Importers don't think of a customer's broker until a shipment goes wrong, like a customs hold, fine for late ISF, any refund like IEEPA, and more. At the point they realise, the damage is already done. Here's the reality — clearing customs in the US
Every time a shipment clears CBP and enters US commerce, the duty clock starts. You pay immediately, whether those goods sit in your warehouse for a week or six months. Most importers accept this as the cost of doing business. It isn't. Foreign Trade Zones are designated areas
You're importing components or raw materials from one side of the world, manufacturing or assembling here in the US, and then exporting finished goods out the other side. And in 2026, both ends of that chain are under pressure. Tariffs on your inbound shipments are eating into production
So you've decided to import goods into the U.S. — exciting times! You've sourced your product, found an international freight forwarder, and you think you're all set. But there's one document that almost every first-time importer overlooks, and missing it can
Your shipment can sit at a U.S. port for weeks, racking up storage fees, for one simple reason: no Importer of Record on file. CBP doesn't care how valuable your cargo is or how urgent your deadline is. No IOR, no entry. So, if you're
Many U.S. importers are getting their accounts set up because CBP has opened the process for IEEPA refunds. Since these refunds are being handled electronically, importers need to complete the necessary setup before they can move forward with the claim. If you are planning to recover duties related to
Shipping goods from and to the USA is not the same anymore. The entire shipping game has changed—one minute you’re adjusting to new fuel costs, the next you’re rerouting cargo because an entire trade lane just became unpredictable overnight. And when you bring Iran and the Strait
CBP’s IEEPA refund rules are something importers need to pay attention to in 2026. CBP has collected about billions in IEEPA duties and estimated deposits, so if your shipments were affected, there may be a chance to recover duties and improve your bottom line. At the same time, CBP
You did everything right. You negotiated rates, locked in contracts, planned your inventory months ahead. But still confused on why your freight rate has increased? This is because of the war that breaks out thousands of miles away Carriers add war risk surcharges, route deviation fees, emergency fuel costs, so
The 2026 Iran conflict decided to block 20% of global oil through Hormuz, jack up US import rates 30–50%, and remind everyone that "smooth sailing" was never going to last. Lucky us. In this post, we'll walk you through the energy chaos, the shipping reroutes
Shipping a 50-pound box to Spain is simple — hand it to a parcel carrier and forget about it. But what happens when your shipment weighs 5,000 pounds and needs to cross an ocean? That's where things get complicated. Standard parcel carriers can't handle heavy
A few months ago, the Cape of Good Hope was a geography lesson. Now it's your shipping route. With the Strait of Hormuz under military threat and Suez-adjacent lanes too risky for most carriers, vessels are being pushed thousands of miles south — around the entire bottom of