Simplifying import logistics: What small businesses need to know

Importing involves bringing goods or services from foreign countries into the domestic market. It is a crucial part of international trade and helps to connect economies globally. For small businesses, importing offers exciting opportunities—access to unique or hard to find products, competitive pricing, and the opportunity to diversify and strengthen your supply chain.

All these things can help provide a competitive edge that fuels growth and profitability.

Here, we share what you should know to take advantage of these benefits and offer tips to simplify import logistics. 

From understanding customs requirements to knowing how to calculate duties, a clear grasp of import logistics can help set you up for success.

A good place to start is identifying whether there are any licensing requirements or other regulations related to the products you’d like to import. Certain food items and pharmaceuticals may require permits to show they meet local health and safety standards. Other items, like firearms, may not only require permits but come with guidelines governing where they may be manufactured or imported from.

Next, consider the costs of importing. One of the key reasons for importing goods is to source products and materials at a lower cost. However, tariffs or duties, shipping, and insurance costs can add up and impact margin. The more accurately you can estimate these costs, the more accurately you can estimate your margins and determine whether importing is beneficial for your business.

The good news is that many countries have a minimum threshold of order value that goods must meet before duties and taxes apply. This threshold, known as a de minimis, varies across countries with details for each country available via the Global Express Association website.

Once you’ve calculated the costs of importing, assess the risks. Key risk factors to consider include:  

Importing goods presents several challenges that businesses must navigate to ensure smooth operations. From collaboration with shippers to obtaining customs clearance, each step comes with potential obstacles. FedEx offers solutions to help overcome these challenges and help simplify import logistics.

Effective collaboration between shippers and importers is crucial to avoid miscommunication and ensure timely deliveries. Often, importers arrange shipments independently and manually forward the air waybill to the shipper, which can lead to issues such as packages not being ready for collection when the courier arrives.

FedEx's Collaborative Shipping Tool enhances collaboration by allowing the importer to initiate the shipping process. The importer can then share a link with the shipper to finalize details and arrange pickup of the shipment. This collaboration streamlines the shipping process and reduces failed pickup attempts and the need for rescheduling.

As unexpected duties and taxes can impact margin, it’s essential to understand and accurately calculate these costs to avoid surprises.

FedEx Global Trade Manager  simplifies this process by providing tools such as the Harmonized Code Search, which helps businesses find the correct tariff classification for products. 

Global Trade Manager also includes a duty and tax calculator, making it easier to estimate and plan for costs associated with international shipments.

Achieving customs clearance can be complex, with potential roadblocks such as incorrect documentation or inaccurate declared values causing delays. 

FedEx Global Trade Manager helps businesses navigate customs clearance by centralizing essential tools and information. So, whether you’re importing goods from China into Australia or from Singapore into Thailand, you can find the necessary documents to accompany your international shipments, enabling compliance and reducing the risk of delays.

Tracking shipments and monitoring their progress through customs clearance is vital for businesses to minimize and proactively manage potential delays. 

Our FedEx Online Declaration Tool*  simplifies import logistics with features such as:

• 24/7 import monitoring on a single platform
• An intuitive dashboard to monitor clearance status 
• Timely updates via email of any clearance actions 
• Ability to seamlessly upload any missing information or paperwork upon request from FedEx, ensuring smooth processing of shipments on arrival 
• Easy access to post-clearance documents with just a few clicks

*Please refer to fedex.com for availability in your local market as services may vary.  

Ready to start importing? FedEx’s tools and services can help you manage the complexities of import logistics, giving you peace of mind and time to focus on growing your business.