Exporting a freight is an extensive activity that needs proper synchronization among the various steps involved before the final dispatch. You as an organization need to consider various factors like the place where you will be exporting and the laws and regulations of the country. You will also need to understand the capital and resources, logistics, cost and insurance of the business, and most notably, the customer's perspective.
When you are new to the exporting business, the first international consignment will give you goosebumps and make you happy as well as nervous. Moreover, the shipment will be draped in many minor and major mistakes. So, here we have talked about some of the common mistakes that most newbies make in their initial phase of exporting business. These points will help you protect yourself and your business from major mistakes.
Understand The Export Documentation Thoroughly
While coming to the export business, you must be aware that when your consignment reaches the port of a particular country, it has to go through customs clearance. And the custom requirement varies for every country; you cannot label the freight for the UK following the same rule you followed for Japan. This major mistake is made by most freshers and even sometimes experienced exporters leading to delays in shipment, process repetition, and even cost increases. Further, one of the most frequent reasons for this mistake is a lack of knowledge about the laws and regulations of the country. In fact, sometimes carelessness and typos also play a vital role in encouraging the mistake.
What To Do To Avoid The Mistake?
Exporting is a long process, and if, in the meanwhile, your shipment gets canceled or delayed due to misinformation or general typo, then it's very frustrating. Ensure about the below-mentioned points before freight dispatch to avoid these mistakes:
- Before the shipment is ready to get packed in a cargo, pay explicit attention to all the documents you will need and get the complete paperwork done precisely. Moreover, most international exports always need an export invoice, dangerous goods note, and applicable licenses. Therefore, check all the export documentation requirements for the destination country.
- Mention the correct classification of goods according to the applicable system code.
- Before dispatching your consignment, label it correctly with the correct packing information, contact details, and payment information.
Understand The Import/Export Rules Before Exporting Freight
Every country has its import and export rules. These rules help them develop foreign trade relations and domestic industries and prevent their consumers and environment from any damage. Therefore, you need to be absolutely aware of their import/export regulations to export in a country. Moreover, to maintain a healthy foreign trade relationship with a country, you must follow their policies and avoid restrictions or legal issues.
Never Forget To Check Applicable Tariff & Fees Before Exporting Freight
The next big step for a hassle-free exporting experience is to check the applicable tariffs and fees before moving toward exporting freight. The international shipment's tariff rates for a country depend primarily on the bylaws or the HS Codes. Moreover, only the customs officers decide the final determination of the tariffs and fees for their country. However, here are a few strategic steps to get a rough estimate of your payable tariffs and fees:
- Start with the product classification number of the consignment you will export.
- After getting the classification code, you can easily find the applicable tariff and tax rates for an international shipment.
Synchronize Your Export Data For Successful Export
Synchronizing your export data plays a vital role in your next freight export. It helps you run a successful shipping business. So, for managing and organizing your export data, switch your paper-based work to cloud-based documentation software. Some of the notable benefits of cloud-based documentation software are:
- Cloud software keeps your data secure and eliminates the risk of unauthorized access or unforeseen damage.
- It helps you cut off the unwanted expenses required while filing manual documentation.
- It helps you save time by reducing the cases of data redundancy or inconsistencies.
- You can easily print the documents generated by different departments remotely without visiting different offices.
- You can track your export documentation activities easily and thus improve your management.
- Last but not least, cloud-based documentation software undoubtedly gives you access to data from anywhere and at any time.
Exporting Freight To A Foreign Country Is Easy
Like every new business, international freight exporting also takes its own time to settle and involves initial risk. But, once you complete your initial four to five consignments by following the steps mentioned above, business becomes easy. If you want to export your freight internationally, contact Integrity Transporting LLC, we will export your shipments hassle-freely.
Reference:
Manaadiar, H.A.R.I.E.S.H. 2019. 5-things-to-do-before-shipping-your-first-export-consignment. 20th Nov. 5 things to do before shipping your first export consignment. [Online]. [20 May 2022]. Available from: https://www.shippingandfreightresource.com/5-things-to-do-before-shipping-your-first-export-consignment/