Get All Access for $5/mo

Obama Inks Executive Order to Streamline Import and Export Process for Businesses President Obama moved to reduce bureaucratic processes from 'days to minutes' for small and medium-sized businesses who export American-made goods and services.

By Catherine Clifford

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

President Obama is making another move to flex his policy muscle outside of the gridlock of Congress, this time signing an executive order to streamline the processes required for small and medium-sized businesses to export American goods and services to other countries.

On Air Force One this morning, Obama signed an executive order to complete the International Trade Data System, a digital trade record book, by 2016. What that means is that instead of having to wait days on end for paperwork to be processed by countless government agencies, businesses will be able to file all of the paperwork digitally in one electronic location.

Related: Startups Eschew the Made in America Label

Few details were offered, but the White House did say that the change would reduce processing and approval times from "days to minutes."

International trade is big business for the U.S. More than 50 million shipping containers totally $3.8 billion worth of goods move across the U.S. border each year.

The executive action from the White House follows up on a pledge the president made during his 2014 State of the Union address to bypass the stalemate between the House of Representatives and the Senate as much as he can to make change.

Related: Thinking About Doing Business Internationally? Tips for Handling Multiple Currencies

Catherine Clifford

Frequently covers crowdfunding, the sharing economy and social entrepreneurship.

Catherine Clifford is a senior writer at Entrepreneur.com. Previously, she was the small business reporter at CNNMoney and an assistant in the New York bureau for CNN. Catherine attended Columbia University where she earned a bachelor's degree. She lives in Brooklyn, N.Y. Email her at CClifford@entrepreneur.com. You can follow her on Twitter at @CatClifford.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Business News

How Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Transformed a Graphics Card Company Into an AI Giant: 'One of the Most Remarkable Business Pivots in History'

Here's how Nvidia pivoted its business to explore an emerging technology a decade in advance.

Starting a Business

How to Find the Right Programmers: A Brief Guideline for Startup Founders

For startup founders under a plethora of challenges like timing, investors and changing market demand, it is extremely hard to hire programmers who can deliver.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Business News

Want to Start a Business? Skip the MBA, Says Bestselling Author

Entrepreneur Josh Kaufman says that the average person with an idea can go from working a job to earning $10,000 a month running their own business — no MBA required.