1. "Accessorial services" means optional extra services, provided at extra cost. Household Goods export/import services have very clearly defined paramenters, often based on volume (cubic feet) or container size, weight, accessibility, and special packing methods. Commercial product export/import services are handled differently from HHG-household goods and personal effects consignments.
   
   
2. Professional Mover "accessorial fees"mean:
   extra charges that may apply for service above and beyond what is considered to be a normal pickup or delivery.
   
   
3. Extra labor charges will apply for goods coming from or going to a location with difficult access (no entry / exit near the street where a container is to be positioned). A "long walk" surcharge may apply when professional labor is used to handle a pickup, and the goods are located an extra-ordinarily long distance from the place where they rest - to where the truck can legally park nearest to the pickup location exit/doorway. A customer will typically know if they are in a poor access location or not.
   
   
4. If we have to pay our professional labor to perform accessorial services, this will be an additional charge to our normal origin service rate. The same applies to the services performed by our professional D/A-destination agents (our professional labor who perform the final delivery into your overseas residence).
   
   
5. Accessorial services include:
   
   
   automobile service (pickup, loading / unloading), new liftvans, art crating, motorcycle crating, piano handling and crating / uncrating, heavy safe or equipment handling, oversized goods hoisted from roofs or out windows, extra location pickups, stairs over 2nd floor / walk up flights, shuttle service for difficult access (van / dollies with labor), dis-assembly or re-assembly of complex furniture, long carry, "cherry picker" outdoor elevators, lift-gate trucks with pallet jacks, crane service, mechanical hoisting / rigging, electrical work, carpentry services, SIT-storage in transit, abnormal export customs clearance, special trip couriers, labor or inspection fees in the event your consignment is selected by Customs authorities (at origin or destination) for an actual physical inspection. Not all shipments are selected by Customs for an actual inspection, and in some cases it is actually rare. In other cases (personal effects via air) it is more likely. Cartons of personal effects coming in from Europe (via air) are often charged an extra "X-Ray" fee, with the average net cost of approx. US $ 5 per carton X-Rayed. Such accessorial services may be needed at either the origin or destination delivery location.
   
   
   • Building Liability Insurance Coverage certificate fee = $ 85.00
     Some high-rise building in major metropolitan cities (eg., Manhattan, LA, Chicago) require our packers to produce a certificate of liability insurance for (on average) $1 million (insuring against damage to the building). Our Sefco Export approved packers have such coverage. However, a certificate processing fee of $ 85 will be applied to the customer's account since a specific certificate will need to be typed, stating the building owners name, and the exact date of pickup. These certificates are reported to the underwriters. If the pickup site is from a building that does not require this additional proof of coverage, then the $ 85 certificate processing fee will not be applied.
     See: www.sefco-export.com/originrate.htm#bldginsure
     
     
   • PSS Peak Season Surcharge for professional Origin Services. This is applicable to work performed during the peak season. Certain dates are only available with full prepayment 1-month in advance. The summer time is the busiest time of the year for our export packers/professional labor. The last few days of every month are in great demand. With many of our best origin agents, the PSS peak season surcharge is 20% over the standard off-peak origin services rate. Work performed on holidays will be done on an inducement basis only. Truckers and SSL steamship lines also have PSS peak season surcharges. Please plan ahead and make your booking well enough in advance so there are no surprises. See our: Port News Updates
     
     
     We recommend sending in your deposit at least 30 days ahead of when you plan to move. Our packers - connected to our full service origin packing warehouses - are not "occasional labor" - and work legally with full coverages and protections as warranted by law. So when our packers enter an expensive high-rise building, we are able to provide the building management with proof of insurance for the packers (liability, $2 million; workmans comp., etc). The dispatch of our manpower is therefore a premium service. Personal effects moves require advance reservations for booking our professional packers. All HHG/PE household goods / personal effects overseas moves are performed on a "prepaid" basis only. To proceed with an overseas HHG/PE move, a deposit is required to reserve the packers, to have the formal SS line booking made, and full prepayment for shipping / handling / insurance as per quotation.
     
     
   • Straight trucking only for picking up LCL cargo is not the same as a residential mover (professional export packers/labor).
     See an example of accessorial charges as provided by one of our USA-based truckers.
     Click on the PDF icon (at right) and enter our temporary password when prompted: {sefcoexport}
     
     
   • FCL container trucking for "live load door positioning" or a "drop and pickup" of FCL full container loads required normal commercial access for our network of designated FCL commerical truckers. Some residential areas may be difficult to access, ie., low hanging electrical outdoor wiring, gated condo communities, soft asphalt on the driveway tarmac may cause a heavy container to sink into the pavement, tight turning radius, local parking restrictions and so on. Most truckers will give a "door" rate based on the working assumption that the location for loading is not going to be problematic. For container loads in residential areas - an accessorial charge of an extra $250 or so - is not uncommon. This serves an an inducement to truckers that will otherwise turn down positioning requests in a non-commercial, residential location. Due to the rapidly changing cost of fuel, and route service changes by port-based intermodal providers (truckers, railroads, terminal operators) on-carriage rates must be reconfirmed within 2 weeks of the dispatch of any export or import container. See: FCL on-carriage service. To read some further shipping industry commentary on these subjects, click here.
     
   
   
   
6. Vehicle Exports from the USA
   Customers who deliver their own vehicle to the port in the USA, can self-clear their title through US Customs on the spot.
   
   
   Alternatively, our auto-export department can arrange for US Customs export clearance of your car title on your behalf, provided it is free and clear of any liens. Most shippers who use our Ro-Ro service usually self-clear their title at the US pier with no problems. Just follow our instructions. Show up with the original title in hand, get it stamped/approved etc, and then the original title is given right back to you. But shippers who send their vehicle in a FCL-full container (not "Ro-Ro" shipping) typically need our help to clear the titles through US Customs. It is often impractical for most FCL vehicle shippers to show up at the pier - with the cleared title in hand - at the exact same moment that our trucker (with the container) arrives at the pier. In such cases, it makes better sense to FedEx us the original title, and our messengers, etc. take it from there.
   
   Read our "do's and don'ts" for helpful guidance.
   
   Export customs clearance of documents at origin is not the same as import customs clearance at destination. Read more advice concerning export clearing your vehicle title through US Customs [click here].
   
   
   
7. HHG/PG Household Goods/Personal Effects OA Origin Packing for export shipping.
   A rate for export packing assumes a normal mix of household goods and personal effects. Extra charges will apply for excessive and extra-ordinary packing: for example, packing an entire 20 or 40-ft container-load of fragile china (no furniture).
   
   
8. E-economy service door to door FCL containers are to be self-cleared at destination. Customers can opt to use a 3rd party customs broker at destination to assist with clearance and you should pay for this cod collect direct to the selected broker at destination. If Sefco is to help select and arrange for a 3rd party customs broker in conjunction with our E-Economy service, a $ 250 p/a fee will be required. To learn more about this please click here. For more information on our Ecomony and Premium service, please click here.

Sefco Export can arrange for such things,
but it comes at an added cost.

• US Exports:
  If we are to export clear your vehicles title / paperwork with US Customs, vs. you self-clearing when you deliver the vehicle to the pier, average handling fee plus costs on the US East Coast is $ 175 per title (per vehicle cleared) subject to acceptance by our auto department. Export clearance handling fees plus costs from Houston port, and Miami port, is $ 200. per title. Costs are confirmed in writing on a case to case basis as they vary from port to port. Rates do not include an Consular Documentation fees if any (required for: Dominican Republic; average cost is $300). If interested in our Premium services, we can provide a specific quote for any consular documentation costs plus our handling fee.
  
  
  Documentation Changes
  Regarding any requested change to documentation after submitted/confirmed "on board" and listed in the ships' manifest: Any amendments, alterations, corrections, or changes to B/L documentation submitted to a SS Line/carrier after a vessel has sailed will cost $175 per correction/change plus any/all additional SS line, NVO, forwarders or messenger charges as invoiced by same. In some instances (e.g., MSC-Mediterranean SS Line) SS Line carriers will charge $250.00 to change a single line in a B/L and manifest.
  
  
  Telex Release requests:
  
  
  Concerning ocean shipping B/L "release" documentation, a consignment is sent either "express release" (if instructed before receipt of the cargo, and the "express release" request is accepted by the SS Line) or hardcopies of the OBL original Bill of Lading are issued, but not both. Instructions regarding preferred release method should be given to Sefco, by or before the cargo is delivered to the port of loading. "Express release" requires prepayment in full prior to delivery of the cargo to the port, and is not necessarily accepted by all SS Lines at all ports so it is important to request this in advance of your shipment date. If an OBL original bill of lading is issued, it must be surrendered to the SS Line port agent at destination. In some cases, some SS Lines will instruct their overseas port agent to issue the bill of lading at the destination, to avoid the cost and time delay of having to courier documents internationally.
  
  
  If changes to the release method have to be made after a BL is issued and sent out by the SS Line, commonly referred to as requesting a "Telex Release", then an accessorial fee will be due.
  
  Costs must be confirmed on a case-by-case basis.
  The $ 250 Telex Release amount covers the additional charge from the SS Line for the "telex release", banking fees, FedEx fees and handling. Shippers: Please note on your instructions and returned proforma invoice, how you want your shipments to go. OBL original bill of lading, or "Express Release". If a SS line/carrier denies an express release request (it varies from port to port and from SS Line to SS Line) they will simply issue original bills of lading as this is the most common method of documenting an ocean shipment. All telex release fees are confirmed on a case-by-case basis.
  
  For an example of RORO Carrier terms, please click here.
  To learn more about shipping terminology, abbreviations and acronyms, please click here.
  
  
  Original Title Required for Vehicle Exports from the USA
  Note: If you are exporting a vehicle but you do not have the original title or MSO in your possession, in most circumstances will will advise you to wait until you have the original title as this is what US Customs requires. If we are to work on arranging the US Customs export clearance for a titled vehicle without the aforementioned document, this entails a lot more work and as such there will be an extra export clearance handling fee of US$ 250.00 There is no guarantee that US Customs will approve the export, however in special cases we have been able to obtain their approval for the export of a vehicle without the original title.
  
  
  
• US Imports:
  Informal entry and US customs clearance: $300 - for household goods and personal effects, exclusive of any import duty/taxes/physical inspection or x-ray fees. Economy service rates for transportation up to arrival at the destination port or terminal, do not include any customs clearance fees, duty if any, storage, terminal charges, customs examination charges or other DDC destination delivery charges. The consignee/property owner can self-clear their property through customs.
  
  
  Choices - Optional Acccessorial Services
  Premium Service: Imports clearances coordinated by Sefco Export Management Company, Inc.
  Economy Service: To self clear or not? Most conforming vehicles, shipped via standard RoRo service from Europe in the to USA, can be self cleared with relative ease, by the consignee/property owner - directly with US Customs at the US port of entry.
  
  Clients have a range of choices when it comes to clearing and claiming their property at the destination port.
  Choose between Economy Service for self clearance, and Premium service for assisted clearance.
  
  How would you like us to arrange your overseas move?
  Plan A-premium full D/D service, Plan B-economy self service.
  Decide which plan is best for you.
  
  
  Analysis and Expertise
  
  
  Some things, you can get for free (our online guides)
  and some things - our premium services and commercial analysis - are available for a fee.
  
  Deposit Required for: Office Consultations, Site Visits, Warehouse Services, Docs Department Services
  
  
  Our free advise and general reviews can be accessed online, right here on our web site, at no cost to you. Please take the time to review our online resources. If you just want to surf around, try using our sitemap or A-Z Index. We may very well have some very useful information for you. We try to make it easy for you to act on our information, being as well informed as possible. If you have trouble finding the information you need, just ask us!
  
  
  If it exists on our web site, we'll show you where to find it.
  If it's not on our site, we'll look into it further and get back to you.
  With over 1200-pages online, we know that a little guidance may be needed.
  
  Allow us to help you, get to where you want to go. Please feel free to email us.
  We are constantly updating and adding information as time goes on.

  Sefco Export: HHG/PE premium service - "PERSONAL PROPERTY SERVICES"
  Sefco Logistics: Commercial commodities, Ex/Im transactions, Trade support services, Expertise & Consulting - "Commercial Services"
  
  PREMIUM SERVICES
  
  PAID ANALYSIS and consultations.
  

  Our fee schedule for premium services is provided on our web site. Some fees will be subject to confirmation.
  A deposit / retainer is required for:
  Personal Property Services: Premium HHG/PE Service Survey - site visits,
  Commercial Commodities: Commercial Analysis - logistics, and commercial product consultations.

  FOR FREE INFORMATION
  

  ...just surf our site to read all about export import moving, customs, hundreds of useful links and more.
  
  READ ON...
  
  THERE ARE DIFFERENT CUSTOMS CLEARING PROCEDURES FOR DIFERENT COMMODITIES
  Some specific commodities are relatively easy to customs clear, while other commodity cargo clearances can be - for our designated/approved CHB customs house brokers - a distasteful and arduous task.
  
  Most CHB brokers specialize in a specific band of commodities, such as one of our brokers in Florida, who specializes in customs entries for pleasure craft and boats. Our CHB broker in Baltimore, on the other hand, processes hundreds of 3299 entries, for duty free entry of HHG/PE household goods and personal effects. Some CHB brokers shun personal effects shippers as overly problematic. Others specialize in this commodity. We have arranged, with our select group of forwarding agents and customs brokers, the importation of high value vehicles from the U.K. for personal use. At Sefco Export, we know who's good for the task at hand, we have the trade relations already in place, and we know what problems to avoid. This is where our experience becomes quite valuable.

  At Sefco Export, we analyze the overall needs of the project and gather the best team and routing for your property.

Premium Commercial Services


Fee Paid Commercial Analysis and consultations
New accounts are invited to submit your retainer for service.
Minimum retainer: $500


Rates for Commercial Consulting: $ 175 per hour.
Please refer to Sefco's online terms for details.

Location fees will apply to meetings/conferences and special events held at our midtown Manhattan facility.

By appointment only. Location: 3 West 51st Street, New York, New York
Our administrative office in Queens NYC is not open to the public.
Our origin/destination warehouses are available on an appointment basis only.
The location and schedule for our Ex-Im Seminars (hosted by Sefco Japan) will be posted on our website.

Please refer to www.sefcologistics.com for details on how to register a new commercial account.
           

READ OUR ONLINE ADVISE AND GUIDANCE:
HHG/PE household goods/personal effects can be time consuming to clear, but not particularly problematic. Vehicle imports into the USA, if non-conforming, can be difficult. Read our online guides for further details concerning auto imports. Many US CHB customs house brokers will simply refuse to work on certain types of imports that may have proven to be problematic for them in the past. Non-conforming car imports are more often shunned by US CHB clearance brokers.

FCL container on-carriage trucking [see notes above]


• US Imports:
  On-carriage rates can change from week to week and are affected by rising fuel surcharges, EIB equipment imbalance surcharges, repositioning fees (especially for out of state deliveries), changes in routes serviced by port truckers/intermodal service providers, and the shortage of good qualified, reliable drivers. For a review of some of the factors impacting the cost of export/import logistics, please read: FCL preamble and FCL breakdown.
  
  Premium Service - Assisted Clearance - Passenger Cars
  
  
• US Imports:
  A $ 500.00 retainer, paid in advance, is required for Sefco to be involved in the US Customs import clearance process for any passenger car or other on the road vehicle coming into the USA. Upon receipt of your $500.00 retainer our specialists will be assigned to your specific import. Specific guidance, advice and preparation will begin only after receipt of your retainer and AWB-airway bill or OBL-ocean bill of lading. The retainer is non-refundable.
  
  Non-standard vehicle imports to the USA - additional costs: All outlays are billed back to the consignee/property owner at cost plus 10% to cover management handling fees. Outlays most often include, but may not be limited to, the following: Dedicated messenger fees, FedEx courier fees, VACIS examination fees, X-ray fees, port THC terminal handling charges, CFS-container stripping charges, local drayage, demurrage/container per diems, yard storage fees, CHB formal entry fee, IT in-transit fee, DAD document, DDC-destinaton delivery charges, import surety bond fee, import duty percentage to be paid, site inspection charges if representative required to be present at inspection site. There is a lot of work involved, and this is why most CHB brokers will not touch a car. When importing into the US, especially if involving a possibly non-conforming vehicle, Sefco recommends separating any HHG/PE household goods/personal effects shipment, from the vehicle shipment. When importing vehicles into the USA, it's relatively easy for a car owner/US importer to self-clear and pickup their own - conforming - vehicle. But if it's something out of the ordinary, Sefco's Premium Service can prove of great value to the serious importer. Ask us for our recommendation concerning your particular situation.

All documents are sent via USPS airmail or USPS first class mail, unless courier service is requested at extra cost. Give us your FedEx / DHL (or other major courier) account number for expedited document delivery service, billed to your own account.

Sefco rates do not include cost for overseas FedEx/DHL/courier fees. This is optional and if to be used, will be for the customers account. If billed to Sefco's account, the following additional charge will apply: Domestic / International FedEx handling cost plus $ 45.00. To expedite dispatch of documents, any special courier fees must be prepaid in negotiable funds.

If you don't collect your vehicle / goods from the destination port - and instead opt to use one of our overseas destination agents, contractors, or subcontractors to perform and render additional services, such as...

• overseas pier pick-up and in-land delivery to a terminal or residence
• physically loading / unloading vehicles into containers
• crating / uncrating for export
• use of an outside car-carrier trucker to pick-up a vehicle from a US inland origin point to transport it to a US pier for export
• packing of loose items that may not be suitably prepacked for export
• extra waiting time by a "live-load" container trucker, beyond the normal free time stated in advance (normal time = 2 hrs free waiting time in most US and European locations, unless otherwise specified)
• use of 3rd party contractors or unusual handling, e.g. electricians, carpenters, piano handling or heavy safe movers

For any other extra-ordinary operational service not specified in the normal services agreed, offered by advance quotation, there will be additional charges.

Our rate quotations will typically list any optional origin or destination services, so you can choose accordingly and let us know of your preference.

ACCESSORIAL CHARGES:
Handling Charges: Our initial rate quote to you includes our normal handling fee for the services offered. In addition the rate includes the cost for initiating the booking process with the SS Line and the cost for preparation of all normal documents for shipping. Receipt of your deposit means we are formally working for you. Without a deposit and subsequent booking, our normal handling fees don't include the following: multiple rate quotes (3 or more), lengthy follow-ups, detailed explanations and advise by email or phone in which the info. can easily be found throughout our website, re-scheduling of the pickup date, changes to the BL bill of lading, last minute pickup requests, the request for services like destination services that weren't stated in the initial quote contract, the forwarding of additional information to you that goes well beyond the normal rate quote request eg. customs manuals info., consulting of any nature that isn't related to the quote and shipping matter at hand.

Our mutual agreement is based on our contract. Please refer to our normal terms and conditions for service.

"Courtesy Counts".

Our customers are very important to us.
We are ready, willing and able to "go the extra mile" to win your satisfaction at a job well done.

---

ACCESSORIAL HANDLING FEE SCHEDULE:

COD Collect Charges, Charge Backs Including but not limited to: Trucker Detention Waiting Time, Container Demurrage, Customs Examination Fees, Duties, FedEx Charge Backs, Credit Card Charge Backs, Rejected Bank Checks. The consignee of record/service beneficiary has the option to pay any/all additional charges directly to the vendor. In the event a chargeback is not settled directly by consignee/beneficiary and vendor, any cash advances, additional payments or outlays made by Sefco Export Management Company, Inc., to cover any such additional collect/accessorial fee, will cost $ 125 flat plus 10% of the actual outlay, to cover management expenses. Returned checks are subject to a $ 85 handling charge plus bank fees. Receivables older than 180 days are liable to be turned over to a commercial collection agency. Sefco Export is not in the financing or collection business. All services rendered are to be performed on a prepaid basis only. Costs must be confirmed on a case-by-case, and carrier-by-carrier basis. Roll Over fees: $250.00 flat handling charge per occurrence Plus any actual SS line fees (current 2008 roll over cost, charged by ZIM SS Line: $ 500.00, which is subject to change depending on the SS Line), port detention charges (due before cargo can depart), document correction charges and any other accesorial charges. Timing is Important When a booking reservation is made for some specific cargo to go on a specific departing vessel or aircraft - preparations are made to confirm the space, notifications are sent along the logistical chain, and operations are set in motion so that the cargo is anticipated and space reserved. When documents are issued for property to go on a particular ship, this documentation does not mean that the cargo can just show up at the port well after that ship departs. That is akin to "showing up at the Opera House with tickets to last weeks show." If documents have to be re-issued, a separate handling charge for duplicated work is accessed. This can apply to consignments sent though various shipping modes: whether it be a "roll on / roll off" vehicle, an ocean container ("FCL"), or a partial container load ("LCL"). The space is reserved, anticipated, but if unfilled in time for the "cut-off" date, then the reservation will need to be "rolled over" to a subsequent vessel. This requires the changing of all documentation to reflect the new vessel details. A groupage container loading plan that may have had space reserved for the cargo, which may instead go empty. Even empty space has to be paid for, and carrier compensated for the unfilled booking. This, too, is akin to buying a airplane ticket - with seat assigned - but then no "live body" shows up. The airlines don't just give out tickets for free, and cancellation charges apply. Many air-carriers require full pre-payment for special fares, with no chance of a refund if cancelled. The practices of SS Lines and terminal operators vary from port to port. In some US ports (Houston, for example) some SS Lines will assess additional pier fees of several hundred dollars, for containers that are detained at the pier and not loaded on the vessel it may have been booked and reserved to depart on. Containers with vehicles inside, if not properly Export Cleared through US Customs, can be held back by Customs and then accessed roll-over fees by the SS Line/carrier. Many port authorities have been drastically increasing fees on containers held at port terminals beyond a very short "free time" period. Delays caused by Customs Inspections can also easily result in additional port storage charges. Such costs remain for the account of the property owner. Please review our notes: "About the importance of timing" Payment: "Please Remember" - the term "freight prepaid" means that the charges are in fact due prior to the movement/departure of the cargo. Delays caused by uncleared personal checks can result in missed sailings and SIT "storage in transit" charges. If a consignment moves and is not in fact prepaid - with funds cleared - it is considered to be a "freight collect" consignment for reason of late-payment, partial payment or non-payment. A 7% cod collect fee will be applied. The term "freight prepaid only" does not mean that funds show up well after cargo has been packed/moved/transferred to the export terminal. Proper advance preparation and prompt pre-payment, will help shipers avoid the application of cod collect charges.

Commercial Logistics Services

Costs must be confirmed for each account, on a case-by-case basis.
- 3 or more quotes for non-established commercial account an additional $100.00 minimum.
- Some SSL-steamship lines require a deposit before service or release of an empty container for shipping. For Sefco to advance a container deposit fee to the SS line (if and when required) would be an additional $ 250.00 over net outlay cost, excluding any related charges (banking fees, messengers, etc). Please refer to our online guides.
Read an example of SS line policy, as related by some major carriers: www.sefco-export.com/specialconditions.htm
- Commercial inquiries requiring extensive consultation, explantions, and advice for non-established acccounts - beyond the initial rate quote and follow-up; whether by phone or email - will require a retainer; min: $500.00
- Rescheduling of the p/u date: $75.00 for LCL; $175.00 for FCL
- Changes to the B/L and/or Manifest @ $175.00 per corrected/changed document.
- Rush Pickup requests, requiring pickup service in under 72hrs. of the quote being sent out: an additional $175.00
- Services being requested that weren't in the quote contract, ie., p/a purchasing agent services, an additional $250.00 minimum in addition to the cost of the services
{read P/A purchasing agency notes: www.sefco-export.com/purchase.htm}
- Forwarding of additional shipping materials like our Customs Manual for non-established accounts, an additional $35.00 - $125.00 depending on the titles and resources being selected.

Current Accessorial Cost subject to updates / reconfirmation at the time of booking with SS Line / carrier
FCL containers from Europe to the USA
Container Type	20 ft	40 ft
Invoice handling fee	$ 45
EU export customs clearance	€ 180
Container sealing fee *1	Depends on the origin location
GRI *2	$ 150	$ 200
AMS filing fee *3	$ 60
Pre-export clearance fees *4	Depends on the origin location

1. All containers have to be sealed prior of sailing; usually it will be taken care of by SEFCO’s approved export packers / professional labor. In the case of PBO-packed by owner containers, where there are no export packers / professional labor prepaid for and arranged through SEFCO, our overseas port agent will have to find someone that is authorized to seal the container. The additional charges are confirmed on a case by case basis, depending on the origin location.
2. GRI-steamship line general rate increase:
   This applies to all commercial cargo as well as HHG-household goods, P/E-personal effects shipments.
3. AMS-Automated Manifest System:
   The United States Customs Service will permit certain companies to submit advance cargo manifest information via AMS. The new 24-hour Advance Cargo Manifest Declaration regulation, which Customs began enforcing Feb 2, 2003, requires ocean carriers and NVOCC's to submit detailed shipment manifest information 24 hours before loading at a foreign port. The AMS certification allows the company to protect customers from disruption to their supply chains, or possible penalties associated with not conforming to the 24-hour rule.
4. Pre-export clearance fees:
   EU-European Union pre-clearance for US Customs- for consignments coming from Europe to the USA
   Terrorism and the effect of 9/11: Due to sweeping new changes at all ports around the world and implemented as part of the US Homeland Security Agency fight against terrorism all Westbound FCL shipments including shipments of personal effects coming from Europe to the US will now be subject to Customs Clearance fees from the country/European port where it is originating from. These fees are new and will vary from which European port the freight is coming out of.
5. Customs inspection fees:
   Not all shipments are selected for a physical customs examination. Rates do not include any inspection fee or labor if your consignment is selected by US - or overseas - Customs authorities for an actual physical inspection. The cost for any customs inspection, related labor, or duty/taxes assessed, remain for the account of the property owner/consignee.
   Our normal terms and conditions for service apply to all accounts
   and are accessible on-line at: www.sefco-export.com/contract.htm#terms
   
   For further guidance and general information see our online guides, including these:
   www.sefco-export.com/fclpreamble.htm
   www.sefco-export.com/fclbreakdown.htm