10 steps to export services from Ecuador

To start exporting services, businesses must identify if the objective of their expansion is:

• A city, a new country.
• Start in one city or state to expand to the entire country.
• Start in a foreign country to understand consumer dynamics and then expand to the entire region. For example, it is exported first in Colombia and then throughout Latin America.

Once the export objective is established, the new market must be studied, that is, the buyer and its environment, in order to adapt the product.

To do this, Citec recommends using tools, such as Hofstede-insights, which make it possible to understand the social differences of countries through seven factors.

Businesses must also understand the regimes, norms or rules, applicable to technological services, to establish which one must be followed when exporting.

These are the most common regimes for services in Ecuador:

• Definitive export: Customs regime that allows the definitive exit of
  goods in free circulation outside the community customs territory or to a Special Economic Development Zone, located within the Ecuadorian customs territory.
• Temporary export with reinstatement in the same state: Customs regime that allows the temporary departure of goods in free circulation from the customs territory for a specific purpose and period, during which they must be reimported without having undergone any modification, with the exception of normal deterioration due to the use that is made of them.
• Temporary export for outward processing: Customs regime by which merchandise that is in free circulation in the customs territory can be temporarily exported outside the customs territory or to a Special Economic Development Zone, located within said territory, for its transformation, preparation or repair and then reimport them as compensating products with the exemption of the corresponding taxes in accordance with the conditions provided in the regulations of this Code.

Once the company is regularized and knowing the regime applicable to the service to be exported, the business must have an electronic signature.

The electronic signature is the equivalent of the handwritten signature, that is, it has the same legal validity.

The fifth step to export services is to download Ecuapass. It is the platform that allows all import and export customs operations to be carried out.

In the Ecuapass system, you must access the option ” Foreign Trade Representative User Registration ” and complete the steps.

To do this, the business must have a Single Taxpayer Registry (RUC).

Ecuador does not establish any tariff on exports, however, it is necessary to investigate and find out if the service or product that is intended to be sent is subject to restrictions or prohibitions at the destination.

Another step that businesses must follow is to know the four types of export of services detailed in the General Agreement on Trade in Services of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

These are:

• Cross-border provision of services: The company’s headquarters is in Ecuador, while the service crosses the border. It can be via phone, email or online portals. For example, telecommunications services managed from the country of origin.
• Consumption of services abroad: It works when customers cross borders and use the service that is being marketed. For example, a Peruvian stays in a hotel in Cuenca, consuming Ecuadorian services.
• Commercial presence abroad: Open a branch or office that represents the company in another country. For example, open a customer service branch and sale of technological services in a foreign city.
• Presence of natural persons abroad: It can be done in three ways. The first is with personnel who go abroad to work. The second is with a trip abroad for a specific commercial operation. And the third is with temporary contractual service providers.

You should check whether Ecuador has a trade agreement with the country to which you want to export your services, because that can reduce barriers to investment and, in some cases, eliminate tariffs.

When exporting, you must also find out about the entry requirements of the new market. Among the most relevant are:

• The requirements to verify the existence of cross-border supply.
• Certificate of origin from the exporting country.
• Legality of the consumption of the service to be exported.
• Requirements to detect the presence of natural persons with their proper
  legalized documents.