Shipping internationally
for beginners
If you're shipping something across a border for the first time — as a business, not just mailing a personal package — there's a real process behind it, even when it feels like you're just printing a label and handing it to a carrier. Here's what's actually happening, in the order it actually happens, so you know what to do and who to ask when you don't.
The thing nobody tells first-timers
Getting a box from point A to point B is a logistics problem — pick a carrier, pay for freight, print a label. Shipping it legally is a different problem entirely, and it's the one that catches people off guard. Every international shipment, no matter how small, touches a handful of legal questions: what exactly is this item (classification), where did it really come from (origin), who is it going to and are they allowed to receive it (screening), does it need government permission to leave or enter (licensing/entry), and does anyone need to be told it happened (filing).
None of that shows up on a shipping carrier's website. It's compliance work, and it exists whether you know about it or not — the difference is just whether you did it on purpose or found out about it later, usually at the worst possible time.
If you're exporting (shipping out of the US)
Classify the item
Find its Schedule B number (for the export statistics filing) and, separately, its ECCN (Export Control Classification Number, which determines license requirements). These are two different codes answering two different questions — what it is for trade statistics, and whether it's controlled for export.
Screen the buyer
Check the party you're shipping to against the U.S. government's Consolidated Screening List — a merged feed of restricted-party lists from Commerce, State, and Treasury. This isn't optional; it's a legal requirement that attaches to the transaction regardless of what you're shipping.
Determine if you need a license
Your ECCN, the destination country, and the end use and end user together decide whether the shipment needs an export license or qualifies for a license exception. Many everyday commercial items ship freely; some don't, and the only way to know is to actually check the combination — not to assume based on what the product is.
File your EEI, or confirm you're exempt
Electronic Export Information gets filed with the government for most shipments above a value threshold, or when a license is involved. Below that threshold, an exemption usually applies — but you still need to know which one and cite it correctly.
If you're importing (bringing something into the US)
Classify the item
Find its HTS code — this single code drives the duty rate you'll pay, whether any other government agency (FDA, EPA, USDA) needs to sign off, and how it must be marked.
Determine the country of origin
Not necessarily where you bought it from — where it was actually made, or last substantially transformed. This affects your duty rate directly, especially if a Section 301 or antidumping order applies to that country.
Screen the supplier
Same idea as export screening, aimed the other direction — confirm your supplier isn't a restricted party, and for certain goods and regions, confirm there's no forced-labor exposure (UFLPA).
Know your entry requirements
Ocean shipments generally need an Importer Security Filing 24 hours before the cargo loads overseas. You'll need a customs bond, and depending on the HTS code, a partner government agency may have its own requirements layered on top.
Estimate the real landed cost
Base duty, plus any Section 301 or antidumping/countervailing duties, plus processing fees — the number that actually lands on your invoice is usually higher than the sticker rate alone.
Do you need a customs broker?
Not always, but often worth it. A licensed customs broker files entries on your behalf and carries real expertise — especially valuable for complex, high-value, or first-time-in-a-new-category shipments. But hiring a broker doesn't remove the underlying compliance decisions from your plate: the importer or exporter of record is still the one legally responsible for the classification, origin, and screening being correct, even when someone else does the filing. A good broker is a partner in getting it right, not a substitute for knowing what "right" is supposed to look like.
The mistakes that trip up almost everyone
- Assuming "we've shipped something similar before" covers you. A different vendor, a different sourcing country, or a minor spec change can change the correct classification or origin even when the product looks the same on paper.
- Skipping screening because the buyer or supplier "seems legitimate." Screening isn't about whether someone seems trustworthy — it's a name check against specific government lists, and it has to happen regardless of how the relationship feels.
- Not knowing who internally has the information you need. Engineering or product usually knows the material and function; procurement usually knows the vendor and country of manufacture; the manufacturer's own datasheet is often the fastest source of truth when a vendor didn't make the part themselves.
- Treating the paperwork as the finish line. Filing the right form with the wrong underlying classification doesn't fix the classification — it just documents the mistake.
Lane Workbench walks you through classification, origin, screening, and filing for a real part or shipment, with Learning Mode explaining the reasoning at every step. See how it works →