What’s on our minds

Anti-dumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) rulings shift more often than most importers expect, and a new determination can add substantial cost to a product line overnight. If you import from countries or industries with a history of AD/CVD exposure, staying current on active orders matters as much as getting your HTS classification right. Here’s ...

Every importer needs a customs bond — it’s a CBP requirement, not optional. But which type makes sense depends heavily on how often you import. Get it wrong and you’re either paying for coverage you don’t need or scrambling to post a new bond every time a shipment arrives. Here’s how continuous and single-entry bonds ...

Both a Foreign Trade Zone and a bonded warehouse let importers defer, reduce, or in some cases eliminate duty on goods before they enter U.S. commerce. They solve a similar problem, but the mechanics are different enough that picking the wrong one leaves cash tied up that didn’t need to be. What a Foreign Trade ...

Every product that crosses a U.S. border needs a Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) code, and that ten-digit number determines the duty rate, whether the shipment needs extra paperwork, and how likely it is to get flagged for exam. Misclassify it and you either overpay duties for years without realizing it, or underpay and end up ...

In February 2025, the U.S. eliminated de minimis eligibility for shipments from China and Hong Kong, requiring formal customs entry, an importer of record, and full HTS documentation on packages that used to clear duty-free under the $800 threshold. That change hit ecommerce brands sourcing from China hardest, and de minimis policy has stayed a ...

The new CPSC eFiling requirements take effect on July 8, 2026. They change how consumer product compliance works at the U.S. border. Does your business import goods regulated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)? If so, this update will reshape your customs process. The good news is simple. Preparing now is the best way ...

For any brand importing products into the United States, customs clearance is the step that determines whether your inventory arrives on schedule or sits in a government hold while your stock runs dry. Most brands don’t think about customs until something goes wrong — and by then, the delay is already costing them. Understanding how ...

How Tariff Changes Are Reshaping E-Commerce Fulfillment — And What to Do About It The trade landscape shifted dramatically last week. In fact, threats of double-digit duties on Canada and Mexico nearly upended North American trade entirely. Then, at 12:01 AM on February 4th, the U.S. government imposed new tariffs on Chinese and Hong Kong ...