If part of your business involves importing goods into the United States, then you likely can benefit from using bonded warehouses. Bonded warehousing allows you to store imported goods in a facility without paying customs until the goods are moved out of the bonded warehouse. This is a great way to ensure that you receive payment from your buyers before your goods are delivered.

Before you can fully appreciate the benefits of bonded warehouse storage, you might want to gather as much information about bonded warehouses as you can. From delayed payment of customs duties to prolonged storage periods, bonded warehousing has many advantages to importers. Before you find a bonded warehouse, take the time to learn bonded warehouses basics:

1. Get a clear understanding of what bonded warehouses are and what they do.
2. Learn about the many services a US bonded warehouse offers.
3. Compare US customs bonded warehouses to Foreign Trade Zones (FTZs).

Action Steps
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Learn about the role and function of a bonded warehouse

There's more to bonded warehouses than simply storing your goods. Activities such as repacking, assembling and relabeling may take place in a bonded warehouse. There are also different types of bonded warehouses specific to particular goods and supplies being shipped.

I recommend: The Vermont Department of Economic Development gives a detailed explanation of what a bonded warehouse is, how it works and even how bonds are applied for. Find a brief description of a bonded warehouse and the advantages for using one at Las Vegas Import Export.

Discover how a bonded warehouse can benefit your business

Perhaps the best way to understand and appreciate what bonded warehouses do is to look specifically at a customs bonded warehouse. Find out firsthand exactly what services a customs bonded warehouse offers, what type of goods it stores and handles and even how much storage space it provides.

I recommend: Get everything from storing to shipping, including fulfillment, packing and logistics support, from Murphy Warehouse. Port Jersey Logistics provides temperature control, a wide range of materials handling equipment and the capability to store any food-grade product.

Find out how bonded warehouses differ from Foreign Trade Zones

While there are some similarities, bonded warehouses differ from Foreign Trade Zones. To avoid confusion between the two and make an educated decision about which program works best for your business, it's best to know how bonded warehouses and FTZs differ, such as duty requirements, storage periods, tariff rates and how goods are controlled.

I recommend: View a comparison chart of bonded warehouses and FTZs at the Economic Development Council for Central Illinois. International Trade Consulting also offers a comparison between bonded warehousing and FTZs, with additional information regarding damaged goods, labeling defects and the Federal Excise Tax.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Some bonded warehouses specialize in handling and storing specific products and goods. Find a bonded warehouse that is best equipped to accommodate your particular shipments.

Bonded warehousing is a necessity to any import or exporter in this changing market place. Bonded warehouse prices vary from place to place, but to find a bonded warehouse that is right for you will be well worth the cost.

Customs bonded warehouse can help you manage your goods in an efficient manner without paying major customs fees before your buyer has paid you.

Know what to look for in bonded warehouses:

1. You want a facility with safe floors. Flat floors reduce your operator's fatigue. Joint reduction decreases equipment damage, and absence of cracking gives you a more sanitary warehouse.

2. Look for well-lit docks and aisle areas to give you heightened safety and security.

3. Find out what kind of rack system them use at their bonded warehouse facility.

4. Make sure that your bonded warehouse storage has adequate fire protection.

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Find a local bonded warehouse

Search for a US bonded warehouse in your area.

I recommend: Atlanta Bonded Warehouse Corporation (ABW) has been in business over 50 years. They offer you contract food-grade, temperature-controlled storage and handling. Robertson Bonded Warehouse specializes in agricultural chemicals and hazardous materials. Hansen Storage has been in business over 100 years, and they offer freezer as well as refrigerated storage. They have air-conditioned space as well as freight brokerage and leased space. Broad Street Bonded Warehouse specializes in cotton. The company is family-owned and has been in business since 1945.

Look for US customs bonded warehouses

US customs bonded warehouses can help you reduce your exposure to customs duties on unsold goods. They can help you retain full control over merchandise until your buyer meets the terms of sale, and they offer you a more security, usually, than a conventional warehouse.

I recommend: Murphy Bonded Warehouse is a US Customs bonded warehouse facility. World Trade Distribution is also a US Customs bonded warehouse that offers live video receiving and can offer you a wide range of shipping options from their networked vendor friends.

Go with customs bonded warehouse that are licensed and networked

Look for bonded warehouse storage companies that are well-versed in the industry. Look for a company that has many affiliations and stays in the know about the field.

I recommend: The International Warehouse Logistics Association gives you a great industry background. Source Distribution Logistics can help you find an area specific customs bonded warehouse. The Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC) helps develop quality warehouse management and helps you improve your role in the supply chain. Their members share practical knowledge for the betterment of the industry.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Make sure that the bonded warehousing facility that you choose is specific to your industry and your needs.

A bonded warehouse is where products with unpaid duties get stored. Goods at bonded warehouses get stored under bond and are jointly owned by the importer, its agent and U.S. Customs officials. A Customs bonded warehouse can either be managed by a governmental agency or by a private third party and is run much like any other warehouse. The U.S. government recognizes 11 types of bonded warehouses and has categorized them into classes.

Aside from the status of what is stored inside and some of the regulations around releasing it, bonded warehouse storage management is not unlike traditional warehouse storage in terms of its processes. Consider the following methods below to get more information about bonded warehouses and further your bonded warehouses education and training:

1. Attend a class about bonded warehousing as it pertains to U.S. Customs brokers.

2. Take an online course that includes the topic of U.S. bonded warehouse management.

3. Get certified in logistics management to be qualified to manage U.S. Customs bonded warehouses.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Attend a class about bonded warehousing as it pertains to U.S. Customs Brokers

Customs brokers must be well versed in all topics related to federal rules and regulations around all goods that go in and out of the country. It is therefore always easy to find a bonded warehouse subject being discussed in a Customs broker class, since the two go naturally hand-in-hand.

I recommend: Logistics Training Systems offers Customs Broker classes that discuss the topic of bonded warehouses. The Global Trade & Technology Center (GTTC) offers a course in Foreign Trade Zone/Bonded Warehouse Operations Management as part of its Customs Broker classes series.

Increase your bonded warehouse storage knowledge with an online course

Online courses in bonded warehouse compliance or Customs broker regulatory concerns will generally touch upon the topic of bonded warehousing. Online courses allow you the luxury of learning at your own pace and at your own computer.

I recommend: ComplianceOnline offers online training on Free Zone and Bonded Warehouse Compliance. Customs Review's video course curriculum discusses bonded warehouses.

Get certified in logistics management to be qualified to manage bonded warehouses

Many companies will not hire someone to manage operations in their warehouse, particularly a bonded warehouse, without a certification in logistics or warehouse management. You can increase your marketability and make your resume stand out from those of others with this certification.

I recommend: California State University, Dominguez Hills offers a Global Logistics Management Certificate that includes bonded warehouse coursework. Kennesaw State University's continuing education program has a Logistics Management Certificate program.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Literature, coursework, or seminars that have to do with supply chain management often touch on the topic of bonded warehousing, as this is a supply chain link that, when kinked, can cause a troublesome domino effect downstream for those companies that import and export goods. Consider reading up on supply chain management together with any logistics and warehouse management learnings to further your bonded warehouse education and training.

If your business relies on receiving imported goods, or you are importing goods into the United States, you may wish to utilize the services of bonded warehouses. If you've never worked with a bonded warehouse, you'll benefit from learning many bonded warehouses key terms. From understanding the differences between bonded warehouses and Foreign Trade Zones (FTZs) to knowing exactly what a customs bond is, you'll find working with bonded warehouses requires a comprehension of several terms and phrases.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Bonded warehouse

First, you'll want to understand exactly what a bonded warehouse is and how it operates. A bonded warehouse is essentially a storage warehouse where imported goods are held until customs duties are paid.

I recommend: The Vermont Department of Economic Development provides a detailed explanation of what bonded warehouses are and how they work.

Customs bond

Bonded warehouses must post a bond to U.S. Customs to ensure they are complying with all regulations. This is essentially a guarantee of duties payment by importers of goods held in the bonded warehouse.

I recommend: Find an extensive explanation of what a customs bond is from Samuel Shapiro & Company, a leading logistics provider.

Duties or import taxes

Importers of goods into the United States are charged taxes and other fees. These taxes and fees are known as duties, or import taxes. Duties are determined by several factors, including point of origin and type of product shipped.

I recommend: Informed Trade International explains what duties are, why they are used and how they are determined.

Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ)

A Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) is an area that falls outside U.S. Customs territory. Different rules pertaining to bonds, duties, manufacturing and storage apply to FTZs as compared to bonded warehouses.

I recommend: International Trade Consulting provides a comprehensive list of how FTZs differ from bonded warehouses.

General order warehouse

A general order warehouse is a type of bonded warehouse that receives and holds goods that have not been filed with U.S. Customs. General order warehouses hold goods for a determined period of time while duties are unpaid, and can then disperse the goods via auction if duties are not paid.

I recommend: World Trade Distribution gives a brief overview of general order warehouses.

Container freight station

Container freight stations also work under a bond, but are more involved in the handling of imported goods. A container freight station is a type of bonded warehouse that is involved in the picking up, storing, consolidating, moving and tracking of imported goods.

I recommend: Nippon Express gives a thorough explanation of how a container freight station operates.