Skimming through a thousand-page book on custom protocols to get information on some import procedure for your company’s freight can be an excruciatingly painful exercise. Imagine going through the tiresome exercise of having to flip through each and every page of a never-ending manuscript to ensure that you find the exact subsidiary law on how to treat certain irregular items in your merchandise. That would not only require a lot of patience on your part but also cost you a lot of time – and time is an important asset when it comes to running a business successfully.
Instead, wouldn’t it be much more convenient if you had someone who could fluently narrate the federal regulations for you in the blink of an eye, do the paperwork without you having to explain every infinitesimal detail about the latest stock shipments, and manage calculation, collection and payment of all your relevant taxes and excise duties without you having to stress over the classification of different charges? The good news is that there is someone out there who can not only perform all these tasks proficiently but also handle all kinds of legal matters related to your custom problems. All you need to do is contact a professional licensed customs broker and put an end to all your frustrating business-related legal issues.
But before you do so, you might want to go over the specific role of a customs broker as a legal manager for your company. To begin with, you might question the necessity of having such a member working for your team at all. It is normal to have doubtful questions in your mind regarding this decision such as:
- Why do I need to get a Customs Broker?
- What is the role of a Customs Broker?
- What benefits will he or she bring for my business?
- What is the cost vs. benefits tradeoff?
But first things first; you need to understand the primary function of a customs broker. Well, in layman terms, a customs broker acts as a legal liaison between your business and government agencies for the smooth flow of your company’s tradable items. Getting shipments released, managing tariff classification, handling unpleasant documentation, ensuring flawless execution and dealing with government policy rants all come under his umbrella of responsibilities.
Now moving on to the more important question of why youmost definitely need a customs broker for your business. Let’s discuss the ten highly important roles you will be missing out on if you don’t hire one!
Ten Roles of a Customs Broker You Can’t Possess
Legal Know how
Customs brokers are qualified experts in their field and are fully aware of all the rules and regulations concerning the state. In fact, they have the legal clauses at their fingertips. Therefore, they are better candidates for providing well-grounded advice on regulatory procedures.
Up-to-Date Information Handling
As a customs broker, one has to remain well in touch with the changing federal laws and global policies. What are the latest entry procedures, the current laws on anti-dumping or the ongoing countervailing duties?These are all important issues to a customs broker. However, if any ordinary individual had to keep a track of all these regulations, he or she would probably have to compromise on his or her job. Therefore, hiring an expert in this field is a better call for your business than handing it over to an amateur.
Financial Management
Another plus point of having a professional customs broker for your business is that you can totally ignore all the accounting and financial management. The broker will ensure your data is correctly entered, that sufficient staff is allocated to handle the merchandising business and that stock is properly cleared to be on board.
Experienced Service
A custom broker will be more experienced in the field to professionally carry out all your transactions. He will know how to get work done and how to access appropriate resources. Compared to someone who is new in the field, a customs broker will definitely have a clear advantage of better knowledge and superior tackling experience.
Expert Advice
If you want advice on the proper valuation and classification of your statements or guidance about how to go about certain non-traditional items, consulting a customs broker might be a good call. As a qualified individual working in the field for quite some time, a customs broker can provide helpful advice.
Professional Dealing
A customs broker will always know his or her way around the attorneys, the government officials and any other involved individuals. So, when fixing terms and calculating duties, he or she will make use of the extra bit of professional experience.
Technology Awareness
A good broker will be well aware of the technology and hardware needed to efficiently run your business and get clearance in time. He or she won’t need to make any last minutes calls to ensure flawless delivery or get hands on unnecessary resources to make up for delayed execution.
Efficient Execution
As a responsible manager, your customs broker will head all the activities and ensure that each task is carried out with perfection from beginning to execution. For a regular individual, such a stringent schedule might be a hard thing to adhere to.
Relationship Building & Trade Opportunities
A qualified expert will be in a position to take advantage of any trade policies or agreements because of superior knowledge in the field. He or she can better exploit the trade opportunities for the business such as figuring out duties exemption zones, etc.
Time Saving
As a customs broker has more experience and better knowledge, he or she will be able to handle all the work effectively with more precision and within less time. And, as mentioned earlier, time is a precious asset when it comes to running a business successfully.
Author bio:
John Smith, an experienced financial manager, a qualified customs broker and a regular business blogger highlights the importance of hiring a professional customs broker for your business in this article. Smith is not only well versed in state custom laws but also has been working in the industry for the last two decades.