Customs Broker

So, what is a customs broker? If you’re thinking of importing or expecting any cargo from one Country to another you have to make sure you’re doing it right. You need to make sure you take care of every little detail and check all the paper works before you carry on with your aim. This is very important to ensure that things go smoothly. To make things easier for you, you can hire a customs broker.

You can just get a customs broker to handle everything for you and you can relax. A customs broker is a professional agent for an importer or exporter hired by the local customs of a country. They might be individuals, partnerships, associations or corporations licensed, regulated and empowered by the local customs of the country. They’ll easily assist you in that as they know the right requirements to follow governing imports and exports of the country.

Do you need a Customs Broker

There’s no obligation for you to use a customs broker to help you clear your goods. However if you want to make sure you do everything right and follow all the requirements then you should probably hire one.

• Hiring a customs broker makes it easier for you to import your goods into the given country. They can take care of all the loop holes for you without you stressing out.
• Filling the requirements alone can be really challenging and risky, it’s a process for you to read through everything and understand , it may not be as easy as you think. To avoid making errors it is best to hire a customs broker who will make sure everything is done properly.
• They’ll make sure to sort out all the challenges and restrictions that can interrupt your shipments from entering the country, they’ll find the necessary ways, certificates and licence and permits to reduce the risk of your shipments facing any penalties or delays.
• Depending on the nature of your goods or shipments, they’ll be various taxes,duties and fees to be paid. You might not be aware of all these but a custom broker definitely will, and will update you on the necessary things you should cover.
• A licensed customs broker has been through several training and most have passed them. That shows he’s reliable because he can only be a custom broker because he is good at what he does, so hiring a professional to help you out has no disadvantages.  

How Customs broker helps

Each country has different rules and regulations when it comes to the goods entering and leaving their borders. And you can’t always be knowledgeable when it comes to such things. But then again you won’t want to take any risks when it comes to your shipments, the best thing to do is hire a licensed customs broker who will take care of all this.

 Why do I need an Import broker

Import broker know enough to carry out their duties which includes,

• They take care of the payments of duties and fees. Import broker can take care of all the payments of duties and fees, and may even pay the customs and bill the clients later. As customs duties payment varies.
• They represent clients who have given them a power of attorney, that’s when they’ll be able to conduct customs business on behalf of the clients. They act like the middle man between the clients and Customs.
• Custom brokers provide expert advice on moving goods around the borders, they provide you with expert ideas that can help you reduce shipping time and save money.
• They provide the means for your shipments to reach international level. They carry out the required work that will help shipments pass and enter borders. This will make the shipments open to the foreign market. So if you’re a business man or a company they’ll take care of that for you.
• They keep records of all your transactions, tariffs used, rulings received, payments made etc they organize everything for you and keep It in order.

 How much is the custom broker fees? Is it necessary?

A customs broker help you to import and export your shipment safely into borders. How much are they paid for their work and is it enough for what they offer or is it unnecessary? This is a question that depend in the value of your product and the shipping companies you choose.

The amount paid to customs broker varies from one place to another but it isn’t that costly for the services they render. The fees paid could be less than $35 dollars and up to $100 dollars depending on the type of customs broker you hired.

Getting a customs broker with more experience and degree will cost you more so the fee isn’t standard. The fees are most of the time really reasonable  considering the efforts they take to ensure your shipments are secured.

Customs Broker vs Freight Forwarder

If you’re trying to import or export your goods you probably must have heard about freight forwarders and customs broker and can’t really tell the difference between the two. Well they both are pretty different in the functions they do. If you are shipping from china to us for example you should hire both of them.

A freight forwarder is an experts who is connected within the supply chain who concentrates on the logistics and physical transportation of cargo. They are focused more on the transportation  process of your cargo be it via air freight, sea or road transportation.

Whereas customs broker are there to ensure that you meet up with the requirements for your goods to be permitted to enter into a given country.

It’s simple a freight forwarder serves as an agent for for the exporter in moving cargo to an overseas destination and can be an integral part of your logistics plan. They’ll provide you with a means of transportation for what you want to transport. They’ll reserve you a space be it on a plane, ship or truck.  Unlike the customs broker focused more on the legal issues of your shipments entering the countries border.

US Customs Broker

So where and how can one find a US customs broker in case you need one to help you out. The two best places to find US customs broker will be The National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America, Inc. (NCBFAA) and the International Federation of Customs Brokers Associations.

You can find the best US Customs brokers over there who are experienced and professionals. They are also many customs broker organizations scattered all over the country you can easily find one on the Internet. Linbis Logistics offers a list of customs broker that you can contact and work with them.

Hiring A Customs Broker

If you are considering if you should hire customs broker use Linbis Platform. We will help you bypass all the complex issues, all the paper work and that headache for you. Linbis logistics platform helps customs broker, freight forwarder, freight broker and shippers collaborate and work together in one place. Linbis Platform offers a free and open technology for logistics industry. 

Start shipping through Linbis plataform and communicate with freight brokers, custom brokers and freight forwarders all automatically. See the process of your shipments, history, create documents, make payment. Shippers can manage inventory, CRM and much more through Linbis logistics platform.

Our Freight Forwarding software helps logistics service provider coordinate shipments from point A to B to C. Freight forwarders can use Linbis technology to cut cost on their process and get better routes optimization. This will helps cut cost for shipper.

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