15 C.F.R. § 30.4 Preparation and signature of Shipper's Export Declaration (SED).
Title 15 - Commerce and Foreign Trade
(a) General requirements (SED). For purposes of this part, all references to preparing and filing the paper SED also pertain to preparing and filing the AES electronic record. The SED or AES record is a dual purpose document used by the Census Bureau for statistical reporting purposes only, and by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) and other government agencies for export control purposes. For purposes of this part, the provisions apply only to statistical reporting requirements. The Shipper's Export Declaration (SED) or the AES record must be prepared and signed by a principal party in interest or by a forwarding or other agent authorized by a principal party in interest. The person who signs the SED must be in the United States at the time of signing. That person, whether exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) or agent, is responsible for the truth, accuracy, and completeness of the SED or AES record, except insofar as that person can demonstrate that he or she reasonably relied on information furnished by others. The Census Bureau recognizes “routed export transactions” as a subset of export transactions. A routed export transaction is where the foreign principal party in interest authorizes a U.S. forwarding or other agent to facilitate export of items from the United States. See paragraph (c) of this section for responsibilities of parties in a routed export transaction. (1) Exporter (U.S. principal party in interest). For purposes of completing the paper SED or AES record in all export transactions, the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) is listed as the “U.S. principal party in interest” on the SED or AES record. In all export transactions, the person listed in the U.S. principal party in interest block on the paper SED or in the U.S. principal party in interest field of the AES record is the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) in the transaction. The U.S. principal party in interest is the person in the United States that receives the primary benefit, monetary or otherwise, of the transaction. Generally that person is the U.S. seller, manufacturer, order party, or foreign entity. The foreign entity must be listed as the U.S. principal party in interest on the SED or AES record, if it is in the United States when the items are purchased or obtained for export. The foreign entity must then follow the provisions for preparing and filing the SED or AES record specified in §§30.4 and 30.7 pertaining to the U.S. principal party in interest. In most cases, the forwarding or other agent is not a principal party in interest. (i) If a U.S. manufacturer sells merchandise directly for export to a foreign principal party in interest, the U.S. manufacturer must be listed as the U.S. principal party in interest on the SED or AES record. (ii) If a U.S. manufacturer sells merchandise, as a domestic sale, to a U.S. buyer (wholesaler/distributor) and that U.S. buyer sells the merchandise for export to a foreign principal party in interest, the U.S. buyer (wholesaler/distributor) must be listed as the U.S. principal party in interest on the SED or AES record. (iii) If a U.S. order party directly arranges for the sale and export of merchandise to a foreign buyer, the U.S. order party must be listed as the U.S. principal party in interest on the SED or AES record. The order party is that person in the United States who conducted the direct negotiations or correspondence with the foreign principal party in interest and who, as a result of these negotiations, received the order from the foreign principal party in interest. (iv) If a foreign entity is in the United States when the items are purchased or obtained for export, it is the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) and must be listed as the U.S. principal party in interest on the SED or AES record (see §30.4(a)(1)). Note to paragraph (2) Forwarding or other agent. The forwarding or other agent is that person in the United States who is authorized by a principal party in interest to perform the services required to facilitate the export of items from the United States. The forwarding or other agent must be authorized by the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) or, in the case of a routed export transaction, the foreign principal party in interest to prepare and file the SED or the AES record. In a routed export transaction, the forwarding or other agent can be the exporter for export control purposes under the EAR. However, the forwarding or other agent is never the “U.S. principal party in interest” in the U.S. principal party in interest block on the paper SED or in the “U.S. principal party in interest” field of the AES record unless the forwarding or other agent acts as an “order party.” (See paragraph (a)(1)(iii) for definition of order party) (3) Principal parties in interest. Those persons in a transaction that receive the primary benefit, monetary or otherwise, of the transaction. Generally, the principals in a transaction are the seller and the buyer. In most cases, a forwarding or other agent is not a principal party in interest. (b) Responsibilities of parties in export transactions—(1) Exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) responsibilities. (i) The exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) can prepare and file the SED or AES record itself, or it can authorize a forwarding or other agent to prepare and file the SED or AES record on its behalf. If the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) prepares the SED or AES record itself, the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) is responsible for the accuracy of all the export information reported on the SED or AES record, for signing the paper SED, filing the paper SED with U.S. CBP, or transmitting the AES record to U.S. CBP. (ii) When the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) authorizes a forwarding or other agent to complete the SED or AES record on its behalf, the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) is responsible for: (A) Providing the forwarding or other agent with the export information necessary to complete the SED or AES record; (B) Providing the forwarding or other agent with a power of attorney or written authorization to complete the SED or AES record, or signing the authorization block printed on the paper SED (block 23 on Commerce Form 7525–V and block 29 on Commerce Form 7525–V-ALT); and (C) Maintaining documentation to support the information provided to the forwarding or other agent for completion of the SED or AES record, as specified in §30.11. (2) Forwarding or other agent responsibilities. The forwarding or other agent, when authorized by an exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) to prepare and sign the SED or prepare and file the AES record in an export transaction, is responsible for: (i) Accurately preparing the SED or AES record based on information received from the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) and other parties involved in the transaction; (ii) Obtaining a power of attorney or written authorization to complete the SED or AES record, or obtaining a paper SED with a signed authorization from the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest); (iii) Maintaining documentation to support the information reported on the SED or AES record, as specified in §30.11; and (iv) Upon request, providing the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) with a copy of the export information filed in the form of a completed SED, an electronic facsimile, or in any other manner prescribed by the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest). (c) Responsibilities of parties in a routed export transaction—(1) Exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) responsibilities. In a routed export transaction where the foreign principal party in interest authorizes a U.S. forwarding or other agent to prepare and file the SED or AES record, the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) must maintain documentation to support the information provided to the forwarding or other agent for preparing the SED or AES record as specified in §30.11 and provide such forwarding or other agent with the following information to assist in preparing the SED or AES record: (i) Name and address of the U.S. principal party in interest; (ii) U.S. principal party in interest's, IRS, EIN; (iii) Point of origin (State or FTZ); (iv) Schedule B description of commodities; (v) Domestic (D), foreign (F), or FMS (M) code; (vi) Schedule B Number; (vii) Quantity/unit of measure; (viii) Value; (ix) Upon request from the foreign principal party in interest or its agent, the Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) or sufficient technical information to determine the ECCN; and (x) Any information that it knows will affect the determination of license authority. Note to paragraph (2) Forwarding or other agent responsibilities. In a routed export transaction, the forwarding or other agent is responsible for; obtaining a power of attorney or written authorization from the foreign principal party in interest to prepare and file the SED or AES record on its behalf; preparing, signing, and filing the SED or AES record based on information obtained from the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) or other parties involved in the transaction; maintaining documentation to support the information reported on the SED or AES record, and upon request by the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest), provide appropriate documentation to the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) verifying that the information provided by the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) was accurately reported on the SED or AES record. The forwarding or other agent must also provide the following export information on the SED or AES record: (i) Date of exportation; (ii) Bill of lading/airway bill number; (iii) Ultimate consignee; (iv) Intermediate consignee; (v) Forwarding or other agent name and address; (vi) Country of ultimate destination; (vii) Loading pier; (viii) Method of transportation; (ix) Exporting carrier; (x) Port of export; (xi) Port of unloading; (xii) Containerized; (xiii) Weight; (xiv) ECCN; (xv) License Authority; (xvi) Signature in the certification block on the paper SED (block 24 on Commerce Form 7525–V and block 36 on Commerce Form 7525–V-ALT). In a routed export transaction the exporter (U.S. principal party in interest) must be listed as U.S. principal party in interest on the SED or on the AES record; Note to paragraph (d) Information on the Shipper's Export Declaration (SED) or Automated Export System (AES) record. The data provided on the SED or AES electronic record shall be complete, correct, and based on personal knowledge of the facts stated or on information furnished by the parties involved in the export transaction. All parties involved in export transactions, including U.S. forwarding or other agents, should be aware that invoices and other commercial documents may not necessarily contain all the information needed to prepare the SED or AES record. The parties must ensure that all the information needed for completing the SED or AES record, including correct export licensing information, is provided to the forwarding or other agent for the purpose of correctly preparing the SED or AES record as stated in this section. (e) Authorizing a Forwarding or other agent. In a power of attorney or other written authorization, authority is conferred upon an agent to perform certain specified acts or kinds of acts on behalf of a principal (see 15 CFR 758.1(h) of the EAR). In cases where a forwarding or other agent is filing export information on the SED or AES record, the forwarding or other agent must obtain a power of attorney or written authorization from a principal party in interest to file the information on its behalf. A power of attorney or written authorization should specify the responsibilities of the parties with particularity, and should state that the forwarding or other agent has authority to act on behalf of a principal party in interest as its true and lawful agent for purposes of the export transaction in accordance with the laws and regulations of the United States. (f) Format requirements for SEDs: The SED shall be prepared in English and shall be typewritten or prepared in ink or other permanent medium (except indelible pencil). The use of duplicating processes, as well as the overprinting of selected items of information, is acceptable. (g) Copies of SEDs: All copies of the SEDs must contain all of the information called for in the signature space as to name of firm, address, name of signer, and capacity of signer. The original SED must be signed in ink, but signature on other copies is not required. The use of signature stamps is acceptable. A signed legible carbon or other copy of the export declaration is acceptable as an “original” of the SED. [65 FR 42561, July 10, 2000]
Title 15: Commerce and Foreign Trade
PART 30—FOREIGN TRADE STATISTICS
Subpart A—General Requirements—U.S. Principal Party In Interest (USPPI)
§ 30.4 Preparation and signature of Shipper's Export Declaration (SED).
