Blog Posts

 

U.S. President Donald Trump has released a draft letter to Congress outlining the administration’s goals for a revamped North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

 

Trump has been talking about renegotiating the decades-old agreement since his pre-election campaigning days. Then – as now – the particulars of the changes he’s after are unclear, but this letter gives the most detail to date as to what a renegotiated NAFTA may encompass.

If you’ve been reading our blogs over the past year, you might have caught our previous posts on this topic – for example, this one from March 2016 on customs negligence, and this more recent one on the “Mod Act” and non-compliance penalties. 

 

But if you’re importing into the U.S., this is important stuff – and it can be a bit confusing – even for a seasoned importer!

 

In this blog, we’ll aim to clarify what you need to know and provide some advice for keeping on top of your company’s importation requirements.

 

We hear concerns from importers and exporters every day. Concerns such as…

 

 

 

 

We published a blog on this same topic just a few months ago (Change is in the air) and thought we should provide a few updates on developments that have occurred since. With a new U.S. administration in place, there are bound to be ongoing effects to the import/export community so check back for information on how any upcoming changes will affect your import activities.

Donald Trump’s administration is talking about introducing a 20% “border tax” on imports to the U.S. to help pay for the proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

 

At this point, the tax is theoretical but apparently would apply to imports from countries with whom the U.S. has a trade deficit. If this holds true, imports from Canada will not be subject to the tax – the U.S. ran a trade surplus of almost US$12 billion with Canada in 2015.

 

With every new administration come new policies, and the recently-anointed President Trump’s government is no exception. And, although Trump has been outspoken about some of his planned changes, it’s still not clear if or when they will become reality.