First shipment from China

Before you start: three conditions

The three conditions below are the conditions for official import, and by default a first shipment goes that way. If even one isn't met, the shipment isn't cancelled — it stays cargo. What that changes in money terms is shown by customs clearance calculator; we tell you which option applies to you before the quote, not after.

• Shipment of 50 kg or more. This is our minimum. Below 150 kg the rate per kilogram is higher: it's cheaper to consolidate a shipment than to ship it in parts.
• A legal entity or sole trader. With official import, you're the importer: the contract, declaration, and goods are registered in your name.
• A customs broker, or a willingness to find one. The broker handles declaration. No broker — tell us: we'll recommend trusted ones or arrange clearance as a separate service.

Step 1. Find a supplier

The main platforms are 1688 and Taobao for the domestic Chinese market, and Alibaba for export. Prices on 1688 are usually lower, but sellers only operate inside China: they won't deliver to your warehouse, and you'll have to communicate in Chinese.

This is where the purchasing service comes in: we pay the seller, receive the goods at our warehouse in Guangzhou, and then ship them as regular cargo. For a first shipment, this is the shortest path — no yuan account or negotiations in Chinese required.

Step 2. Verify the supplier and the goods

It's cheaper to spend a week on verification than to ship the wrong goods halfway around the world.

• Order a sample. The only way to know what will actually arrive. Photos in the product listing are often not the real thing.
• Ask the factory for documents — for the product and its specifications. Your broker will need them, and it's better to find out now if they're missing.
• Confirm the exact dimensions and weight of the packed package. Delivery price depends on these, and sellers tend to give them reluctantly and inaccurately.
• Check whether the goods are on the stop list — what we don't ship, and where.

Step 3. Contract

With official import, the contract is signed directly between your legal entity and the supplier — not between the supplier and us. It's the basis of the deal, and customs will check the invoice against it down to the last digit.

What the contract should include and where people most often trip up — a section-by-section breakdown.

Step 4. Pay

A direct transfer from your bank to a Chinese one requires currency control and takes time. Standard market practice is payment through an agent, and this is our second service: payment to the supplier.

We don't charge a commission on regular payments — we earn on the exchange rate, and we say this openly. For comparison: payment agents on the market charge from 3 to 20%.

Don't pay the full amount upfront to an unfamiliar supplier. The usual scheme is part as a deposit, the rest after the goods arrive at the warehouse and you've seen the photos.

Step 5. Send the goods to our warehouse

The supplier sends the cargo to our warehouse in Guangzhou via domestic Chinese delivery. We provide an address and a code, which the seller writes on each package — it's used to identify the cargo on arrival.

If there are several suppliers, the cargo accumulates at the warehouse and leaves as one shipment. There is no charge for storage.

Step 6. Receiving: measurements and photos

On the day of arrival, a warehouse worker counts the packages, weighs, measures, and photographs each one. You get the actual figures and photos the same day.

This is the first point where the real delivery cost becomes visible: the price is calculated from actual measurements, not from what the supplier stated. We agree on any discrepancy before shipping, not in the invoice.

Step 7. Packing

Factory packaging is designed for transport within China as one whole shipment. Consolidated cargo gets reloaded several times and packages are stacked on top of each other, so the packaging is almost always reinforced.

How much it costs and how to choose the right type for your goods — insurance and packing. That page also covers the main thing you need to know in advance: breakage isn't covered by insurance, neither ours nor the carrier's.

Step 8. Understand how much it costs

Shipping is calculated by weight or by volume — whichever is "heavier" for the flight. Volume = length × width × height × 1.1; density = weight ÷ volume. The basis for calculation — kilograms or cubic meters — depends on the carrier's price list and is always stated in your quote.

That's exactly why a contractor who quotes a price per kilogram without asking about dimensions will recalculate it later. A breakdown with examples — how the cost is calculated.

Besides shipping, the budget also includes: packing, cargo pickup, export documents, insurance beyond the mandatory coverage, delivery from the recipient's warehouse, plus customs payments and your broker's fees. You can estimate the duty and VAT with the customs clearance calculator.

Step 9. Gather the documents

You put the package together, and your broker files it. From the supplier you need the contract, invoice, packing list, export declaration, and, if required, certificates for the goods. From us — transport documents and the receiving report with actual measurements.

The full list with explanations of why each document is needed — documents for official import.

Step 10. Customs

The broker handles declaration. We hand the document package over before the cargo arrives, so processing doesn't start from scratch once the truck is already at the border.

We'll say it plainly: in 2026, customs is unpredictable on every route, inspections happen constantly, and this depends neither on us nor on the broker. Normal processing takes 1–4 days; with an inspection it takes longer, and there's no way to predict it.

Step 11. Receive the cargo

Pickup at the recipient's warehouse or delivery to an address is priced separately by route. On receipt, check the number of packages and the outward condition of the packaging, and record any issues on the waybill before signing: cargo accepted without any notes is considered accepted in proper condition.

How long all this takes

The longest and most unpredictable stage isn't shipping — it's the goods being ready at the factory. You control this, and we don't recommend planning your first shipment around a hard deadline.

Where almost everyone trips up

• They calculate the price for shipping only. Packing, documents, the broker, customs payments, and domestic delivery add up on top — and together they change the economics of the shipment.
• They don't ask about dimensions. Light, bulky goods are calculated by cubic meters, and the price ends up three times higher than expected.
• They pay the full amount upfront to an unfamiliar seller — before the goods arrive at the warehouse and photos appear.
• They look for a broker once the cargo is already on the way. A broker is needed before shipping: they determine the goods' code and which documents will be required.
• They save on packing for fragile goods. No insurance covers breakage — it's the one risk that can be fully removed in advance.
• They ship the first shipment too small. Below 150 kg the rate per kilogram is higher, and the first shipment ends up costing more than a regular one will.
• They plan around a deadline. The factory sets the production timeline, customs is unpredictable — you always need a buffer.

Frequently asked questions