Exportation

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June 12th, 2013

Looking for a good template of an international sale of goods contract?

An exporter recently called asking if I could provide him with a sample international sale of goods contract because he was in the process of negotiating with an important prospective customer abroad. I had an sample international distribution contract but not one for sales. These are obviously two very different documents. I therefore decided to do a bit of research to see if I could find something for him.

You can find many standard international sales contracts online, in French and in English, all at a reasonable price. Edilex offers one for Quebec for $150. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any that were free. (more…)

April 19th, 2013

Panama-Canada Free Trade Agreement (CPAFTA) Comes into Force

The Canada Border Services Agency has announced that the Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement came into force on April 1, 2013.

“This customs notice is to inform you that the Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement (CPAFTA) will be implemented on April 1, 2013. With the exception of a few agricultural goods, the CPAFTA will essentially eliminate the customs duties on all imports from Panama, either immediately upon implementation of the agreement, or through a tariff phase-out.” (more…)

April 15th, 2013

On March 26, 2013, the International Business Centre held a training session on customs problems associated with importing goods into Canada.

Ten Laval companies attended the session, in which trainer Louise Chevanelle discussed customs problems associated with importing goods into Canada.

The purpose of the training was to explain all the customs procedures that apply to imports.  A few of them caught my attention because they are not well known. Today I’d like to talk about some of the underestimated pitfalls that Canadian importers should watch out for.

Did you know that… (more…)

February 25th, 2013

Are you ready to step onto the world stage?

On January 29, the LTIBC, in collaboration with the ministère des Finances et de l’Économie, held a seminar on best practices in determining export readiness. More specifically, it introduced the export readiness assessment (ERA), a simple concrete management tool that addresses all the elements required to take your company global. The exercise involves asking yourself a comprehensives set of questions about your readiness to embark on a specific project involving a new market and is equally useful for those entering their first or tenth foreign market. The goal is not to discourage business owners from venturing into new territory but to help them accurately assess their strengths, weakness and risks so they can develop an action plan that will make them more confident when exporting. (more…)

January 18th, 2013

Brazil – South America series

A few months ago, I visited four countries, including Brazil, during an exploratory mission to South America. Here are my main observations.

Based on the evidence that I gathered during the course of my meetings, it is difficult for a Québec SME to do business in Brazil, primarily because the country is highly protectionist, there is extensive corruption, the legal system is complex, taxes are very high, the infrastructure is inadequate, etc., etc. Given these challenges, it is preferable to establish a local presence rather than to export directly, particularly in light of the high tax rates. In fact, there are 3 levels of taxation in Brazil (municipal, provincial and federal). The World Bank corroborates this opinion, noting that the country ranks 126th out of 180 countries in terms of the ease of conducting business. (more…)

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