We receive numerous questions regarding foreign entities exporting products from the United States.

Companies and individuals that export physical goods from the United States to foreign countries are required to report the export information to the AES. The Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR) 30.3(b)(2) state that the foreign entity “shall be listed as the U.S. Principal Party in Interest (USPPI) if it is in the United States when the items are purchased or obtained for export.” If the foreign entity is the USPPI, can they file the EEI in the AES? If not, how does the shipment get reported in the AES?

Let’s take an example of a foreign entity being the USPPI based on FTR 30.3(b)(2):
A gentleman from Brazil comes into the United States. He goes to an electronic retailer in Texas to purchase five flat screen televisions valued at $5,000 and instructs a local forwarder to ship the televisions to his home in Brazil. Based on the regulations (FTR 30.3(b)(2)), the Brazilian will be the USPPI on the AES record.

The next question is how will this shipment be reported?

FTR 30.3(a) states that “the filer of the EEI for the export transaction is either the USPPI, authorized agent, or the authorized U.S. agent of the Foreign Principal Party in Interest (FPPI)… The filer shall be physically located in the United States at the time of filing, have an Employer Identification Number (EIN) or DUNS number and be certified to report in the AES.” While the Brazilian native is identified as the USPPI, he does not have authority to file the EEI on his own behalf. He would have to authorize a U.S. agent who is certified to file the EEI. The gentleman from Brazil must be listed as the USPPI and the authorized U.S. agent would be the filer of the EEI in the AES.

The authorized U.S. agent filing the EEI must receive a power of attorney or written authorization to act on behalf of the gentleman from Brazil. The passport, border crossing number or any other number assigned by Customs & Border Protection, can be used as the USPPI ID Number for the gentleman from Brazil. The address to be reported will be the address from where the goods are beginning its journey to the port of export. In this case, the electronic retailer’s location in Texas would be the correct address. The value shall be the selling price or the cost if the goods are not sold, including inland or domestic freight, insurance, and other charges to the port of export per FTR 30.6(a)(17).

Even though the foreign entity can be listed as the USPPI on the AES record, this individual or company can not directly file the EEI in the AES; an authorized U.S. agent must file on their behalf to adhere to the FTR reporting requirements.