Bonded Warehouses Key Terms

Understand the benefits and advantages of bonded warehouses by learning several key terms

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.

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.
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.

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.

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.

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.

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.




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