16 THECUBAREVIEW 



SHIPPING GOODS TO CUBA AND OTHER LATIN 

 AMERICAN COUNTRIES 



By Dean R. Wood 



Consular Invoices. — -Consular Invoices must be presented in the Custom House for goods 

 shipped to Cuba and must be correctly made out. In addition to the Consular Invoice, certi- 

 fied to before the Cuban Consul, at least two other copies of the invoice, exact copies of the 

 Consular Invoice, should be sent to buyer or consignee, as in addition to the Consular Invoice 

 one other copy must be presented in the Custom House, and the importer needs one copy for 

 his own information, thus making two copies in addition to the Consular Invoice, or three 

 copies in all. Only one Consular Invoice, signed by the Cuban Consul, is necessary. Consular 

 Invoices for shipments of goods under $5.00 in value are not necessary,but if not presented goods 

 will lose the benefit of the Reciprocity Treaty between Cuba and' the United States. For 

 shipments, $5.00 or more in value. Consular Invoices must be presented in the Custom House. 

 Invoices should always be made in Spanish. 



Bills of Lading. — Bills of Lading must also be presented in the Custom House, with the 

 Consular Invoice and other copy of invoice. Bills of Lading must be countersigned by the 

 Cuban Consul or a fine of $3.00 will be placed on the goods. Bills of Lading for short shipped 

 goods must also be signed by the Cuban Consul or the goods will J)e fined. 



Net and Gross Weight. — Net and gross weight of package or box, must be given in the in- 

 voice and the net weight of each article or class of goods, stated separately in a plain and 

 distinct manner. Care should be taken to have these net weights correct, as most articles 

 or goods, pay Custom House duties by weight. 



Goods not the Production of the United States.— ^Goods and merchandise not the production 

 of the soil or industry of the United States should be placed on a separate Consular and com- 

 mercial invoice, as only such goods as are the production of the United States are entitled to 

 benefit of the Reciprocity Treaty between Cuba and the United States. Shipments of foreign 

 goods under $5.00 in value Consular Invoices not required. All shipments of foreign goods, 

 $5.00 or over in value, Consular Invoices must be presented. 



Porto Rican Goods and Articles the Production of Porto Rico.— Goods and merchandise 

 productions of Porto Rico are entitled to benefit of the Reciprocity Treaty between Cuba and 

 the United States and may be placed in invoice together with other goods and productions of 

 the United States. State in invoice "productions of Porto Rico." 



Coffee Grown in Porto Rico. — Coffee grown and produced in Porto Rico is entitled to the 

 benefit of the Reciprocity Treaty between Cuba and the United States. State in invoice 

 "products of Porto Rico." 



Groceries. — In sending such goods and articles as groceries to Cuba, care should always be 

 taken to put coffee, tea, etc., on a separate invoice, as these articles are not productions of the 

 United States. Coffee and Tea have not been gronm in the United Stales up to the present time. 

 Metals.— Give different kind of metal in Consular Invoice— brass, tin, copper, iron, cast 

 iron, steel, aluminum, etc. Every kind of metal pays a different duty and under different 

 paragraphs of the Custom House Tariff. Copper and bronze pay more than other metals. 

 Aluminum pays a high duty and care should be taken to have net weights of articles manu- 

 factured of aluminum correct. 



Cast Iron. — -When goods are manufactured of cast iron always state in invoice "cast iron/' 

 as this kind of iron pays much less in the Custom House than steel or other kinds of iron. 



Prices. — Prices should not be included or bunched together, but price of every article or 

 class of goods, given separately, as some goods pay duty by weight and some ad valorem. 



Fabrics.— Give number of pieces, yards, factory mark or reference, and net weights. Care 

 should be taken to have net weights correct. If possible and convenient give number of threads 

 in a square of 6 millimeters (M inch) and if these threads are plain or cross web. This 



