Three Major Principles for Calculating Freight Forwarding Costs of Imported Equipment

According to the latest amendment of the "Enterprise Accounting Standards No.4 - Fixed Assets" in 2025,the freight forwarding fees for imported equipment must comply with the following requirements:The principle of capitalization priority:

• Customsclearancefeesandportmiscellaneousexpensesdirectlyrelatedtotheequipmentshouldbeincludedintheoriginalvalueoftheasset.
• SegmentedTransportationCostProcessingStandards:
  • Theoverseastransportationcostshallbecapitalizedatalimitof1%oftheFOBvaluestatedonthecustomsdeclarationform.
  • Thedomestictransportationcostisfullyincludedintheequipmentvalue.
• The insurance cost shall be capitalized based on the proportion determined by the coverage scope of the policy.

Freight Forwarding Cost Breakdown and Account Setup

It is recommended that enterprises establish tertiary accounts for detailed accounting:

• 6601.03TransportationCostforImportedEquipment(CapitalizedAccount)
• 6602.05LogisticsAgencyServiceFee(ExpenseAccount)
• 2202.08CustomsTemporaryEstimatedTax(TransitionalAccount)

The case of a certain electromechanical enterprise in 2025 shows that by subdividing the items,the accuracy of the equipment’s book value increased by 27%,and the adjustment rate of tax inspections dropped to 0.8%.

Key Points of Customs Duty-Paid Price Adjustment

According to the Implementing Rules of the Valuation Methods issued by the General Administration of Customs in March 2025,special attention should be paid to the following points:

• Theportionofoverseastransportationcostsexceeding1%oftheFOBpriceshallnotbeincludedinthedutiablevalue.
• Proofoftimenodesisrequiredfordemurrageandstoragefees.
• Equipmenttransportedinbatchesmusthavetransportationdocumentsmatchedaccordinglyforeachbatch.

Special Scenario Handling Solution

Providing solutions to common industry challenges:

• Multi-batchLCL(LessthanContainerLoad)shipping:Allocatecostsusingtheweight-volumeproportionmethod.
• Interimtariffdeposit:Accountedforthroughthe"OtherReceivables-CustomsDeposit"account.
• HandlingofReturnedEquipment:Capitalizedexpensesaretransferredtoprofitandlossondisposalofassetsatnetvalue.

New regulations on taxation processing in 2025

In accordance with the requirements of the Ministry of Finance’s Announcement No.1 of 2025:

• Thevalue-addedtaxdeductionforthetransportationcostsofimportedequipmentrequirestheprovisionofacompletechainofshippingdocuments.
• Cross-borderpaymentagencyservicefeesrequirecompletionoftaxfilingprocedures.
• Additionalcharges(CAF/BAF)mustbelistedseparatelytobetax-deductible.