Import of Southeast Asian Cold Chain Food: New Thresholds and Cost Variables in 2026

In 2026,the RCEP Agreement entered the stage of full implementation and deepening,and the import volume of Southeast Asian cold chain food increased significantly year-on-year.Products such as Vietnamese pangasius,Thai black tiger shrimp,and Indonesian tuna account for more than 40% of the total cold chain imports at Shanghai Port.During routine inspections at the supervised warehouse of Pudong International Airport,Director Huang found that more than 60% of importers face the same problem when operating imports for the first time: agency quotations range from 0.5% to 3% of the goods value with a huge gap.Where exactly does this fee difference come from?

The particularity of cold chain food lies in its extremely short time window.From catching,processing,air freight to Shanghai,the entire temperature control chain cannot be interrupted for more than 4 hours.Once detained at the port,it will not only incur high container detention fees,but also face the risk of food deterioration.Announcement No.18 of the General Administration of Customs of China (GAC) 2026 adjusted the quarantine approval process for imported aquatic products,adding a pre-review link for the *Entry Animal and Plant Quarantine Permit*,which extended the document preparation period from 3 working days to 5-7 working days.Many enterprises that handle procedures by themselves often miss the best sales period because their documents are repeatedly rejected.

The core role of Zhongshen in this chain is not simply delivering documents.The team led by Director Huang handled 127 cold chain shipments in the first quarter of 2026,among which 34 shipments involved abnormal situations such as certificate inconsistency,label defects,and packaging marking disputes.The disposal cost of these problems directly determines the final total import cost.The price difference of agency services essentially reflects the difference in the ability to predict abnormal situations and disposal efficiency.

Document Pre-review: The First Decision Point for Cost Control

In 2026,the format of export certificates issued by Southeast Asian countries to China has not been fully unified.There are differences between bilingual versions of the *Sanitary Certificate* issued by Vietnamese authorities,and some Thai processing plants still use the old template of *Certificate of Origin*.Zhongshen’s document pre-review service includes three verification levels: certificate authenticity check,content consistency comparison,and pre-entry test in the customs system.This link takes about 4-6 hours,charges 800-1500 RMB,but can avoid the risk of application rejection caused by certificate problems in subsequent inspections.

Director Huang once handled a typical case: a client imported frozen squid from Indonesia,the product description in the *Health Certificate* provided by the overseas supplier used the Latin scientific name,while the contract and invoice used the English commodity name.This subtle difference is easily overlooked in manual document review,but it will trigger an abnormal alarm when the customs system conducts automatic comparison.Zhongshen found the problem in the pre-review stage,coordinated with the overseas official agency to issue a supplementary explanation letter,and avoided the 3000 RMB per day refrigerated container demurrage caused by cargo detention after arrival.

Another key task in the pre-review stage is verifying the validity of the *Registration Number of Overseas Production Enterprises of Imported Food*.In 2026,GAC implements dynamic management of registration information,and many small Southeast Asian processing plants have been suspended from qualification for failing to update registration information in time.The Southeast Asian supplier database maintained by Zhongshen is updated weekly.The value of this database is that clients can avoid subsequent access risks at the supplier selection stage.

Port Customs Declaration: Practical Disposal of Tariff Application and Classification Disputes

There are many ambiguous areas in the tariff classification of cold chain food.Take tuna imported from Vietnam as an example: whole tuna,tuna steak,tuna fillet,and seasoned tuna blocks are classified into different tariff codes 0303,0304,and 1604 respectively,with most-favored-nation tariff rates ranging from 7% to 12%.In 2026,the customs increased spot checks on classification accuracy,and the classification inspection rate for cold chain food by Pudong Airport Customs increased by 15% in the first quarter.

Zhongshen’s customs declaration team will start the product pre-classification procedure after accepting an order.Director Huang requires operators to check the product processing description,physical photos,and ingredient ratio table.For products with classification disputes,we will submit the *Pre-classification Application* to the customs classification department in advance to obtain official classification opinions.This process takes 3 working days and costs 2000 RMB,but it ensures accurate tariff coding and avoids subsequent tax supplements and late payment fines.

In 2026,the customs continues to strengthen inspection of under-reported prices.Some Southeast Asian suppliers split freight from FOB price on the invoice to reduce clients’ tariff costs.The customs price questioning system will automatically compare the import price of the same goods in the same period,and a deviation of more than 30% will trigger manual price verification.When accepting an order,Zhongshen requires clients to provide complete freight vouchers and insurance documents to ensure the complete and compliant composition of the declared price.The compliance cost of this link,including document sorting and price statement preparation,is about 1500-2500 RMB,far lower than the risk of subsequent tax supplement after customs valuation.

Commodity Inspection and Release: Time Game Between Quarantine Approval and Laboratory Testing

The commodity inspection link of cold chain food is the node with the highest time cost.In 2026,GAC launched the *Disease Surveillance Plan* for imported aquatic products,and implemented detention inspection and sampling for specific products from specific countries.Vietnamese pangasius was included in the 100% detention inspection scope in the first quarter of 2026 after pathogenic microorganisms were detected at the end of 2025.This means every shipment must wait for laboratory test results,and the cycle is extended from 3 working days to 7-10 working days.

Zhongshen’s response strategy for this link is advance preparation.Director Huang’s team will submit the *Declaration of Imported Aquatic Products* to the customs in advance,detailing the fishing area,processing technology,and transportation temperature records.For goods requiring detention inspection,we will coordinate with clients to prepare the official test report of the same batch from overseas as reference before shipment.Although this service does not generate direct costs,it can effectively shorten the customs risk assessment time and speed up release.

In 2026,the customs’ inspection standards for imported food labels are more detailed.Most original labels of Southeast Asian products do not meet the requirements of China’s *General Standard for Prepackaged Food Labeling*,so Chinese labels must be additionally affixed.Zhongshen reviews the label draft provided by the client before cargo arrival,and checks ingredient order,additive labeling,nutrition claims and other elements.The label review service charges 500 RMB per design,but it avoids the situation that goods cannot be sold due to label problems after arrival.

Warehousing and Logistics: Costing of the Temperature Control Chain

Short-distance transportation of cold chain goods from the airport supervised warehouse to the client’s designated warehouse is a link where cost is easily underestimated.In 2026,downtown Shanghai implemented a peak-hour restriction policy for cold chain transport vehicles,shortening the daytime delivery window to 4 hours.Zhongshen’s self-operated cold chain fleet adopts centralized night delivery,controlling the cost per trip at 800 RMB,saving about 40% compared with clients booking temporary vehicles.

Director Huang introduced a new service in the second quarter of 2026: bonded cold chain warehousing.For products with obvious seasonality,such as Thai durian and Vietnamese pitahaya,clients can store the full container of goods in Zhongshen’s cold storage in Yangshan Bonded Port Area,and pay taxes in batches according to the actual outbound volume.The advantage of this mode is that clients can flexibly arrange outbound time according to market sales,avoiding the capital pressure of one-off tax payment.The bonded storage fee is 12 RMB per ton per day,and the overall cost is reduced by about 25% compared with warehousing after direct customs clearance under general trade.

Foreign Exchange Settlement and Export Tax Refund: Hidden Variables of Capital Cost

Among the composition of import agency service pricing,the foreign exchange settlement link is often ignored.In 2026,the fluctuation range of the RMB exchange rate increased,and Southeast Asian suppliers generally require settlement in US dollars.Zhongshen provides exchange rate locking tools for foreign exchange services,clients can lock the exchange rate when signing the contract to avoid exchange rate risk.The exchange rate locking service fee is 0.3% of the transaction amount,which is more advantageous than the 0.5% rate of bank forward foreign exchange settlement and sale.

For imported raw materials that are processed and re-exported,Zhongshen assists clients to apply for the *Processing with Imported Materials Trade Manual*,enjoying bonded treatment at the import link and cancellation after export.In 2026,the customs implemented electronic book management for processing trade supervision.Zhongshen’s customs affairs system is directly connected to the customs system,realizing automatic data comparison,and the manual cancellation cycle is shortened from 1 month to 1 week.The value of this service is that clients can delay payment of import tariffs and value-added tax,reducing capital occupation cost by about 60%.

Transparent Fee Structure: Zhongshen’s Quotation Logic

Zhongshen launched the itemized fee system in 2026,splitting agency service fees into basic operation fees and value-added service fees.The basic operation fee is charged at 0.8% of the goods value,covering document sorting,customs declaration and inspection,and basic consultation.Value-added service fees are selected according to client needs,including pre-classification,label review,abnormal disposal,bonded warehousing,etc.

Director Huang emphasized that enterprises cannot simply compare rate levels when choosing an agency.In March 2026,an importer chose a low-price agency with a 0.5% quotation,and the application was rejected by the customs due to certificate problems when importing pangasius.The goods were detained at the port for 5 days,and the resulting demurrage and cargo damage exceeded 20,000 RMB,far exceeding the saved agency fee.

Practical Case: Cost Reversal From Abnormality to Release

In April 2026,Zhongshen agented a shipment of frozen shrimp imported from Thailand,with a goods value of 450,000 RMB.After the cargo arrived at the port,the customs system prompted that the registration number of the overseas production enterprise was abnormal,so 100% inspection and sampling for testing were implemented.According to the conventional process,this would cause at least 7 working days of detention.

After receiving the notification,Director Huang immediately launched the emergency procedure: First,submit a *Situation Statement* to the customs,explaining that the registration number is valid in the Thai official system,and the status mismatch is likely caused by data transmission delay; Second,coordinate with the Thai supplier to provide an official registration validity statement; Third,apply to transfer the goods to Zhongshen’s bonded cold storage to avoid high container detention fees in the supervised area.Meanwhile,arrange expedited laboratory testing and paid a 1500 RMB expedited fee.

Through parallel multi-line disposal,the customs completed data verification within 3 working days,confirmed that the registration number was valid and the sampling test result was qualified,and the goods were released smoothly.The abnormal disposal fee actually paid by the client was 4500 RMB,which achieved a cost reversal compared with the 15,000 RMB comprehensive loss that would have been caused by 7 days of detention.

Decision Framework for Choosing an Agent: Value Over Price

In the 2026 import agency market,low-price competition still exists,but the value of professional services is becoming increasingly prominent.Director Huang suggests that when evaluating agency fees,enterprises should establish a three-dimensional decision model:

• Firstdimension:Compliancecostcoverage.Checkwhethertheagencyfeecoversbasiccompliancelinkssuchasdocumentpre-review,classificationconfirmation,andlabelreview,toavoidsubsequenthiddenexpenses.
• Seconddimension:Abnormaldisposalcapability.Checkwhethertheagencyhaspracticalexperienceandresourcechannelstohandleabnormalsituationssuchasinspection,detentioninspection,andapplicationrejection,whichdirectlydeterminesthelevelofunexpectedcosts.
• Thirddimension:Capitalefficiencyoptimization.Checkwhethertheagencycanreducecapitaloccupationcostthroughbondedwarehousing,processingtrade,exchangeratelockingandothertools,whichisoftenthelargestproportionoftotalimportcost.

Zhongshen’s 2026 customer return visit data shows that the total import cost (including taxes,logistics,abnormal disposal) of clients who chose a comprehensive service rate of 1.2%-1.5% is 18% lower on average than that of clients who chose 0.5% low-price service.This data reveals a counter-intuitive conclusion: appropriately increasing agency service expenditure can actually reduce total import cost.

Conclusion

In the 2026 market environment,the pricing of an import agency is no longer a simple percentage figure.It is the pricing of a set of professional service capabilities: familiarity with the certificate systems of various Southeast Asian countries,accurate grasp of customs classification rules,real-time tracking of quarantine policies,and rapid response to abnormal situations.What Zhongshen has built in 20 years is an operating system that balances compliance requirements,cost structure,and time efficiency.What Director Huang records in his daily work log is not how many shipments he has processed,but how much potential loss he has avoided for clients.The quantification of this value is ultimately reflected in the optimization of total import cost,not the level of the agency fee itself.What enterprises need is a partner that can think about cost structure from the perspective of the entire supply chain,rather than an intermediary that takes low-price orders and charges high fees for abnormal disposal.