The Thirteen Commandments: No. 4
"Honor The Laws"
A. Try To Exceed Minimum Legal Requirements
Your ICP should aim as high as practical. By overcompensating, you'll avoid quibbling later with the Government on whether you met some amorphous standard. For example, if your company is required, as it is under the Customs Modernization Act, to use "reasonable care", try to be even more careful than what you think the Government expects and more careful than others in your industry. Aim beyond the letter of the law to its spirit.
B. Intellectual Property Rights
Law regulating intellectual property rights are in utter confusion, and there are few uniform standards that apply transnationally. Infringement is becoming a bigger problem as international trade goes becomes electronic and as technology makes it easier to illegally copy and exploit the works of others. You must protect your intellectual property rights to the extent possible, which sometimes means registering your rights in separate jurisdictions. You should also have internal checks to make sure that you are not violating the rights of others.
C. Take Advantage Of Legal Opportunities
Whatever you are exporting or importing (products, services, information, or money), governments the world over impose transactions costs on your company. These costs may take the form of regulatory directives, taxes, duties, or tariffs. Many of these transactions costs and trade barriers are being reduced or phased out entirely.
Your ICP may specify how to respond to the lowered trade barriers. Depending on the nature of your company, the lowering of barriers may mean that your company will be able to build on a competitive edge or that your market share is likely to drop. Either way, you should be prepared.
Your company may wish to "tariff engineer" or redesign products to get the most favorable treatment possible under revised tariff schedules. You may also want to move production and sourcing to countries that are reducing barriers.
You should also take advantage of government certification or benefits programs provided by the Government. For example, there may be special benefits, certification, or pre-certification programs relating to drawback, cargo release, advisory opinions, classification rulings, recordkeeping, and licensing.
D. Incorporate important Export and Customs Laws
Here are some laws that your ICP should focus on. This list is not exhaustive:
• Export Administration Regulations and the Export Administration Act
• Arms Export Control Act and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations
• Foreign Assets Control Regulations
• Customs Modernization Act
• Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
• Federal Register - federal agencies continuously issue public announcements related to international trade regulation. This may include new rules, proposed rules, meetings, and additions/deletion of prohibited parties, activities, and countries.
• International Treaties
