America's Free Trade Agreement (FTA) partners offer attractive markets for many U.S. companies looking to expand into new markets or export for the very first time. Through these agreements, the U.S. has negotiated the elimination of tariffs, the removal of non-tariff barriers, and secured non-discriminatory treatment of U.S. goods and services. Originally trade and tariff information could only be accessed by sifting through the actual text of the agreements. The FTA Tariff Tool streamlines the search process.

FTA Tariff Tool Will Help Small Businesses

Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) stand to benefit from exporting to FTA partner markets. Many small business owners would benefit from exporting but might not have the time or resources to get started. Giving small business owners a simple way to navigate the complexities of tariffs and international trade is a crucial step in ensuring they have what they need to grow their business and create jobs.

Functions of the FTA Tariff Tool

The FTA Tariff Tool has three functions: 1) to provide a searchable database to find the tariff treatment of industrial goods covered under the U.S. trade agreements; 2) to create market access reports and charts across industrial sectors or product groups; and 3) to create a snapshot of current and tariff and trade trends under different U.S. trade agreements.

Businesses are able to see the current and future tariffs applied to their products, as well as the date on which those products become duty free. By combining sector and product groups, trade data, and the tariff elimination schedules, users can also analyze how various sectors are treated across various trade agreements. Trade data will be updated on an annual basis and future trade agreements will be incorporated as they are negotiated. The website also provides an instructional video, quick start guide and user's manual.

For more information, please visit http://www.export.gov/FTA/FTATariffTool/.

SOURCE: Export.gov

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