We all hate it when our packages take forever to get to us! Not just because it's annoying, but because in our economy, time is money. Here are some common reasons why your delivery is taking longer than expected, and how to speed things up.

When a shipment crosses an international border, it goes through the customs clearance process where the country’s import laws are enforced, and duties and taxes are assessed. There are two types of invoices that can be created for an international shipment and this article will guide you through which one you need to make. Some shipments are obviously commercial since they are being formally purchased from another country and will be subject to duty and tax. Others have nominal value or are not for resale, regardless of their value; these shipments might not be subject to duty and tax. The biggest role that an invoice plays in customs is to aid customs agents in enforcing duty and tax laws.

Shipping packages to Canada from the United States is simple and straightforward. OptimalShip provides all of the tools and assistance you need to ship your parcels. Our customer service team will help you choose the best shipment options for your needs.

There is more paperwork involved in international shipments than with domestic because it is crossing international borders. Without this paperwork, your shipment will not make it through the customs clearance process. The paperwork sent will include more than just a simple statement of origin and destination. These extra details will ensure that it gets through customs and where it needs to go in a timely manner.

You can ship to China just like you can ship to many other countries. But a shipment to China could take days or weeks to arrive. Being the second largest importer in the world comes with some hiccups. All international shipping options include going through customs regulations. But high volumes of shipments can affect the delivery time for packages.

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Shipping to Brazil follows the same process as shipping to any other country. You'll need to fill out customs documents. You'll also need to pay for shipping costs and pay attention to transit times. However, shipping to Brazil also comes with a few quirks. Having Brazil as your destination country makes shipping more expensive. In today's blog, we're giving you some pointers to making shipping to Brazil easier.

Incoterms 2020 is an abbreviation for international commercial terms. Incoterms are part of international trade. Incoterms rules define the "basic roles and responsibilities of seller and buyer" when handling manufactured goods.

Your Complete Guide to Understanding How Duties and Taxes Work

Customs duty, duty rates, import taxes, value-added tax ... you see these words all the time, but what do they mean? It can be easy to get confused. After all, duties and taxes are part of all international shipments, and all countries have them. In this article, we're answering all your questions.