TYPES OF DOCUMENTS
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TBB)
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TBB) is a bureau under the Department of the Treasury (TRE). TBB's mission is to protect the public by enforcing the provisions of the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (FAA Act) to ensure that only qualified persons engage in the alcohol beverage industry. The TBB is responsible for enforcing the laws regulating alcohol production, importation, wholesale business, tobacco manufacturing and importing businesses, and alcohol labeling and advertising.
TBB has assisted industry members seeking to export their products by providing various export certificates or documents that are often required in order for alcohol beverage products to be imported into a foreign market. TBB can assist industry members to obtain the following certifications, or similiar variations, through their International Affairs Division (IAD) in Washington D.C.
- Certificate of Authenticity
- Certificate of Free Sale
- Certificate of Health
- Certificate of Manufacturing Process
- Certificate of Origin
- Certificate of Sanitation
- Sanitary Statement / Certificate
- Consolidated Wine Export Certificate (for wine exported to China)
- APEC Model Wine Certificate
You can contact the TBB for more information on how to obtain the necessary certifcations and documents required, and forward them to our office to be Apostilled. In doing so you will want to use the the TBB Export Certificate Template when submitting your request. Please Note - you may need to include additional information to meet the Certificate requirements of the countries to which you desire to export.
Please note the following regional notes:
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) - The Model Wine Certificate is available for United State exports to APEC economies (except China). Click here for more information.
Brazil - Brazil requires separate forms for Certificates of Origin and Certificates of Anaysis, which apply to all imported alcohol beverage products. For Brazil exports use this template for Certificate of Origin requests.
China - There is a Consolidated Export Certificate template that may be used -- for wine only -- exports to China which incorporates all three Certificates (Certificate of Origin; Certificate of Health / Sanitation; and Certificate of Authencity / Free Sale) normally required.
Uruguay - Uruguay's National Institute of Vitiviniculture (INAVI) adopted a resolution regarding exofenous water cotent in imported wine. An unoffiicial English translation of the resolution is available here. Uruguay will not require, for wine of the United States, the Certificate established by the resolution nor any declaration or proof regarding exogenous water (document available here). An unofficial English translation of Uruguay's decision is available here.
European Union (EU) - United States wine exported to EU countries must be accompanied by a VI1 Form, which certifies that the wine exprted (1) complies with the conditions governing the production and entry into circulation applicable in the United States of America.\, (2) has be produced using oenological practices in accordance with the terms of the EC-United States Agreement on Trade in Wine, and (3) has been produced by a winery licensed by TTB for the production of grape wine. See the TBB website for more details.
EU Countries include: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lativa, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
To request your Export Certificates from TBB you can either mail or email your request by submitting this contact form with the Completed Certificate request(s) attached as a single PDF file. You must submit two signed copies of your request(s):
- Should appear with your company name on the top.
- Should appear on TBB letterhead
See the TBB website for more details.
Export Certificates from Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau are United States Federal Government Documents issued by the International Affairs Division (IAD) and can only be Apostilled through the United States Department of State (USDOS) in Washington D.C. These documents cannot be notarized, copy certified, and no State Office can process this document. All United States Federal Documents are processed through the United States Secretary of State or the United States Department of State.
In order for us to process your Export Certificates, you must mail in the original or certified copy by IAD to our office. Once we receive your document(s), in order to minimize errors and processing time, we will verify that all documents received from notaries before submitting them to be Apostilled. We will contact you as soon as possible if any errors are encountered and we will instruct you on how they need to be corrected.
Obtaining an Apostille can be a complicated process and should not be left to someone who does not understand all of the steps involved. Untrained persons that do not understand all of the requirements for legalization in each country are more likely to make errors, which will severely delay the Apostille process and cost you more money.
Once the original English Export Certificates are received you can mail them to us to be Apostilled. We can also provide Certified Translation Services into the language required by the Country of Designation.
Here at Ezra Notary and Apostille,