DJS owners David & Melissa Meyer were recent guests on the The Small Business Advocate Show with Jim Blasingame talking about being a third generation family business, their secrets for how to work together as husband and wife, and how things have changed since the two previous generations of the family operated DJS.
Both parts of their interview can be found on the bottom of their bios on the Small Business Advocate site.
On July 1, 2016, a container cannot be loaded onto a vessel without the shipper submitting the container’s verified gross mass (VGM). This is the result of Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS) becoming legally effective July 1st. SOLAS was amended by the United Nation’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) in November of 2014, requiring shippers to provide a container’s VGM to the carrier and terminal operator before a container may be loaded on board a vessel, with enough time in advance of loading for the carrier to complete the vessel stow plan. Under this new regulatory change, the shipper will be required to provide verified weight of the container using one of the two approved methods. The shipper will be held responsible for the accuracy of the weight submitted to the carrier or terminal.
Estimating weight is not permitted under the new SOLAS requirements. There are two acceptable methods: method 1–the shipper must weigh the packed container or method 2–the shipper must weigh the container’s contents. Under either permissible method, the weighing equipment used must meet national certification and calibration requirements. Exactly how shippers will submit the VGM information to the carrier will most likely be carrier specific; however, the specific requirements and procedures are not yet known.
This is an international requirement and all shippers throughout the world will be required to comply with the new SOLAS requirements for submitting the weight of the container. Importers will be affected if their shippers fail to meet the new requirements resulting in possible shipping delays. Additionally, the cost of compliance will most likely be passed on to the purchaser of the goods.
DJS will continue to monitor the individual carrier requirements and procedures and provide updates as more details and specifics are known.
The full article published by the World Shipping Council can be accessed here: SOLAS.
We encourage you to read the letter from NCBFAA President Geoff Powell (NCBFAA Letter to Importers and Exporters), which sets forth the NCBFAA’s perspective on the current status of the ACE/ITDS migration. It offers insight into the work being done to get ACE up and running, and is important information for the trade community to understand during this transition. Please feel free to direct any questions to DJS.
On June 25, 2015, Congress approved H.R. 1295–The Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015 (the “Act”). The President (POTUS) signed the Trade Preferences Act of 2015, renewing GSP and other preference programs which expired July 31st, 2013. As of July 29, 2015, eligible goods entered or withdrawn for Consumption (meaning Customs Entry) are duty free using GSP indicator “A”.
We are currently waiting for clarification on how the duty refunds will be processed. We don’t yet know if the duty refunds will be processed automatically or if importers will be required to file a refund “request” with CBP. We anticipate that Customs will issue a directive establishing guidelines for receiving refunds.
DJS cannot claim GSP without proper documentation, or a statement on or attached to the Commercial Invoice(s). If you are not certain of how it should read, see below example:
“THE MERCHANDISE DESCRIBED ON THIS INVOICE IS WHOLLY THE GROWN, PRODUCT, OR MANUFACTURE OF (COUNTRY)”
During its recent 25th anniversary celebrations in Brussels, Belgium, the International Federation of Customs Brokers (IFCBA) acknowledged those Member Associations serving as IFCBA Managing Directors. Among this term’s Managing Directors is NCBFAA Chairman Darrell Sekin, Jr., who accepted the IFCBA’ s recognition on behalf of the Association.
Coinciding with the anniversary were meetings with the World Customs Organization (WCO) to discuss issues of mutual concern such as customs broker regulation and the important role played by customs brokers in assisting small and medium sized enterprises enter and succeed in the global marketplace. During the talks, IFCBA Chairman Mr. Shantanu Bhadkamkar confirmed the IFCBA’s commitment to further collaboration with the WCO particularly with regard to enhancing the value that customs brokers deliver to their national economies.
“Key to these discussions from the NCBFAA’s perspective was,” according to Chairman Sekin, “’the role of the broker’ and how we remain relevant within the Private Sector Consultative Group in WCO to make sure that we have a real voice in recommendations made by that group.”
