Port of Seattle. Where a sustainable world is headed.
Foreign Trade Zone #5
Your Competitive Edge
The Port of Seattle’s Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) #5 can give
your company a competitive edge and help manage cash flow
by deferring, reducing and in some cases eliminating customs
duties and reducing overall operating costs.
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POS_FTZ#52010_Print.pdf 1 8/25/10 2:47 PM
ALTERNATIVE SITE FRAMEWORK
Gaining FTZ status is now faster and easier under the Port’s Alternative Site Framework
(ASF), recently approved by the U.S. Department of Commerce. The ASF allows businesses
in the Seattle area engaged in importing, exporting, assembly, warehousing and distribution
to apply for expedited approval through the Port’s FTZ program.
FTZ #5 REDUCES COSTS
There are a number of ways FTZ #5 can reduce operating costs and enhance your
company’s bottom line. The Weekly Entry Process and assembly of imported components
in the FTZ are just two examples.
Cost Savings Scenario #1 - Weekly Entry Cost Savings
The Weekly Entry Process available to companies operating within the FTZ can result in
savings of up to 85 percent on entry and processing fees. Entry and Merchandise Processing
Fees can be paid weekly, rather than per entry, saving time and brokerage fees.
160 entries per year at $485 ................................................................................................$77,600
52 entries per year at $485 ..................................................................................................$25,220
Annual savings.....................................................................................................................$52,380
Cost Savings Scenario #2 - Savings on Duties through Assembly in FTZ
A company that sells first aid kits imports most of the kit components from Asia – items like
bandages, gauze pads, cold packs, tape, scissors, tweezers, rubber gloves, metal cases, etc.
The kits are assembled in the U.S. Most of the components have import duty rates of two to
three percent. The duty rate for the metal boxes is 17 percent, but the import duty rate for
complete first aid kits is zero.
Annual value of kit components ..................................................................................$10,000,000
Averaged duty rate of components ......................................................................................... 10%
Annual Duty savings from assembly in FTZ.................................................................$1,000,000
The same kinds of advantages can apply to a wide range of companies, especially manufacturers
that import components or materials for processing or assembly in the United States.
Port Commission: Tom Albro
Bill Bryant
John Creighton
Rob Holland
Gael Tarleton
Chief Executive Officer: Tay Yoshitani
The Port of Seattle is the Green Gateway
for cargo moving between Asia and the
American Heartland, with lower carbon
emissions throughout the supply chain.
Learn more at www.portseattle.org/
seaport/cargo/GreenGateway.shtml
SEATTLE ADVANTAGES
The closest U.S. Port to Asia, Seattle has
excellent road and rail connections to key
markets across North America, making it a
natural location for national and regional
warehousing and distribution activities.
More than 20 ocean carriers serve the
Port and the BNSF Railway and Union
Pacific Railroad offer four-day service to
Chicago from Seattle.
The Port’s Foreign Trade Zone is a perfect
complement to the region’s trade and
transportation advantages.
P.O. Box 1209 • Seattle, WA 98111
www.portseattle.org
Defer customs duties and federal excise
taxes until merchandise is transferred from
the FTZ to domestic market customs
territory of the U.S. or a North American
Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) country
(Canada or Mexico).
Reduce processing/entry fees by as
much as 85 percent with the Weekly Entry
Process, which allows goods to be shipped
24 hours a day, seven days a week, with
just one entry filed each week and just one
Merchandise Processing Fee per entry.
Reduce customs duties on goods
processed or assembled in the FTZ when
imported components have a higher duty
rate than the finished goods (see scenario
#2, below left).
Defer Harbor Maintenance Tax payments
and pay quarterly instead of at time of entry.
Eliminate customs duties entirely when
goods are re-exported from the FTZ.
Store quota merchandise in the FTZ until
the quota period opens and immediately
ship goods into U.S. Customs and Border
Protection territory.
Exempt imported goods from state and
local ad valorem taxes when they are
held in the FTZ for storage, sale, exhibition,
repackaging, assembly, distribution,
sorting, grading, cleaning, mixing, display,
manufacturing or processing. Goods
manufactured in the U.S. and held in the
FTZ are also exempt.
Eliminate the need for drawback and
keep funds in the operating capital of
the company.
FTZ ADVANTAGES
For more information contact:
Oshu Go
Director,
Asian Business Development
Port of Seattle
206-787-3271
go.o@portseattle.org
Jeff Marcell
President & CEO
Enterprise Seattle
206-389-8654
jmarcell@enterpriseseattle.org
or
on-line: www.portseattle.org/business/ftz.shtml
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