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Shipping Solutions Software
Free Trade Agreement Enhancements in Shipping Solutions Version 9.18/8.18
On: June 28, 2023 | By: 
Lisa Nemer |
4 min. read
Shipping Solutions export documentation software versions 9.18 and 8.18 have enhanced how you can store and use free trade agreement information and documents to save time and provide accurate certificates of origin.
The United States has free trade agreements (FTAs) with 20 different countries around the world. These agreements allow U.S. products that qualify to be sold into those countries duty-free or at substantially reduced duty rates. As an exporter, that means your products may be cheaper and more competitive to sell in those countries.
In order to take advantage of those free trade agreements, the importer must prove that the goods meet the rules of origin for the agreement, and they typically use a certificate of origin provided by the exporter or manufacturer of the goods to do that. With Shipping Solutions software, exporters can quickly and easily create FTA certificates of origin for their customers.
Produce the Most Up-To-Date Certificates of Origin
Shipping Solutions has worked with FTA experts to provide the most accurate and up-to-date certificates of origin in the software. Shipping Solutions versions 9.18 and 8.18 include updated certificates of origin for the following trade agreements:
- U.S.-Australia Free Trade Agreement
- CAFTA-DR, which includes the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the United States. The document includes both English and Spanish.
- U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement
- U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement. The document includes both English and Spanish.
- U.S.-Japan Free Trade Agreement (new in Version 9.18/8.18)
- U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement
- U.S.-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement
- U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement. The document includes both English and Spanish.
- U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (new in Version 9.18/8.18)
- United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Documents are also included for the Canadian version (CUSMA) and the Mexican version (T-MEC). CUSMA is available in English and French. The T-MEC includes both English and Spanish.
Display the Correct Items on Your FTA Documents
Shipping Solutions users now have an automated way to display only the goods that qualify for a free trade agreement on that certificate of origin. To turn on this option go to the Admin tab, Global Settings screen. Check the box that says FTA-Automatically include items with Criterion. Save and Close the screen. Then, close and reopen Shipping Solutions to activate the setting.
With the box checked, Shipping Solutions will now look at the free trade agreements section on the EZ Start tab, Product Detail screen. If no data is entered in any of the fields, the item will not appear on the certificate of origin for that FTA.
Store your Product's Criterion for Each FTA
Just because your item qualifies for one FTA, it may not qualify for another. That's why we've expanded the way you can store your products' FTA criteria. On the Databases tab, Products screen, click the Free Trade Agreements tab. There you will see a grid where you can click a particular FTA and enter that item's criteria using the drop-down boxes. If you had data entered already prior to upgrading, that criteria will be shown in the FTA Legacy Values boxes.
If you have your FTA criteria in a spreadsheet, you can upload the criteria based on Product ID on the Tools tab, Import Contact and Product Databases screen. The spreadsheet needs to be set up with the proper codes for each FTA. Consult the Shipping Solutions User Guide for more specific instructions.
When a product is added to a shipment, the software will add the appropriate FTA information (if there is one) based on the shipment's country of export and country of destination.
Utilize the FTA Criteria Key
When you select an Origin Criteria for any of your items, whether it is on the EZ Start or Databases screens, the definition of each criteria will display including the citation where it is defined in the free trade agreement. These definitions also now display on most FTA certificates of origin in line with current best practices for exporters.
Learn more about all the new features in this version of the software. Shipping Solutions Annual Maintenance Program (AMP) subscribers can download Professional Version 9.18 and Classic Version 8.18 for free from the AMP website. If you aren't an AMP member, send an email to help@shipsolutions.com for more information.
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