Practical Ways to Manage your Overall NAFTA Program

As a U.S. Exporter of Producer, you are subject to the export laws and regulations of the United States. In addition, if you are going to remain competitive in global markets, you must consider various preferential trade agreements that the United States has entered into.

Because we are focusing on the North American Free Trade Agreement, this section will focus on ways that you can implement a successful program, remaining in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, thus allowing you to remain competitive.

Export Management System

If you are the exporter of the product from the United States, you are required to comply with all applicable laws and regulations.

A successful export program will include the use of an export management system, which simply put, is the method that you use to ensure that you are in compliance.

This would include identifying corporate support for your export initiative, documenting all of your processes, understanding your products, understanding your customers, and ensuring the all of your processes consider the implications of the US laws and regulations that oversee them.

The Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security controls most of the items that are exported from the United States. Their controls extend to most items that are considered dual use, meaning that they are for use mainly in civilian applications, but may be used in military applications as well. They have outlined an Export Management System for use by exporters, on their web site.

NAFTA Tips

To be successful, you must understand all of the complex rules related to NAFTA, and implement a successful program that will allow you to prove your compliance.

Some “tips” to help you implement this program are listed below.

• Employ a knowledgeable individual, that understands the complex rules of the NAFTA.
• Identify the need for compliance from the Senior most levels of Management in your company, and communicate this to all levels of employment within your company.
• Understand your marketing plans, and include the NAFTA process in your marketing and development strategies, so that you do not run into “surprises” when you are ready to sell your products.
• Identify all of the departments that will be required to provide input and support to your NAFTA program, such as management, accounting, purchasing, production, shipping, documentation, customer service, etc.
• Provide training to all of the departments identified, to understand their obligations in the NAFTA process.
• Implement a successful program that will allow you to obtain the necessary information required to have a proactive and compliance NAFTA program.
• In your supplier contracts, add language to require that they provide you with all necessary information, and the process of notification of changes, to ensure that they understand your requirements.
• Maintain all records in a central location, making them available for inspection by Customs.
• Automate the process as much as possible. Most ERP systems today have a foreign trade component that addresses NAFTA. If not, there are systems sold “off-the shelf” that might work.
• Establish an audit process that requires a periodic review of your NAFTA program by internal and external auditors.
• Monitor sources of information such as the Federal Register, for changes in regulations that might affect your business.