A free trade agreement is an agreement between one, two or more countries. And the idea behind the free trade agreement is to foster financial benefits between the two participating countries. It allows countries to move goods and services through their borders, paying less duty than the normal transactions would take place. There are currently the United States currently has 14 free trade agreements which cover over 20 countries. These agreements help the countries deal with the United States and helps us move goods into their countries much swifter and at a better financial arrangement than without the free trade agreement.

The USMCA, which is the agreement between the US, Canada and Mexico, formerly NAFTA, carries four conditions that must exist in order for people to take advantage of USMCA. The goods must qualify according to the rules of origin Under the USMCA, they must ship from a USMCA country, which is Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. The USMCA declaration must be properly completed - that's something where we find a lot of errors. The importer must collect and maintain the support documentation to show that the goods qualify for free trade between the US, Mexico and Canada.

We hope you will gain some valuable insight into the world of customs tariffs. With all the supply chain challenges the world is facing, our aim is to maximize your duty drawback dollars and boost your bottom line. We hope you'll subscribe to our podcast to stay current with each new episode in which will unveil numerous ways to improve your international trade profitability. Thanks for listening.