[Nhcoll-l] international shipments being held up and extra fees

[Amanda Bremner]

Thank you Dirk and others for your input.
We have had an account with FedEx for years and have always shipped internationally using FedEx.  I regularly ship on average one package internationally every couple of weeks with FedEX.

What we are trying to figure out is, if we are using FedEx Express to deliver our packages, be our broker, and they have all the necessary documents to clear the package: why are packages still being held up in customs and why are we being charged additional fees after the fact?  

Most loans being returned to us from the USA (by FedEx) this year are being held up in Mirabel, Quebec, Canada at customs and we are now being charged ~$60 per package in unexpected customs clearance fees (SWI - single window initiative fees and brokerage fees) from our broker, Livingston.

I cannot get a straight answer from Livingston OR FedEx to determine why this has changed.

How can we avoid having shipments being held up at customs and avoid these extra fees?

Thanks so much,
Amanda

-----Original Message-----
From: Neumann, Dirk [mailto:neumann at snsb.de] 
Sent: Monday, October 25, 2021 2:14 PM
To: Amanda Bremner <Amanda.Bremner at nbm-mnb.ca>
Cc: nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu; neumann at snsb.de
Subject: Re: [Nhcoll-l] international shipments being held up and extra fees

Dear Amanda,
regarding inspection costs charged for return shipments arriving via the FedEx Airhub in Cologne/Bonn, this is rather a German issue on a federal level; please check if these are "just" internal handling costs (pure brokerage costs), or involving additional costs (e.g. veterinarian clearance for preserved zoological specimens). You can claim part of the costs, but we may sort this out via phone or direct emails.

If you are not a regular FedEx shipper, FedEx (and all other postal
carriers) need a mandate to do the customs clearance. If they don't have this, you/your institution would need to clear consignments via direct ATLAS entries using you institutional EORI-number. You can do this, but you need an own account for this. In this case, you would act as responsible broker (and not FedEx).

Hope this answers your questions, if not, let's continue offline.

with best wishes
Dirk


Am 2021-10-25 19:01, schrieb Amanda Bremner:
> Dear list serve members,
> 
> I am curious to know whether anyone is having difficulty this year 
> with international research loan shipments of specimens being held at 
> Customs brokers, and if your institutions are being charged 
> additional, unexpected fees for incoming shipments (mainly returning 
> loans).  Our borrowers have been using FedEx to return material to us, 
> and unlike past years, we are frequently having packages held at 
> Customs, followed by bills for additional unexpected brokerage fees to 
> allow clearance of these packages.
> 
> When I send out a package and fill out the FedEx waybill I always opt 
> to choose FedEx as the customs broker. I always include a clear 
> description of our shipment contents (including taxon names, 
> preservation method, weight, country of Origin, total declared value 
> of $20 CAD) and HS code 9705.00 (for botanical, zoological, 
> palaeontological collections).  I always include a boilerplate on the 
> outside of the package and a label for dangerous goods in excepted 
> quantities if the shipment contains 70% or 95% ethanol.  I always note 
> that it is a commercial shipment and use the commercial invoice 
> generated by FedEx.
> 
> Also, recently, even after I opted to choose FedEx to be the broker 
> for an outgoing shipment to Spain, FedEx requested the recipient to 
> fill out a "Power of Attorney" form to state that they would like 
> FedEx to be the broker.  I called FedEx and they gave me no 
> explanation, other than stating that Customs in Spain had requested 
> this.
> 
> I would like to know if any other institutions are having any issues 
> with packages being held up and if they are being charged extra 
> brokerage fees.  Also, does anyone have any advice on how we can avoid 
> packages being held at Customs and how we can avoid the extra 
> unexpected brokerage fees?
> 
> Thank you for your time,
> 
> Amanda
> 
> Amanda Bremner, M.Sc.
> 
> Coordinator, Natural History loans and databases / Coordinateur, prêts 
> et bases de données d'histoire naturelle
> 
> Department of Natural History/ Département d'histoire naturelle
> 
> New Brunswick Museum/Musée du Nouveau-Brunswick
> 
> 277 Douglas Avenue/ 277, avenue Douglas
> 
> Saint John, New Brunswick/ Saint John (Nouveau-Brunswick)
> 
> Canada E2K 1E5
> 
> Amanda.Bremner at nbm-mnb.ca
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