MITC has over 1,000 business contacts in the Maine/New England area.

For law firms, financial institutions, freight service companies, architects, consultants, and other service providers, MITC is a great way to network with businesses that need their services.

Additionally, MITC has extensive experience and resources regarding international trade in the services industries.

We have helped our members with questions like:

• I would like to hire employees from another country. What kind of visas will they need?
• My customers would like their payment in their local currency. How do I facilitate that?
• Which countries have low or no import tariffs on IT software and equipment?
• Can you provide me with a list of law firms in France that specialize in environmental policy contracts?

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act – What you don’t know can hurt you

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) prohibits the offer, promise, authorization or payment of money or value to a foreign government official to obtain or retain business, or direct business to any person. Additionally it books and records provisions.

FUSE: Featured U.S. Exporters

Featured U.S. Exporters (or FUSE) is a directory of U.S. products featured on U.S. Commercial Services websites around the world. It gives your company an opportunity to target specific markets in the local language of business. Listings are offered to qualified U.S. exporters seeking trade leads or representation in over 50 markets around the world.

International Commercial Terms (Incoterms)

Incoterms is a universally recognized set of definitions of international trade terms, most commonly used in international sales contracts, developed by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Paris, France. Among the best known Incoterms are EXW (Ex Works), FOB (Free on Board), CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight), DDU (Delivered Duty Unpaid), and CPT (Carriage Paid To).

International Methods of Payment

A basic guide to exporting that includes methods of payment.

U.S. Department of Commerce International Trade Administration Office of Service Industries

As an advocate for the development of U.S. service industries international trade, Office of Service Industries' specialists work closely with the private sector to provide export assistance and participate with other U.S. government agencies to improve foreign market access for U.S. companies.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

File New H1Bs April 1, 2010 for Work to start October 1, 2010. The government's fiscal year begins annually on October 1st. Thus, FY11 starts on October 1, 2010. This means that the first day of work - the earliest possible start date - that can be requested for H1B cap-subject cases in FY11 is October 1, 2010. H1B petitions can be filed up to six months in advance of the requested employment start date. Thus, the earliest that H1B petitions can be filed for FY11 is April 1, 2010. These filings can continue until the cap is reached. It is impossible to know when the cap will be reached. This is largely a function of the economy and other factors that impact the number of employment-based immigration filings and approvals. Although FY10 filings were possible from April 1, 2009 continuing until this writing, things were far different in FY2008 and FY2009, when the cap was exceeded in the initial filing period minimum of the first few days.

• Biotechnology and Medical Products
• Boat Building
• Composite Materials
• Consumer Goods
• Education
• Energy
• Environmental Technology
• Food and Agriculture
• Information Technology
• Pulp and paper
• Seafood
• Wood Products