International Trade Blog

It has only been a couple months since we released a new version of Shipping Solutions, but the release of Incoterms® 2020 Rules necessitated another update. If you are an active Annual Maintenance Program (AMP) subscriber, you can download the update from the AMP website.

Versions 9.15 and 8.15 have fewer changes than most new releases of Shipping Solutions. The major changes are to the Incoterms and the Restricted Party Screening feature. There were also a few minor fixes you might be interested in.

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Shipping Solutions now includes the ability to get a Certificate of Origin certified by a chamber of commerce right from the software.

If you are used to manually creating your certificate of origin, delivering it to a local chamber, waiting for it to be reviewed, signed and returned to you and then sending it to your customer, you can save a lot of time, and probably money, by completing your certificates of origin through Shipping Solutions.

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Shipping Solutions Professional version 9.14 includes several new features for the Data Exchange Manager (DXM) when using the text file and ODBC methods to import data from your accounting, order-entry or ERP system.

In addition, if you are already using the DXM with the text-file method, there is a simple step you need to do after upgrading to 9.14.

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Shipping Solutions export software is pleased to announce the release of Professional version 9.14 and Classic version 8.14.

If you are an active Annual Maintenance Program (AMP) subscriber, you can download the update from the AMP website.

The new versions include the following enhancements.

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You’ve probably known since grade school that Puerto Rico is not a state. But do you know what it is?

It’s an unincorporated United States territory in the Caribbean Sea made up of a main island plus several smaller islands with a population of about 3.5 million people.

But what does it mean to be an unincorporated U.S. territory?

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U.S. export laws are complex, but there is one piece that is fairly straight-forward and easy to understand: the Schedule B. The Schedule B is the export classification system of the United States, and is administered by the Foreign Trade Division of the Census Bureau, which is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

A Schedule B code is 10 digits long, and there is a Schedule B code for every product. The codes are used by the Census Bureau to collect and publish U.S. export statistics.

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Shipping Solutions Professional includes a Data Exchange Manager (DXM) that allows you to import orders from your company’s accounting, order-entry or ERP system into Shipping Solutions Professional and produce your export documents, file your export information electronically through the Automated Export System (AES), and fulfill your export compliance requirements.

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Shipping Solutions export software is pleased to announce the release of Professional version 9.13 and Classic version 8.13.

If you are an active Annual Maintenance Program (AMP) subscriber, you can download the update from the AMP website.

The new versions include the following enhancements and fixes.

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For years, many exporters to Israel needed to complete the U.S. Certificate of Origin for Exports to Israel. It was one of the few export forms that the Shipping Solutions export documentation software couldn't print out on plain paper.

That's because the Israeli government required that the Certificate of Origin (COO) be printed on their official green form. We weren't allowed to create a similar form in Shipping Solutions, but we did create a “data only” form that printed everything in the correct spot on the official form.

But beginning with Shipping Solutions Professional version 9.13 and Shipping Solutions Classic 8.13, the Israeli Certificate of Origin form went away. What happened?

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Shipping Solutions export documentation and compliance software includes two types of Shipper's Letters of Instruction (SLI).

One type of SLI is used as a cover letter to convey specific instructions from the exporter to the agent, usually an international freight forwarder. The second type of SLI is used to provide to your freight forwarder all the information needed to file your Electronic Export Information (EEI) with AESDirect.

This video shows you how to create both types of SLIs in Shipping Solutions.

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