Import Duties and Customs from China: HS Codes

If you are still learning how to buy from China, this is the part that arrives with your first shipment. It explains who decides what, how to find the right product code, which papers must exist before the ship arrives, why goods get held, and what to do when they are. It gives no tariff rates, because a rate without a country, a date and a product code is a guess. We quote FOB Yiwu, tax excluded — Yiwu is inland, so the documents are issued at the port of loading, not here — and we do not offer DDP or customs clearance. That line is explained below.

Who decides how much duty you pay?

Three people decide, and none of them is the Chinese supplier.

• Your customs authority decides the product code. It uses the Harmonized System, plus its own national lines.
• You declare the value. Your customs checks it against the WTO valuation rules.
• The origin decides the rate. Where the goods were fully made, or substantially transformed, is proved with a certificate of origin when you claim a preferential rate.

The duty is the value multiplied by the rate for the code, adjusted by origin. China's part ends at the export declaration, the certificate of origin and the loading. Your customs decides entry.

What is an HS code, and how do you find yours?

An HS code is a number that tells customs what your product is. The Harmonized System was built by the World Customs Organization around a six-digit code, and more than 200 countries and economies use it as the base for their tariffs (WCO, checked 27 October 2026). The first six digits are the same everywhere. After six, each country adds its own digits: the EU uses eight and ten, the United States ten, many others eight. That is why the same product can carry different codes in different markets and pay different rates.

How to classify. A code is not a keyword search. The HS General Interpretative Rules apply in order: first the heading text and the section or chapter notes; then the rules for incomplete or unassembled goods; and, where two headings could fit, the most specific description, with essential character deciding for sets. For home goods, three facts usually decide: the material, the function, and whether the item is a finished article or a part. A plastic storage box with a lid is classified by function and material. The same box packed with a cleaning kit may become a set with a different code.

Where to look. Use the destination's official tariff database, not a forwarder's price list:

• European Union: Access2Markets, the European Commission's trade portal, which returns the tariff, VAT and import conditions for a product and a destination (European Commission, checked 27 October 2026).
• United States: the Harmonized Tariff Schedule on the USITC site (USITC, checked 27 October 2026).
• Other markets: the national customs website, the tariff schedule published by the finance or trade ministry, or the WCO Trade Tools portal.

Get it in writing. For a product you import again and again, ask for a binding tariff information decision where your country offers one, or ask your customs broker to confirm the code in writing with the reasoning. A code in writing can be defended. A code copied from a competitor's invoice cannot.

Why the same product differs. National lines, national case law, how sets are treated and how a product is presented all change the answer. A "storage rack" can be furniture, a household article of iron or steel, or a part of furniture, depending on its size, how it is assembled and how it is finished. That is the rulebook working as designed.

Is the customs value just the invoice number?

Usually it starts there, and then it moves. The WTO Customs Valuation Agreement aims at a fair, uniform and neutral system and bans arbitrary or fictitious values (WTO, checked 27 October 2026). The main basis is the transaction value — the price you actually paid or will pay — adjusted for items the agreement lists: certain commissions, packing costs, assists, royalties and, depending on the terms, transport and insurance to the place of import.

Two things follow.

1. The Incoterm changes the value. Under CIF, freight and insurance are already inside the price. Under FOB, they are not, and your customs may add them. Declaring an FOB invoice as the customs value, when your law wants CIF, is a common and expensive mistake.
2. A low invoice is not a shortcut. It lowers the duty at the border and creates three bigger problems: customs can reject the value and assess its own, the importer can face penalties, and the goods can sit detained while the value is argued. The importer of record carries that liability, not the Chinese supplier.

FOB, CIF or DDP: who handles what?

Incoterms 2020 defines eleven rules. The part that matters is who books the carriage, who insures, who clears export and who clears import (ICC, checked 27 October 2026).

DDP means the seller clears the goods for import and pays duty and taxes. Under DAP the buyer does that (ICC Academy, checked 27 October 2026). DDP looks convenient, and it makes the seller the importer of record in your country. That is often not what a buyer wants: the seller may not be registered for VAT or tax there, and you lose control of the declaration.

Our terms stop earlier. We quote FOB Yiwu, tax excluded. Yiwu is inland, so the bill of lading is issued at the port of loading — usually Ningbo or Shanghai — and that is the port named on the documents. Under FOB, the export declaration is the seller's job. It is filed in the seller's name, normally by the forwarder you appoint — we do not act as the customs broker ourselves, and you do not need a customs registration in China. We prepare the commercial documents; we do not work as a freight forwarder (no booking, no transport documents), and we do not offer DDP. The import declaration, the duty and the taxes are yours or your broker's.

Which documents do you need before the ship arrives?

Missing papers are the most common cause of a hold, and every paper has an owner and a deadline.

1. Commercial invoice — seller — at shipment. It shows seller and buyer, full description, HS code, quantity, unit price, total, currency, Incoterm, country of origin and shipping marks. The description must be specific: "plastic household storage box, PP, 40×30×25 cm" is a description. "Plastic goods" invites an inspection.
2. Packing list — seller — at shipment. Carton count, what is in each carton, length, width and height, gross and net weight, marks. Customs uses it to check the container; the warehouse uses it to receive.
3. Bill of lading (sea) or air waybill (air) — carrier or forwarder — after the cargo is received. The B/L is the paper that proves who owns the goods on the ship. The air waybill is not negotiable. Check consignee and notify party before the vessel sails; corrections after departure are slow and chargeable.
4. Certificate of origin — CCPIT, its local branches or China Customs — before shipment. In China, export certificates of origin are issued by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and its local branches under the Import and Export Goods Origin Regulations; China Customs also issues them. They cover preferential, non-preferential, processing-assembly and re-export certificates (CCPIT, checked 27 October 2026). A preferential certificate only helps if the goods meet the origin rule of that agreement, and a certificate that does not match the invoice helps nobody.
5. Product compliance documents — factory — before shipment. CE, SABER, NOM, SASO or whatever your market requires. These are product papers, not customs papers, but customs may ask for them and the market authority certainly will.
6. Import declaration — importer or broker — on arrival. It is filed electronically with your customs, using the classification, the value and the origin. In most markets the importer of record must be registered and must authorise the broker.
7. Insurance certificate — buyer under FOB — before or at shipment. On FOB terms the goods are uninsured on the water unless you arrange cover. Ask your broker for a marine cargo policy that covers warehouse to warehouse.
8. Wood packaging mark — supplier — before shipment. Wood packaging made from raw wood, including dunnage, must be treated and marked under ISPM 15. Plywood and other processed wood are outside the standard (IPPC, checked 27 October 2026). A container with unmarked pallets can be refused, or fumigated at your cost.

What happens at clearance, step by step?

Clearance is eight steps, and the first one starts before the ship leaves China.

1. Before departure: the supplier sends the document pack. Your broker checks classification, value and origin while the goods are still in China.
2. Arrival notice: the carrier or forwarder tells the consignee.
3. Declaration: the broker files the entry with the invoice, packing list, B/L, certificate of origin and certificates.
4. Risk assessment: customs may clear at once, ask for documents, or select the consignment for inspection.
5. Duty and taxes: you pay them, usually before release.
6. Inspection: if selected, the container is opened and checked against the declaration. Quantity and description errors surface here.
7. Release and delivery: the forwarder releases the container. Storage and demurrage start counting after the free days.
8. Post-clearance audit: customs may review the entry months later. Keep the documents for as long as your country requires.

Why do goods get held?

Nine things hold goods at the border, and a value that looks too low is the most common.

• Value too low. The most common trigger. Customs compares your value with its database and asks for proof of payment.
• Description too vague. "Household goods", "plastic products", "gifts" — a description that makes classification impossible.
• Wrong HS code. Often a code copied from a similar product or from another country.
• Missing certificate of origin. Claiming a preferential rate without the certificate, or with one that does not match the invoice.
• Missing product certificate. CE, SABER, NOM or a local registration your market requires.
• Wood packaging without the ISPM 15 mark.
• Restricted or regulated goods. Food contact materials, electricals, toys, chemicals and products with radio equipment carry extra rules.
• Quantity or weight mismatch. The packing list says 1,200 pieces; the container holds 1,180.
• Brand or IP issue. Goods carrying a trademark without authorisation.

What do you do if your goods are held?

Ask for the notice in writing, name the category, then answer with documents.

1. Get the notice in writing. Ask the broker for the customs query, the legal basis and the deadline to reply. A phone call is not a notice.
2. Name the category. Valuation, classification, origin, certificate, inspection or restriction. Each has its own remedy and its own timeline.
3. Answer with documents, not explanations. For value: payment proof, contract, price list, comparable prices. For classification: product specification, material, function, photos. For origin: the certificate and the production evidence.
4. Ask for a decision you can appeal. In most systems you can request a written decision, then appeal within a fixed period.
5. Watch the clock. Storage and demurrage add up daily after the free period. A one-week document delay can cost more than the duty.
6. Do not abandon the goods. In most jurisdictions, abandoning them does not cancel the duty debt or the storage bill.

Typical timelines in our experience: a document query clears in 2–5 working days; an inspection adds 1–3 days; a valuation or classification dispute can take weeks and may need a guarantee or deposit to release the goods.

How do you estimate landed cost without a rate table?

You need the structure: seven lines, each with a range.

``` Landed cost = goods value

• export packing and inland transport in China
• main freight and insurance
• duty (customs value × tariff rate)
• VAT/GST (on value + duty + eligible fees)
• broker, port, terminal and inland delivery
• financing and FX

```

Use a range for every line. Two lines move the most: freight (seasonal) and duty (it depends on the code). Ask your broker to run the numbers with the code you plan to use, and to say what happens if customs reclassifies. If you want the goods checked and packed before they leave, our sourcing service in Yiwu covers that part.

What does the China side do?

The Chinese exporter files the export declaration and, where eligible, claims the export VAT refund. That refund depends on receiving the foreign exchange by the refund declaration deadline. Where the tax authority finds payment by a party other than the importer, it can suspend the refund until it checks (State Taxation Administration Announcement No. 30 of 2013, checked 27 October 2026). This is why paying a Chinese company from a third-party account causes trouble at the supplier's end even when the money arrives. If you want the payment side in detail, read how to pay a Chinese supplier.

On FOB terms, the exporter and the forwarder you appoint handle the export declaration and the B/L (issued at the port of loading — Ningbo or Shanghai, not Yiwu). The declaration is filed in the exporter's name; we do not act as the customs broker ourselves and you do not need a customs registration in China. We prepare the commercial documents.

When is the duty not your problem?

Four situations put the duty somewhere else.

• DDP. The seller clears the goods and pays duty and taxes as importer of record. Check that the seller is really registered in your country and named on the declaration. We do not offer DDP, so this is not our route.
• Buying from a domestic importer or distributor. The goods are already cleared. The duty sits inside the price you pay, and you are not the importer.
• Temporary admission. Samples for a show, or goods sent for repair, can enter under temporary admission or an ATA Carnet, with duty suspended instead of paid, as long as they are re-exported within the conditions.
• Low-value parcels. Many countries have a de minimis threshold — a low value below which no duty is charged. The level and the VAT treatment differ, so do not assume your parcel qualifies.

In all four cases the importer of record — not the Chinese supplier — stays responsible for the accuracy of the declaration. When someone offers to "take care of customs" without saying who the importer is, ask that question before the goods move.

Do-this checklist

1. Confirm the import duty is set by your country, not by China.
2. Get the six-digit HS code, then the full national code, in writing.
3. Check the code in the destination's official tariff database.
4. Ask your broker for a written classification opinion for repeat imports.
5. Confirm whether your customs value must include freight and insurance.
6. Match the Incoterm to who actually books the freight and clears import.
7. Collect invoice, packing list, B/L, CO and certificates before departure.
8. Check the CO against the invoice: seller, buyer, goods, origin.
9. Confirm the wood packaging mark before the container is sealed.
10. File the import declaration early; do not wait for the arrival notice.
11. Budget storage and demurrage as a real line, not a surprise.
12. Keep the entry and supporting documents for the audit period.

Related reading

• How to Pay a Chinese Supplier: T/T and L/C
• China Sourcing Guide for Beginners: MOQ & QC
• What does a China sourcing agent do

Related products

• Sourcing service in Yiwu
• Kitchen storage racks

Sources

• WCO — What is the Harmonized System? — https://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/nomenclature/overview.aspx — checked 2026-10-27. "Six-digit nomenclature, used by more than 200 countries and economies as the basis for customs tariffs."
• WTO — Customs Valuation — https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/cusval_e/cusval_e.htm — checked 2026-10-27. "Fair, uniform and neutral system; outlaws arbitrary or fictitious customs values."
• ICC — Incoterms® 2020 — https://iccwbo.org/business-solutions/incoterms-rules/incoterms-2020/ — checked 2026-10-27. "Eleven rules, allocation of carriage, insurance and export/import formalities."
• ICC Academy — DAP & DDP Incoterms® 2020 explained — https://academy.iccwbo.org/incoterms/article/incoterms-2020-dap-or-ddp/ — checked 2026-10-27. "Under DAP the buyer handles import clearance; DDP transfers it to the seller."
• CCPIT — certificate of origin service — https://co.ccpit.org/front/aboutCO — checked 2026-10-27. "Issuance by CCPIT and local branches under the Import and Export Goods Origin Regulations."
• IPPC — ISPM 15 — https://www.ippc.int/en/publications/640/ — checked 2026-10-27. "Regulation of wood packaging material in international trade."
• European Commission — Access2Markets — https://trade.ec.europa.eu/access-to-markets/en/home — checked 2026-10-27. "Official EU tariff and import conditions."
• USITC — Harmonized Tariff Schedule — https://hts.usitc.gov/ — checked 2026-10-27. "Official US tariff schedule."
• State Taxation Administration — Announcement No. 30 of 2013 — https://www.chinatax.gov.cn/chinatax/n810341/n810765/n812146/201306/c1081349/content.html — checked 2026-10-27. "Export refund requires foreign-exchange receipt; suspension where payment is by a party other than the importer."

For a quote or to source your products, contact our Yiwu sourcing team → Request a quote