The Shipping and Logistics industry has been hit by a number of things resulting in delays to past and upcoming sailing schedules. Melbourne’s stage 3 lockdown is still in effect , ongoing border closures due to Covid-19, bad weather conditions (several Typhoons in China), vessel bunching due to missed berthing windows, vessel port omissions to try maintain schedule on the balance of a round trip voyage (resulting in many containers discharged at the wrong port which transport then has to be ...
Continue Reading →
One of the most common complaints we hear about relates to damaged goods; most of the time this could have been avoided with better packaging.
Before starting your next shipment you should think about everything the goods have to go through to get from one country to the other. As an exporter this will help you determine the best way to pack your goods, as an importer this is something you should discuss with your supplier before the shipment leaves the ...
Continue Reading →
From July 2018 Goods & Services Tax (GST) will be applicable to low value imports of physical goods after legislation was passed by the Australian Government.
Foreign businesses with more than AUD75,000 worth of sales to Australia will be required to become GST registered, collect GST on applicable goods and lodge returns with the Australian Tax Office (ATO).
The legislation has been crafted to cover not only to merchants but also electronic distribution plansforms such has eBay or Amazon and re-deliverers.
Goods with ...
Continue Reading →
From 1-Jul-17 all air cargo to the USA must be screened per piece or be shipped from a registered ‘known consignor’. These new restrictions have been imposed on all airlines by the US Government with all US bound cargo required to be handled under the new requirements.
There are two options for shippers with cargo bound for the USA:
- Goods can be screened at the piece level (goods must be deconsolidated, so a pallet of boxes will have to be broken down ...
For years Australian shops have complained that online or overseas retailers had an unfair advantage by not having to collect GST for sales made in Australia. Despite government reviews showing that the cost of collecting GST on low value imports would outweigh the revenue earned it was announced at the last Federal Budget that GST on all imports would be applicable from 1-Jul-17. If the Bill does not pass through Parliament by this date it will start from the next ...
Continue Reading →
Earlier this week Hanjin Shipping announced that it is filing court receivership after its main creditor refused to provider any further financial support to the troubled line. With over 100 container vessels on the water (plus over 100 other vessel types) transporting 3.7 million TEU of containerised goods per annum it comes as no surprise that the effects of this news is being felt worldwide.
Over the next couple of months a South Korean court will decide if the company ...
Continue Reading →
Effective 1-Jul-2016 the International Maritime Organization (IMO) have adopted amendments requiring the containers’ gross weight to be verified prior to loading on a vessel. Containers without a verified gross mass (VGM) will not be loaded onto vessels from this date. This applies to all containers loaded on a vessel under the SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) regime.
This legislation was introduced to increase the safety of both terminal and vessel crew and to reduce the risk of damage to not only ...
Continue Reading →
Customs ‘Import Processing Charges’ – Effective 1-Jan-2016
Starting from 1-Jan-2016 Australian Customs and Border Protection has restructured their Import Processing Charges. As part of the restructuring there will no longer be a price distinction between air / post and sea shipments.
The charge summary further down outlines the main charges while a more detailed breakdown can be found HERE.
Quarantine ‘Import Declaration Charge’ – Effective 1-Dec-15
The Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (aka Quarantine) have also restructured their charges.
The charge ...
Continue Reading →
Six months ago the China / Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) was signed with the intention of reducing the cost of trade between the two countries. With the agreement coming into effect 20th December 2015 we are now beginning to see the benefits as well as some of the processes importers need to follow to take advantage of the trade concessions.
For importers to take advantage of the discounted duties provided by ChAFTA the supplier must provide a Certificate of Origin ...
Continue Reading →