Customs Compliance & Why It’s Important
Issues with customs compliance can cause all kinds of problems. If you make a mistake, even if it’s fully unintentional, your organization can be subject to fines, audits, seizure of goods, inspections, investigations, and even imprisonment. Ignorance of what customs compliance takes isn’t an excuse in the eyes of lawmakers, so now is the time to work on your understanding of this important aspect of moving goods across borders.
In fact, problems with customs compliance don’t even have to happen on a massive scale to hold your business back. It can be as simple as paperwork that was filled out improperly, or having the wrong form filled out for a shipment. At best, these seemingly simple mistakes turn into lengthy, costly delays, and at worst, you are looking at all of the punitive measures laid out above.
Think you can get through with errors at the border and get away with it? Think again. A lot of countries are moving toward post-audit verifications – even if something is missed at the time, it can be discovered and dealt with after the fact.
Working with a logistics company is an easy way to ensure that you are fully compliant with customs laws. We understand the importance of compliance and are dedicated to getting your goods through customs seamlessly without any hindrance to your deadlines or expectations.
What is Customs Compliance?
For most shippers, you’re looking at moving commercial goods across the border in accordance with Canada’s Customs Act, and/or customs law in the USA. If you’re working within another country, you have to follow the rules and regulations of the acts of the destination country, including complete, correct documentation, and the proper payment of any applicable taxes, duties, or other fees.
Tariff classification, description of goods including origin and valuation, and dutiable status all have to be described accurately, honestly, and appropriately. If there are any errors, that information needs to be corrected. It may seem as simple as just following the rules, but in fact, many of these rules need to be interpreted, and interpreted correctly, which requires a lot of knowledge, research, and effort. Without that, errors in classification are hard to avoid, which means you’re out of compliance and in danger of punitive measures. It gets all the more complicated with other import requirements like specialized permitting.
Maintaining Compliance — Why and How
The consequences of non-compliance are clear, but there are other issues that can come about that are less direct than the punitive measures countries enact. If your items are held up at the border because of non-compliance, they aren’t getting in the hands of the buyer, which means delays, added costs, and frustrated customers. There’s also a global cost to non-compliance as laws become even more stringent. It’s in everyone’s interests to maintain customs compliance.
So, how can you get this done without pulling out your hair over all of the details? The answer is to work with a logistics expert, with the knowledge and experience in compliance that keeps your goods moving in full compliance with any applicable law.
