If your company has any customers in Canada or Mexico, or if you have a domestic customer who ships to one of those two countries, you’ve probably been asked for a NAFTA Certificate of Origin. And depending on how much money these Canadian or Mexican customers can save in duties under NAFTA, the requests may be frequent and strongly worded.
Keep in mind, however, that not all products qualify for NAFTA. That includes goods that are manufactured or produced in Canada, Mexico or the United States. Before you can determine whether or not your products qualify for reduced duties under NAFTA, you must fully understand the NAFTA Rules of Origin and which ones apply to your products, know and document the origin of the components of your products, and know and document where your products were finished.
Don’t think this is important? If you provide someone with a NAFTA Certificate of Origin and you can’t provide documentation that your goods qualify, your company—and the person who signed the NAFTA Certificate—are at the mercy of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which can penalize you thousands of dollars per violation. Just ask someone at Ford Motor Company about the multi-million dollar fine they are facing because they couldn’t supply documentation in support of their NAFTA Certificates within the required timeframe.
Don’t take chances with your NAFTA Certificates. International Business Training’s experienced NAFTA consultants can review your current NAFTA procedures, grade your efforts, and recommend any necessary improvements that will help ensure that your company remains in compliance.
NAFTA Compliance AuditDo you know that your NAFTA procedures need help?
With our NAFTA Compliance Audit one of our trained and experienced NAFTA auditors will spend four days at your company diving into the details of your NAFTA compliance program and examine a sample of your NAFTA Certificates and the supporting documentation.
Register for the NAFTA Compliance Audit and you’ll receive:
- A review of at least 30 previous NAFTA Certificates and all associated documentation by one of our experienced NAFTA auditors.
- A four-day onsite review of your company’s international trade department, NAFTA procedures and written NAFTA plan including interviews, additional document reviews, and observations of your processes.
- A live, onsite presentation outlining specific aspects of your company’s NAFTA procedures that are working, areas that need to be improved, and a written plan for improving them.
Want More Information? Call IBT at 1-800-641-0929 
