Where Are The Government Guys?
I'm surprised there was no mention of seeking assistance from your government. In the US, Canada and the UK you've got access to tremendously valuable government services to help you get your stuff where you want it to go and get your money.
I'm pretty hard on most all government services, but international trade services are something everybody who wants to deal abroad should look into.
About 70% of our commercial clients are overseas and figuring out how to get our stuff over there was an enormous challenge. There's an entire quasi-legitimate 'import/export' industry out there that is nearly impossible to get past without losing your ass. Kind of like all those sketchy currency exchange and passport/visa shops in most big cities. They'll sell you free forms and give you worthless information and be sure to call their buddies overseas so they'll know how much they can fleece you for.
But your government actually knows who you should be dealing with, how you should be dealing with them and what to do if things go pear shaped. They'll actively assist too, for free. If you want to go meet your new client/factor/whatever they'll arrange for transport from the airport (airfare is on you) to 'safe' meeting places, provide you with a driver and embassy car to make sure you don't get lost/robbed, translators, check up on you. A lot of our sensitive prototypes and engineering proofs are carried via diplomatic pouch (free, you just pay freight, 'pouch' is a misnomer, it's a decal) and so you don't have to worry about bent customs agents stealing your secrets.
You're going to have to pay most of the people your government puts you in touch with, but at least you'll be paying people with a vested interest in seeing you succeed (preferential referrals from a government are rabidly maintained, it's free money for them). It's really, really easy to pay a bunch of money to some guy who knows nothing more about the laws & rules than what he's read on a country's website. Your government eliminates that entire group of people.
If you're a small business your government will put you in contact with other small businesses wanting to trade in the same places as you and they'll help negotiate shared logistics deals, customs headaches and all sorts of other things that most small businesses simply don't have to resources to dal with on their own.
International trade is one of the very few things that Western Governments excel at. There's nobody on Earth better at it than the US, Canada and the UK. They're good at it and they actually want to help because the perks for them are huge. Your foreign embassies are 97% business office. The passport/visa crap is a wee tiny part of what they actually do. Don't be afraid to go knocking on the doors of your foreign trade office. There are a lot of surprisingly helpful folks in there that get bypassed by people attracted to the flashing lights of the local 'customs houses'.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
