I.What basic items does the service fee consist of?

According to the latest guidance standards for agency services announced by the General Administration of Customs in 2025,the fees for regular export agency services typically include the following:

• Customsdeclarationservicefee:IncludingHScodeclassification,declarationdocumentpreparation,andcustomssystemoperation
• Logisticscoordinationfee:Coveringbooking,transportationmonitoring,andhandlingofabnormalsituations
• Documentprocessingfee:Includingcommercialinvoices,packinglists,etc.
• Inspectionandquarantinefee:Involvingspecialsupervisionfeessuchascommodityinspection,phytosanitaryinspection,andhealthinspection
• Fundsettlementfee:Foreignexchangereceiptandpayment,Operationandotherfinancialservicecosts

II.What are the industry practices for calculating agency fees?

Based on our experience of serving Fortune 500 companies,a new trend in mainstream pricing models will emerge in 2025:

• Percentagepricingmethod:Chargedat1.5%-3%ofthetotalFOBvalueofthegoods(Customsdatain2023showsanaverageof2.8%)
• FixedServicePackageModel:Structureofbasicservicefee+additionalservicefee(e.g.basicfee￥8000perticket+urgentdeclaration￥2000)
• Mixedpricingsystem:Thefirst20cubicmetersarechargedatafixedrate,andtheexcesspartischargedinasteppedmanner

III.How to identify hidden costs in the quotation sheet?

Customers are advised to pay special attention to the following potential charge items:

• Exchangeratefluctuationcompensation(adjustmentfeewhentheRMBfluctuatesbymorethan±2%)
• Specialperiodservicesurcharge(suchasurgentdeclarationduringholidays)
• Non-standardpackaginghandlingfee(specialhandlingforover-sizeddimensions/hazardousgoods,etc.)
• Re-customsdeclarationfeeforreturnedgoods(itisnecessarytoclarifywhetheritisincludedintheinitialquotation)

IV.How large is the difference in agency fees in different regions?

Taking the data from the first quarter of 2025 as an example:

• YangtzeRiverDeltaregion:Averagequotation￥0.85-1.2/kg(includingportconstructionfee)
• PearlRiverDeltaregion:Theoperationfeeforspecialcontainersis15%-20%higherthanthatofnorthernports
• SoutheastAsiaroute:ThecustomsclearancefeeforRCEPmemberstatescanbereducedby30%
• MiddleEastregion:Anadditional3%-5%religiousdocumentauthenticationfeeneedstobepaid

V.How to negotiate the best price with the agency company?

Based on the actual cases we have obtained for manufacturing customers,it is recommended to adopt:

• Freightvolumecommitmentnegotiationmethod(a20%discountcanbeobtainedforanannualexportvolumeof1000TEU)
• Servicemodulesplittingmethod(self-customsdeclarationcanreducethebasicfeeby25%)
• Risk-sharingclause(delayedcompensationislinkedtofeereduction)
• Quarterlyreviewmechanism(adjusttheservicerateaccordingtotheCPIindex)

Sixth,what new changes will there be in the industry’s charging standards in 2025?

Special attention should be paid to the following policy adjustments:

• The"SmartCustomsDeclaration"systemimplementationfeebytheGeneralAdministrationofCustoms(￥80-150perdeclaration)
• ImpactofthenewINCOTERMS?2025onliabilitydivision
• EUCarbonBorderAdjustmentMechanism(CBAM)declarationservicefee
• Specialsupervisionfeesunderthe9810model

VII.What are the common misunderstandings in price negotiation?

According to the big data analysis of our customer service,the following should be avoided:

• Simplycomparingunitpricesandignoringserviceintegrity(lowpricesmaylackkeyliabilityinsurance)
• Thereisnoagreedmechanismfordealingwithexchangeratefluctuations(theexpectedfluctuationrangeoftheRMBin2025is±5%).
• Thecostofdigitalservicesisignored(e.g.theAPIdockingfeeisusually￥5,000-20,000).
• Thesharingofdisputeresolutioncostsisnotspecified(arbitration/litigationcostsmayaccountfor15%ofthedisputedamount).