International shipping is a relatively simple process once explained. International shipping estimates are just that pretty much, the market is a little volatile, so as an estimate please understand once we ask for a quote it can and does vary from the original estimate sometimes.
CRATING
Since Covid, this has become the new norm so to speak, it is regulatory and mandatory, a Government directive for anything to anywhere outside the UK – if we fail to comply they just quarantine your shipment and charge you $20.00 a day till such times as they have time to deal with it and potentially could destroy the shipment. Crates are heat treated against infection, fumigated and sealed, they have to be stamped in accordance with regulation ISPM-15. It is an expense of International shipping and also they add considerable weight to your goods which then in turn affects cost.
There are Two main ways to ship to you
Air Freight……In a lot of cases this proves to be quite an expensive route to take, but it is a door to door service and includes customs brokerage. The turn around time for this once an available slot has been assigned on an aircraft, is approximately 5 days.
Sea Freight…this is by far the most popular, but will have, once a vessel is selected, a sail time of approximately 30 days. With Sea freight there are also two options as follows, Ship to you Dock Side – this means once landed you will be responsible for employing a customs broker to assist you with the process of clearing US customs and arranging transportation from dock to your door.
Ship to you DAP – this means Dropped at Place, it is a door to door service, so once customs clearance has been made, importation duties paid to your local government, it would then carry on and be delivered to you curb side.
Curb Side means just that – your crate will arrive via lorry with a tail lift assist- they are obliged to take the crate off and place it curb side for you. You must consider having some able bodies to then prise the crate open – they are nailed shut – so you will need crowbar and bodies to then remove your piece and take it into your property.
With this last option you can either include customs brokerage that we will arrange for you or you can employ one yourself to cover that bit for you
Sea Freight….in some destinations it is slightly more cost effect to a business address, and is classed B2B – this is because some residential destinations have narrow streets and double parking, the lorries used tend to be on the larger size and can be difficult in residential areas.
Sea Freight….you can of course, reverse the whole process, we are able to give you exact weight and measurements of your shipment and you can should you wish employ your own logistics company to pick up from us and ship to you, you are in control of everything once it leaves us here.
Customs Brokerage
Please note that as the receiver of the goods you will need to complete a short form called a “Power of Attorney”. This will allow our partners Internationally to complete the import declaration on your behalf before the delivery takes place.
You will be responsible for all duties and taxes for importation to US Customs and Excise.
What Do Customs Brokerage Agents Do?
A customs broker’s main role is to help importers and exporters clear goods through customs at international borders. They do this by:
- Ensuring that shipments comply with import and export regulations
- Filing required documentation
- Managing customs clearance
- Obtaining necessary permits
- Resolving issues
- Reducing costs
- Processing duties and fees
- Making sure the customs declaration is correct
- Providing accurate duties and taxes
- Preparing information required by customs, such as origin, routing, suppliers, and how the goods may be used
- Checking that all commercial documents are correct and compliant with regulatory standards
- Accurately classifying goods for duty and tax purposes
Customs brokers are also known as customs agents or customs services providers. They can help reduce the stress of importing and the time and energy needed to learn about customs regulations.
Insurance – The shipment is covered by normal business trading conditions which is a compensation based on weight and not value, so falls short, if you wish to take out seperate insurance which would cover you Door to Door then please ask for a quote
Cubic Capacity
Cubic Capacity can affect Sea Freight – if you are shipping one piece of furniture it can cost more that to ship several pieces. The reason is a cubic capacity charge, so just as an example, if you were to buy a chair it might cost you £400.00 to ship but if you bought three chairs then the cost to ship all three might be £600.00, they would go in three different boxes it is because if you are under a certain cubic capacity then you pay a charge. This charge is negated if you are over the minimum….this applies to Sea Freight and so in these circumstances Air Freight may be the better option for you.
V.A.T.……ok some good news, very good news, over here in the UK, VAT is included in all our prices, it stands for Value Added Tax and year on year the rate can vary depending on the government currently in power at this very moment in time the rate is 20% so if you live outside the UK when you check out the VAT is automatically removed from your bill and this saving can and often does go a long way towards your crate and shipping costs.
A note on Crates for a little while we have for those that do multiple orders become very adept at packing and so where we can get two or three pieces in one crate which saves much money as the crate adds to the weight as well as the cost of the crate also, we get things down as low as we can…..
Thanks for reading………………..Anthony