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Which Trade Compliance Certifications Should You Get?

On: July 28, 2021    |    By: David Noah David Noah    |    5 min. read

Which Trade Compliance Certifications Should You Get? | Shipping SolutionsFrom time to time, I hear new or inexperienced exporters ask what trade compliance certifications they should get. My answer? There is no one, single certification out there for export compliance that is necessary—or in my opinion, recommended!

Job seekers or potential exporters who do get “special” certifications often think having those certifications make it easier to land a job, and some employers think those certifications are a good way to identify qualified candidates. Maybe, but I have my doubts. When I am hiring, I'm much more interested in what practical experience a candidate has and how willing and able they seem to be to learn and adapt to what my company is doing.

If you still want your employees to get certified, you can—but you certainly don’t have to! Here’s what I think you should do instead.

There are strict regulations regarding export compliance. Download this free  whitepaper to make sure you know what's required of you.

6 Things To Do Before Getting Trade Compliance Certifications

1. Understand what “trade compliance” requires.

For exporters, a baseline understanding of trade compliance includes (but is not limited to) the following things:

  • Determining which government agency has jurisdiction over your products.
  • Identifying if there are restrictions on exporting those goods to certain countries, such as embargoes, sanctions or license requirements.
  • Checking lists of denied parties to prevent exports to individuals and organizations with whom the government says you shouldn’t do business.
  • Classifying your products properly according to the Schedule B or Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States.
  • Correctly preparing the appropriate export documents.

Check out our article What Is Trade Compliance? to learn more about the importance of this topic.

2. Make sure you have a formal Export Compliance Program (ECP) in place.

Arguably one of the most important ways to make sure all people and departments in your company are involved with compliance and aware of their responsibilities is to make sure their roles and responsibilities are clearly defined in your team’s trade compliance manual or trade compliance program. For exporters, this is formally called an Export Compliance Program (ECP).

As they are the basis of your compliance training program, your import or export compliance manual and audit plan should include pertinent policies and step-by-step procedures. By making sure your export team—and that includes employees in every part of the company who have even the smallest role in the export process—is fully up to speed, you'll prepare them for the unknown and feel confident in your process should you ever be audited.

3. Conduct new hire and continuing education training for employees.

As mentioned above, training is a key part of your ECP. The world of international trade is constantly changing. As regulations, best practices, technology and tools evolve, so too do the needs and requirements of exporters. Participate regularly in training and development to make sure you and your team (including all departments within your business) are fully aware of any important changes to import and export compliance; these trainings should be governed by and documented in your ECP.

4. Attend compliance seminars and webinars hosted by regulatory bodies and study the resources provided.

You can absolutely become an expert in trade compliance without enrolling in a special program for export compliance officer certification. In our article 8 Free Resources for Training Exporters, we discuss the following resources in detail (enrollment and participation is free in many cases!):

This list is just a starting point—there are many, many paths to trade compliance that don’t require participation in export compliance certification programs.

5. Subscribe to the International Trade Blog.

Check out the scores of free articles available on a variety of international trade topics, including export compliance, right here on this blog—the International Trade Blog. If you haven’t signed up to get an email notification every time a new post is added, click this link and enter your email address on the top of the page to do that right now.

6. Use software and tools to help ensure you’re following current trade compliance best practices and guidelines.

Too many companies I’ve talked to have a myriad of tools for creating export documents, running export compliance screenings, and documenting compliance efforts (if they have any centralized software in place at all). Without a standardized set of trade tools, it’s not unusual for each company location, department or even individual employee to create their own set of procedures, checklists and document templates. There’s no consistency at all!

Successful exporters who avoid export compliance snafus are more likely to rely on a single export documentation and compliance solution, such as Shipping Solutions software, to handle all these tasks. With Shipping Solutions software, all your information is stored in one place, all your product information is consistent, and every employee is generating export paperwork that is up-to-date with current regulations and industry best practices. That’s important if you want to make sure your export shipments arrive on time and there are no delays in getting paid. Register now for a free online demo of the Shipping Solutions software. There’s absolutely no obligation.

Trade Compliance Certification Summary

As an employer, I am much more concerned that my company has put together a comprehensive Export Compliance Program, reviews and updates it annually, and provides regular export compliance training to my employees than I am about what certifications my employees may or may not have.

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David Noah

About the Author: David Noah

David Noah is the founder and president of Shipping Solutions, a software company that develops and sells export documentation and compliance software targeted at U.S. companies that export. David is a frequent speaker on export documentation and compliance issues and has published several articles on the topic.

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