Exports Between the United States and Puerto Rico: When to File Electronic Export Information for Electronic Goods and Vehicles

For additional blogs in this series about U.S.-Puerto Rico Shipping Regulations, please see part 1, part 2 and part 3.

In this blog, we explore two scenarios for export shipments between the U.S. and Puerto Rico and identify the U.S. Principal Party in Interest (USPPI). Let’s dive right in.

A company in Puerto Rico purchases electronic goods from a U.S. company. The company in Puerto Rico is not physically in the U.S. when the goods are purchased so it authorizes a “freight forwarder” –  a person or company – to facilitate the shipment from the U.S. to Puerto Rico. Who is the USPPI?

The USPPI is the U.S. company since the company in Puerto Rico was not physically in the U.S. when the goods were purchased or obtained. Additionally, the address that should be reported in the Electronic Export Information (EEI) is the U.S. location where the goods start their journey to the port of export. In this scenario, the company in Puerto Rico and its address cannot be listed as the USPPI since it was not in the U.S. when the goods are purchased or obtained.

A company in Puerto Rico purchases a vehicle online from an auction house and hires a freight forwarder to ship it to the company in Puerto Rico. Is the U.S. auction house the USPPI?

The auction house may be the USPPI if it owns the vehicle that it is selling or meets the definition of an “order party.” 

Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR), Section 30.1, defines an order party as, “The person in the United States that conducts the direct negotiations or correspondence with the foreign purchaser or ultimate consignee and who, as a result of these negotiations, receives the order from the Foreign Principal Party in Interest (FPPI). If a U.S. order party directly arranges for the sale and export of goods to the FPPI, the U.S. order party shall be listed as the USPPI in the EEI.” 

Some of the duties an order party may fulfill that are associated with arranging for the sale and export of goods are as follows:

• Listing the vehicle for sale.
• Determining eligible buyers and sellers.
• Conducting the sale or auction.
• Soliciting, negotiating and receiving bids from buyers.
• Accepting payment from the buyer.

 To arrange the export, the order party must complete actions such as, but not limited to:

• Coordinating or transporting the goods from the auction house lot or storage facility to the FPPI’s forwarder or chosen location in the U.S.
• Providing the foreign buyer or freight forwarder documents and all necessary export information including value, Schedule B / Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) Code and Export Control Classification Number (ECCN)
• Screening goods and foreign parties to make sure those consignees and/or foreign buyers are not on the U.S. Department of the Treasury Specially Designated Nationals and other prohibited entity lists.

The U.S. freight forwarder would not be the USPPI since typically its sole responsibility is to physically ship goods and process export documentation, which may include the EEI.  

Have additional questions or need immediate assistance? Get in touch with us at <emd.askregs@census.gov> or 1-800-549-0595 (option 3).