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When shipping goods to the United States from international destinations, there are three main freight options that you will have to choose from – land freight, air freight and sea freight. Land freight is a possibility if you are transporting goods from Mexico or Canada. This procedure is fairly simple and requires that you use proper transportation for the goods. You will also have to ensure that the truckers are provided with the necessary documentation to clear check points.
Air freight is the best option if you need your goods to reach their destination in the USA in a short period of time. Ordinarily, goods being transported by air freight take a week at most, to reach their destination. Sea freight on the other hand, requires a minimum of a month to six weeks to get goods to the USA. If your freight timelines allow you a longer time period for transportation, and if you are not transporting perishables, sea freight is definitely the better option as it is a lot cheaper than air freight. Also, logistically, with certain goods like machinery and large pieces of furniture, sea freight is the only viable option.
When scheduling or accepting a time frame for transporting your goods to the US, take into consideration how long your goods will take to actually reach its destination, factoring delays that could happen as the goods clear customs and border protection within the United States. If there are no unexpected hold-ups with customs procedures, you could see your goods clear customs in less than three days (air) or in less than five days (sea). It is important that you factor in this time period into your estimated date of delivery as well.
If a series of unfortunate circumstances such as a storm at sea or flight delays result in your goods arriving within the USA later than the initially stipulated date, be prepared to pay a lot more in special delivery and overtime clearances.
Documentation that you would need to include when shipping or flying goods into the US, is a minimum of five copies of the invoice, in English, which includes your name, the name of the recipient, the final destination of the cargo and the specifics of the cargo. Ensure that your cargo is secure and packed well, so as to ensure it does not become damaged during transit.
If you are transporting goods for personal use (i.e.) household goods, rather than transporting goods for business purposes, the laws that you will be subject to are determined by whether you are a non-resident of the United States or a returning resident. Shipping larger items, like an automobile from your home country is allowed if it meets with automobile safety regulations within the U.S. Investing in international insurance for your cargo is also a good way to minimise any risk you might face while transporting goods to the US.
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