interested in obtain a continuous bond, please contact TRG or apply online today!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Monitoring Liquidated Damages, Supplemental Duties and Customs Entries

If you are a Customs bond holder with TRG, make sure that you are taking advantage of Eagle Eye. This is our free entry monitoring system that has the following 4 reporting capabilities.

The Customs Bond Report: Outlines the customs bond(s) your company currently has on file.

The Entry Status Report: Reflects the status of entries under each import bond. Allows you to see each entry number, entry date & status, import value, estimated duty, liquidation date & amount per bond per importer.

The Supplemental Duty Bills: Includes information on entry liquidation and Customs’ additional bills. View the status of your bills due to classification review or anti-dumping/countervailing upon liquidation.

The Liquidated Damages Report: Streamlined view of any penalty notices by Customs per entry. Failure to respond to Customs may not only increase the penalty amount, but can effect your compliance rating. This report is the most popular among our customer base.

View a vide of Eagle Eye here!

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Kimbree Baker Signs On to TRG

Yesterday we announced our new Marketing Analyst, Kathryn Shaw. Today we are happy to announce that Kimbree Baker has signed on as TRG's new Administrative Assistant.

Both TRG and Kimbree are excited to begin working together. Kimbree joins us from Montana State University in Bozeman, MT. Her degree in Economics will put her in the fast lane to learning about globalization and brining her knowledge to the TRG team.

Along with Kathryn, Kimbree will be starting on June 1st. As much as we would like our new additions to start today, we need to give them time to finish up their education and maybe take a short breather!

We look forward to having you both!

Monday, April 12, 2010

Welcome to TRG, Kathryn Shaw

TRG would like to announce the employment of Kathryn Shaw.

Kathryn will be joining TRG as the company's Marketing Analyst. Working alongside, Jena leary, Marketing Director, Kathryn will assist the marketing department in database management, lead generation, brand awareness, content development and many other critical components of the marketing department. Who knows...maybe the next post you read on this blog will be written by Kathryn :)!

Kathryn starts on June 1st here in the Bozeman office. We are looking forward to the new addition and fresh ideas that Kathryn will bring to the team. A gradute of Montana State University, we are assured that she will put her education to great use!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

TRG Trade Spotlight l March l Import/Export Recordkeeping

Import/Export Recordkeeping Best Practices by Mike Laden

TRG attended another successful event hosted by the International Compliance Professionals Association (ICPA) www.icpainc.org this past March. With educational sessions ranging from the Pros and Cons of Self-filing to Understanding Incoterms, attendees were buzzing about the depth of knowledge presented at this conference. Mike Laden of TRG Direct presented Import/Export Recordkeeping Best Practices.

Recordkeeping Best Practices

Electronic – Keeping your records in an electronic format will allow you to expedite the document retrieval process as well as implement the following best practices. This will also allow your information to be stored in a “on-demand” centralized location. Electronic storage will need to be approved by Customs & Border Protection (CBP). *Your policies and procedures should require you to keep the originals for 120 days and all electronic records a minimum of 5 years!*

Policies & Procedures Comprehensively Documented – CBP expects to see that you have policies in place prior to an audit. The policy must ensure the preservation of integrity, readability, and security of the information contained in the original records. Include in your procedures a standardized retrieval process for your records.

Completely Crossed Referenced – If the document relates to information elsewhere, be sure to make that connection.

Exception Files – Your import/export records should be able to “tell a story”. Policies should require that any and everything be stored. If there was an email about it, store it. When in doubt, store it!

Audited Before Storage – Set up a procedure for internal auditing of your documents as they move to storage. Penalties may result for negligence and failure to maintain records. This could be $10,000 per violation and each missing document could be considered a violation!


Award Winning TRG

2009 Pros to Know
Mike Laden and Kelby Woodard of TRG Direct have been acknowledged as Supply & Demand Chain’s 2009 Pros to Know. Recipients of this award have personally helped clients address the challenges of the recession and prepare for the recovery ahead. Congratulations and well deserved!

ICPA Founders Awards
We can’t say we were surprised this March when Greg Hodge of TRG was awarded the 2009 ICPA Founders Award at the annual conference. A true advocate of the ICPA, Greg referred the most new members to the ICPA in 2009.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Customs Entry Monitoring System Free to Bond Holders

How to use Eagle Eye to answer your import questions.

TRG, the direct provider of US Customs bonds, offers more than just great pricing.

Have you ever wasted time and resources trying to answer one of these important questions?

Do I owe any duties to Customs?
Which entries have not liquidated?
How much duty did I pay last year?
Which of my entries are suspended?

All TRG customs bond holders have free access to this information.

The more you know about your import practices the better for your compliance

What exactly can Eagle Eye do?

The system offers 4 pre-designed reports.

The bond report, the entry status report, the supplemental duty bills report and the liquidated damages report.

The information in these reports streams directly from US Customs.

Eagle Eye is accessed through TRG’s website. You are able to view this timely data from any computer with an Internet connection. The bond report outlines any Customs bonds your company currently has on file.

This report will tell you your bond effective date, bond number, liability amount and many other useful data elements relating to your bond. This is an example of a bond summary report. The entry status report will allow you to see each entry number, date and status as well as import value and estimated duty. This button will allow you to see more detailed information on each entry. You can query the supplemental duty report by bill number, entry number or importer number. This report shows you the status of your bills due to classification review or anti-dumping or countervailing. Again click on each bill to see detailed information. https://traderiskguaranty.com/EagleEyeLanding.aspx

The fourth report is the liquidated damages report and provides you with a streamlined view of any penalty notices by customs per entry.

So that’s a brief overview of Eagle Eye. We hope you take advantage of this free tool. If you are not yet a Customs bond holder with TRG. To take advantage of this system you will need to apply for a bond with us online at trgbond.com. Should you have an questions please submit them to askanexpert@traderiskguaranty.com