Free Trade Agreements

QUESTION: I am calculating qualification for the US Australia Free Trade Agreement.  I see that there’s a category for “accumulation” in 5.3.  However, despite seeing one example of it on the Australian government’s website, I still don’t understand how it works.  Seemingly, one can have sub-assemblies in an assembly that wouldn’t qualify, but, because they’re […]

QUESTION: My question is about ANNEX 3 (Rules of Origin) in the US-Israel FTA. To be eligible for inclusion as domestic content under the Agreement, does the material used to produce a product have to wholly originate in the US, or can the material be made from imported raw materials, converted into a new material […]

QUESTION: We have goods that will be exported from the US to Singapore and stay in Singapore in a bonded warehouse. If some of those goods are subsequently shipped to Korea, can the importer in Korea still claim duty-free status through KORUS? ********** Answers: If the seller is showing as a U.S. company and goods […]

QUESTION: We have product made in MX being exported to Colombia out of our DC in the U.S.. My question is can we still claim duty free entitlement under the CO/MX FTA considering that this is not a direct shipment between CO and MX? As I understand it most FTAs require a direct shipment between […]

QUESTION: Wondering if anyone else in the membership has this dilemma. We are asked to provide two different documents for two different customers to avoid delays with Israeli customs. One customer is simple, a blanket certificate of origin is kept on file with their broker for all effected parts.  There are no issues with customs […]

QUESTION: Does anyone in the membership have a presentation that explains how to read tariff shifts to people that don’t have an understanding of the HTS? I want to be able to explain why a product does or does not qualify for an FTA. ******* Answers: The best way to explain this concept is with […]

QUESTION: We are a manufacturer and FTA certify many of our products under either a tariff shift or regional value content methodology.  Many of the products we manufacture are configured by either the customer or out of necessity for the customer’s end use.  I want to blanket certify these configured products, but as you could […]

QUESTION: Background: We have had two requests by the Israel Ministry of Finance Rules of Origin Section for verification of origin.  At least one of those requests was rejected and our customer has been billed for duties owed.  Our product is electrical distribution equipment, and in particular one of those items is our plug-in unit, […]

QUESTION: We import lighting fixtures from out contract manufacturers in China.  They are shipped to our US distribution warehouse, we pay duties on all shipments.  We then sell to a customer in Costa Rica.  These products would fall under the China-Costa Rica Free trade agreement.  Our customer in Costa Rica is asking for the certificate […]

QUESTION: With Israel’s new requirement for US-Israel FTA to document the originstatement on the invoice instead of a separate document, how is yourcompany meeting this requirement? Are you able to insert the lengthydeclaration directly on to the invoice from your ERP? Or are you usingtools outside the operating system? ========== Answers: You can also place […]

QUESTION: We are a manufacturer. We plan on exporting finished goods and parts to South Korea. Our customer in South Korea is requesting a free trade certificate for the parts that we do not manufacture. What is the required documentation we should obtain from our suppliers to make sure we can complete a valid certificate […]