The AmericanSourcer Origin Standard

§ 1

Purpose

AmericanSourcer lists products from American manufacturers for retail buyers and resellers. Every listing on the platform carries written Made-in-USA documentation held on file, and buyers receive that file. This Standard defines what "verified" means on AmericanSourcer, how a manufacturer earns each tier, and what documentation we collect and retain.

This Standard describes our documentation process. It is not legal advice, it is not a government certification, and holding a tier under this Standard does not by itself establish compliance with any law or regulation. We collect, review, and retain documentation and we hand that documentation to buyers. Legal conclusions belong to lawyers and regulators.

§ 2

The baseline we document against

The Federal Trade Commission's standard for an unqualified "Made in USA" claim is that the product be "all or virtually all" made in the United States: final assembly or processing in the US, all significant processing in the US, and all or virtually all components of US origin. The FTC's Made in USA Labeling Rule allows civil penalties currently up to $53,088 per violation.

AmericanSourcer uses "all or virtually all" as the documentation baseline for every unqualified origin claim on the platform. Where a manufacturer's honest position is a qualified claim (for example, "Assembled in USA with imported components"), the listing carries the qualified wording exactly as documented, never rounded up.

§ 3

The three tiers

Tier 1Documented

The manufacturer has provided, in writing, a signed statement that the listed products meet the "all or virtually all" baseline (or the exact qualified claim that applies), identifying the manufacturing location and the origin of significant components.

Tier 2Verified

Everything in Documented, plus at least one of the following, reviewed by a human at AmericanSourcer:

1. A live video walkthrough of the manufacturing facility showing the listed products in production, or
2. Supporting records consistent with US manufacture, such as supplier invoices for significant components, facility photographs with production context, or existing third-party certification documents.

Tier 3Charter

A Verified manufacturer enrolled in the Charter Maker program. Charter adds the licensed Verified American Maker badge for the manufacturer's own site and packaging, priority placement, and first access to buyer requests. Charter is a commercial tier built on top of Verified; it never substitutes for the documentation requirements of Tiers 1 and 2.

§ 4

Reconfirmation

Every tier expires. Manufacturers reconfirm their documentation in writing every 12 months. A listing whose reconfirmation lapses is marked accordingly and removed from verified search until the file is current. Material changes in sourcing or production location must be reported when they occur, not at renewal.

§ 5

What the buyer receives

Members receive the Substantiation File for any listed product: the written confirmation, the claim wording, tier, verification date, reconfirmation due date, and file ID. The file belongs to the buyer's records. Our position in one line: the documentation is your evidence, not our secret.

§ 6

Failures and removals

If we cannot obtain documentation, the product is not listed. If documentation is found to be false or materially incomplete, the listing is removed, the manufacturer's tier is revoked, and buyers who received the affected file are notified. We publish aggregate verification-failure statistics; we do not publish individual failures without cause.

§ 7

What this Standard is not

• Not a certification that any seller's own marketing claim complies with law
• Not a guarantee against enforcement action
• Not legal advice

AmericanSourcer sells documentation and process. The file is the product.