David William

The Association of Port Health Authorities is the only UK wide organisation representing the interests of Local Authorities and Port Health Authorities with responsibilities for health controls at sea and airports. They have responsibility to protect the public, environmental and animal health of the UK. Some are specially created local authorities for seaports where the port area is covered by more than one local authority. These authorities carry out a range of health controls at the UK borders. These include checks on imported food, inspecting ships and aircraft for food safety and infectious disease control, as well as general public and environmental health checks. The work is carried out by port health officers (specialist environmental health officers) and veterinarians, who are employed by the local authority or port health authority. Port health authorities carry out checks on food and feed consignments in order to: ensure that only products that are safe to eat enter the food chain, safeguard animal and public health, check compliance with EU rules and international trading standards.

Flexible exchange rate system is claimed to have the following: Flexible Exchange Rates Create a Situation of Instability and Uncertainty. An important argument against flexible exchange rates is that too frequent fluctuations in exchange rate under it create uncertainty about the exact amount of receipts and payments in foreign exchange transac­tions. This instability hampers foreign trade and capital movements between the countries. Dampening Effect on Foreign Trade: Under the flexible exchange rates, the price of foreign exchange or international value of the national currency is quite uncertain. As a result, they are unable to take proper decisions regarding export and import of goods. Obviously, this has a dampening effect on the volume and growth of foreign trade. Widespread Speculation with a Destabilising Effect: The system of flexible exchange rates has been opposed on the ground that under it there is widespread speculation regarding exchange rates of currencies which has a large destabilising effect on these rates. Provides an inflationary bias to an economy: Another shortcoming of the flexible exchange rates is that they have an inflationary impact on the economy. It has been pointed out that whenever due to deficit in balance of payments, the currency depreciates, the prices of imports go up. The higher prices of imported materials raise the prices of industrial products and thus generate cost- push inflation.

Norway is a member of the European Free Trade Area (EFTA). Obviously, Norway major trade happens within EFTA countries. However, some major products listed below are imported by Norway from India. 1. Residues and waste from the food industries; prepared animal fodder 2. Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, not knitted or crocheted 3. Other made-up textile articles; sets; worn clothing and worn textile articles 4. Articles of leather; saddlery and harness; travel goods, handbags and similar containers; articles of animal gut (other than silkworm gut) 5. Electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof; sound recorders and reproducers, television image and sound recorders and reproducers, and parts and accessories of such articles 6. Organic chemicals 7. Furniture; bedding, mattresses, mattress supports, cushions and similar stuffed furnishings; lamps and lighting fittings, illuminated signs 8. Pharmaceutical products

When goods enter the country from overseas, it is considered an importation and must be cleared by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). When an individual or company purchases goods from an overseas supplier, CBP considers them the ultimate importer. The ultimate importer can clear the goods or have a Customs Broker clear them on their behalf. Customs uses three distinct types of numbers as “importer numbers”: Employer Identification Number (EIN, or IRS number) – as assigned by the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to corporations, partnerships, Limited Liability Companies (LLCs), government agencies, sole proprietorships, and assorted other types of entities. Social Security Number (SSN) – as assigned by the IRS to individuals. Also used by some individuals operating sole proprietorship, who do not have a separate EIN for their business. Customs Assigned Number – as assigned to persons or other entities which do not have either an EIN or a SSN. So long as any of these types of numbers remain valid, and are used at least once within every 12 months for automated customs transactions (such as customs entry filing), they will normally remain as active importer numbers in customs’ importer records. If your importer number is still active, but it will be more than 12 months since your last entry by the time your new shipment arrives, work pro-actively with your broker to update your customs importer record to keep it active.

Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZ) are secured, designated locations around the United States in or near a U.S. Customs Port of Entry where foreign and domestic merchandise is generally considered to be in international commerce and outside of US Customs territory. As a result, activated businesses in an FTZ can reduce or eliminate duty on imports and take advantage of other benefits to encourage foreign commerce within the United States. The benefits associated with zone use will vary depending upon the type of operation involved and authority granted by the Foreign-Trade Zones Board and Customs. Zones may provide some or all of the following benefits: duty exemption duty deferral, duty reduction or inverted tariff, merchandise processing fee (MPF), reduction, streamlined logistics, quota avoidance. Other benefits: better inventory control and security lead to better compliance with CBP requirements; customs supervision may result in lower security and insurance costs. Duty payable on FTZ merchandise does not need to be included in the calculation of insurable value, again lowering insurance costs. Reduced transportation costs may also result from streamlined logistics. Harbor Maintenance Fee is paid quarterly instead of at the time imports arrive. Merchandise Processing Fees are paid at the time goods leave the zone.