Tag: Exports

International Trade

TFTEA – Export Fee Refunds, Show Me The Money?

By Susan Kohn Ross

In an earlier alert, we discussed the various export incentives put into place with the passage of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act (“TFTEA”). One long-standing benefit available to exporters is duty drawback, which enhances a company’s ability to compete in the global market.  Drawback lowers the cost of U.S. exports by allowing for refunds of duties, taxes and fees paid on imported merchandise which is subsequently exported in its same form, as part of a U.S. manufactured product or similar domestic merchandise which is substituted for the imported merchandise.  More details will become evident as the regulations are developed within two (2) years following enactment.  Here we discuss the key provisions in the TFTEA which impact drawback. Continue reading “TFTEA – Export Fee Refunds, Show Me The Money?”

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International Trade

SOLAS: Saves Lives? Causes Ulcers?

By Susan Kohn Ross

On July 1, 2016, the Safety of Life at Sea (“SOLAS”) requirement for shippers to provide steamship lines with the verified gross mass (“VGM”) of each shipment takes effect internationally.

While under development at the International Maritime Organization for years, these requirements caught many in the U.S. by surprise last summer when the deadline was emphasized. Perhaps equally surprising was the response of the U.S. Coast Guard, the agency with enforcement jurisdiction. Coast Guard management has been publicly quoted as saying the SOLAS VGM requirements are not mandatory under U.S. law! Rather, they are simply one business means to achieve compliance.  U.S. terminals have been weighing export containers for OSHA compliance reasons for years, but the same is not true in other countries.  Continue reading “SOLAS: Saves Lives? Causes Ulcers?”

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