Foreign Tade Zone

SCL Warehousing is located in Foreign-Trade Zone #35

What is an FTZ?

A Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) is a duty-free, quota-free, secured area in a designated customs “port of entry,” considered outside U.S. Customs territory. FTZs were created to neutralize negative U.S. tariff impact on products used by manufactures operating in the United States and to keep U.S. businesses competitive with businesses operating offshore or overseas. Though the benefits of operating in a FTZ vary, they are substantial, and are certainly worth investigating.

Within a zone, foreign goods can be brought into the United States without formal customs entry for warehousing, assembly, manufacture, display, destruction or other processing. Duty payments can be deferred, reduced or eliminated when an FTZ is utilized.

Foreign-Trade Zones Allow You To

  • Import and store goods duty-free for an indefinite period
  • Process imported goods to reduce duties
  • Import merchandise subject to quota or high rate of duty for eventual re-export
  • Eliminate duties on re-exported foreign merchandise
  • Destroy or re-export defective goods and waste materials without paying duties
  • Lower inventory costs
  • Hold goods in excess of a quota until the next quota period

Advantages are

  • Reduces Cash Flow
  • Elimination of Merchandise Processing Fee for Cargo Exported from Zone
  • Defers Harbor Maintenance Fee
  • Eliminates U.S. Customs Duty Payments for Exported Merchandise
  • Reduces or Eliminates Custom Duties for Defective, Damaged, Obsolete, Waste & Scrap
  • Inverted Custom Duty Savings
  • Non-Dutiability of Labor, Overhead and Profit
  • Allows for Duty Avoidance for International Returns
  • Duty Elimination for Unused Spare Parts
  • Store to Defer U.S. Quota
  • Add Value to Product to Avoid U.S. Quota
  • Simplification of Import/Export Procedures
  • Quality Control
  • Eliminate Country-of-Origin Marking/Labeling Requirements
  • Additional Security
  • Inventory Control
  • Merchandise in an FTZ Pays no Duty
  • Exempt Inventory Taxes
  • Added Savings for 806/807 Program
  • Entireties Provision
  • Avoidance of Duty for Exhibited Merchandise
  • Reduced Storage Insurance Costs
  • Reduced Cargo Shipped Insurance Costs
  • Allowance of Zone-To-Zone Transfer
  • Temporary Removal Procedure
  • Antidumping/Countervailing Duties
  • Duty-Free Retail Containers
  • Potential Exemption of Compliance with Federal Laws
  • Enterprise Zone Coordination
  • Generalized System of Preferences Duty-Free Status
  • Transfer of Title
  • Utilization of General Accepted Accounting Systems for Inventory Control
  • Flexibility for Changing Regulations
  • Stages Duty Reductions
  • Potential Duty Reduction for Products of Communist Countries