When I first started in the Automated Export System branch of the Foreign Trade Division a little over a year ago, I found myself relying heavily on the information at our website in order to understand the nuances of the AES. In fact, I found the resources at //www.aesdirect.gov to be a fantastic reference tool to supplement my training in the AES. I’d like to direct the trade to a few items I found particularly useful, both as a newer employee and now in my continued outreach efforts:

//aesdirect.gov/support.html

The AESDirect Support Center provides a wealth of information. This section can be a valuable resource for users at every level, from newer users to the more seasoned experts alike.

Some key features of this section include:

• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• User Guides for AESDirect, AESPcLink , and Account Administration
• Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR)
• AES Code Tables (Schedule B & HTS codes, U.S. Ports, Foreign Ports, IATA & SCAC codes, DDTC codes)
• AESDirect Login Help

//aesdirect.gov/support/phone.html

This section can be found at any of the main pages or subpages within AESDirect. Just look for the ‘Who to Contact’ link at the left hand side of our website, under the heading for ‘Using AESDirect’.

We provide telephone and email contact information for each of our offices, including:

• AESDirect technical support
• AES Support
• Commodity Support
• Regulations Inquiries
• Trade Data inquiries

//www.census.gov/foreign-trade/regulations/regs/regulations20080602-federalregister.html

This link will direct the user to the Foreign Trade Regulations: Mandatory Automated Export System Filing for All Shipments Requiring Shipper’s Export Declaration Information; Final Rule.

//aesdirect.gov/support/aes_compliance.html

In October 2006, the Census Bureau began visiting companies that maintained a compliance rate of 95% or higher to learn their best practices. As a result of these visits, we have compiled the ‘Best Practices Manual’, designed to share the variety of effective methods that can be implemented to stay compliant with the FTR reporting requirements.

//aesdirect.gov/support/userguide.html

We offer three User Guides in this section. The AESDirect and AESPcLink? User Guides provide comprehensive step-by-step instructions so our users may benefit the most from these applications.

The Account Administrator User Guide is targeted towards Account Administrators and User Managers, and provides information for creating new user accounts and managing company accounts.

The User Guides are about 30-40 pages each, and are stored as a PDF document. We recommend that our users print each of these guides and keep these on hand as a reference manual. You’ll need it!

//www.census.gov/foreign-trade/aes/exporttraining/videos/

Training Videos were designed to answer common questions and guide users through complicated subjects. Some examples include:

• A Quick Guide to the Foreign Trade Regulations (5:21)
• Classifying Your Commodity (4:05)
• Registering for AESDirect (4:54)
• Exporting Commercial Items: ECCNs and EAR99 (8:13)

Hopefully this provides you with some useful resources to guide you through the filing of your electronic export information.