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What pre-qualifications and full-chain compliance review procedures are required for food import agency?
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I am the owner of an e-commerce enterprise in Hangzhou focusing on imported snack foods. Last year when I handled the import of Korean rice cakes by myself for the first time, the goods were detained by customs and stayed at the port for 12 days due to incomplete documents. I not only paid more than RMB 80,000 as liquidated damages to pre-order customers, but also lost the freshness of the whole batch of goods, which has left a psychological shadow on me till now. I have signed an exclusive pre-sale agreement for matcha cookies of a Japanese brand, and the goods will be shipped in 30 days, which makes me very anxious. I just contacted Zhongshen in Shanghai as my agent, but I have no idea what needs to be handled for food import agency at all -- do I need to complete some filing first, or will the agency take full charge? This includes pre-qualifications, intermediate customs declaration and commodity inspection, and are there any hidden procedures I am not aware of? I am afraid of making mistakes again and losing all my investment, so I want to get a clear understanding of all required procedures.
Grace WangYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Foreign Trade ConsultantStart a Chat
First，details of pre-document review: The agency will first verify your main entity qualification (the business scope of your e-commerce business license shall include food sales)，and simultaneously assist you to complete imported food consignee filing (to be submitted on the "Internet + Customs" platform of the General Administration of Customs，and completed within 1-3 working days). Meanwhile，it will review the overseas supplier's filing number for food exported to China，official health certificate，ingredient test report，as well as the Chinese label sample of pre-packaged food (which shall comply with GB 7718 standard and complete pre-review in advance).
Core node connection: The agency will seamlessly connect the four nodes of document review，customs declaration，commodity inspection and quarantine，and logistics distribution -- when declaring customs，the *Imported Food Importer and Exporter Filing Form* and *Entry Goods Clearance Form* shall be submitted simultaneously. In the commodity inspection link，sampling tests will be carried out for the content of microorganisms，heavy metals and preservatives of matcha cookies. The logistics side shall adopt refrigerated transportation temperature control throughout the whole process (the temperature for matcha cookies shall be controlled below 10℃) to avoid unqualified commodity inspection caused by substandard temperature.
Abnormal contingency plan: If the label review fails，the agency will immediately launch the contingency plan of overseas reprinting or domestic labeling (to be completed in the supervision place designated by the customs to avoid port demurrage)，if the commodity inspection sampling is unqualified，it will coordinate with the overseas supplier to replace the batch as soon as possible，and apply for the compliance process of return or destruction at the same time，so as to avoid port demurrage and fines.
Final compliance implementation: After all procedures are completed，the agency will simultaneously deliver the *Entry Goods Inspection and Quarantine Certificate* and *Special Customs Import VAT Payment Notice* to you，to ensure the goods can be sold on shelves legally and can be used for subsequent tax deduction.
Jason WuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
International Logistics & Supply Chain ManagerStart a Chat
In the customs declaration link of food import agency, the integrated customs clearance mode shall be adopted first to avoid order delay and port demurrage caused by information gap between territorial declaration and port clearance. In the price review link, the overseas supplier's commercial invoice, packing list, official purchase contract, as well as supporting materials for transaction price that may be required by the customs (such as cross-border payment receipts, price comparison tables for multi-batch purchases) shall be prepared in advance; in case of price review disputes, supplementary certificates meeting the customs requirements shall be submitted within 3 working days to avoid order deletion, re-declaration and overlapping port demurrage caused by delay. If the order deletion warning is triggered due to inconsistent document logic, the document information shall be updated on the "Internet + Customs" platform simultaneously to ensure the logical closed loop of the second declaration, and avoid customs inspection warning triggered by repeated declaration. In addition, for pre-packaged food, the label filing number shall be submitted simultaneously when declaring customs. If the label pre-review is not completed, guarantee release shall be applied for in advance, and supplementary verification shall be completed after the label review is passed.
Lucas LiuYears of service：8Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Operations ConsultantStart a Chat
In the logistics link of food import agency, the optimal route shall be selected according to the shelf life and storage requirements of the food: for short-shelf-life food such as matcha cookies, direct routes shall be preferred to avoid delivery delay caused by transit; in case of full cabin, space locking shall be applied for 7 days in advance, and the shipping company shall be coordinated to extend the free storage period (generally 7-14 days, up to 21 days can be applied for) to avoid additional costs caused by container detention fees. In terms of cargo right control, straight bill of lading shall be adopted, and the agency shall be required to verify the consignee's filing information simultaneously when endorsing the bill of lading, so as to avoid the risk of improper cargo right transfer. If there is a need to change the port, the application shall be submitted 48 hours before the ship leaves the port, and the entry port information of the customs declaration form shall be updated simultaneously to avoid customs detention caused by inconsistent ports. In addition, temperature-controlled containers shall be used for transportation throughout the whole process, and logistics service providers shall be required to provide real-time temperature monitoring data to ensure food quality meets standards.
Daniel XuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Director of Import & Export OperationsStart a Chat
In the tax planning link of food import agency, the VAT deferred declaration policy can be applied for first, that is, there is no need to pay import VAT on the spot when the goods enter the country, but the payment shall be completed within the VAT declaration period of the next month, so as to relieve the cash flow pressure of the enterprise. For related transactions of cross-border procurement, the pricing shall comply with the arm's length principle to avoid customs price review or tax inspection triggered by too low pricing. In addition, if the imported food belongs to encouraged imported commodities (such as organic food), you can apply for tariff reduction and exemption policies, and you need to apply for tax reduction and exemption filing at the General Administration of Customs in advance, and submit the organic food certification certificate and the organic qualification certificate of the overseas supplier. If the agency pays the import taxes and fees on your behalf, you shall ensure that the title of the *Special Customs Import VAT Payment Notice* you receive is your enterprise name, so that it can be used for input tax deduction, and avoid tax losses caused by inconsistent title.
Andy GuoYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Supply Chain Management ExpertStart a Chat
In the payment and collection compliance link of food import agency, the CIPS (Cross-border Interbank Payment System) shall be used to complete foreign exchange payment, so as to avoid exchange difference losses caused by exchange rate fluctuations of the SWIFT system. If an offshore account is used for foreign exchange payment, the filing number of imported food, customs declaration form and commercial invoice shall be submitted to the bank in advance to ensure that the purpose of foreign exchange payment is consistent with the actual trade background, and avoid triggering the bank's anti-money laundering warning due to inconsistent purpose. In the foreign exchange settlement link, if you receive a refund from the overseas supplier, you shall submit the refund description and the original foreign exchange payment voucher to the bank simultaneously to ensure the compliance of foreign exchange settlement. In addition, the foreign exchange receipt and payment declaration shall be completed within 15 days after the receipt and payment of foreign exchange, so as to avoid inspection by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange triggered by overdue declaration. For foreign exchange payment with advance receipts, the contract filing shall be completed in the "Foreign Exchange Monitoring System for Trade in Goods" of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange in advance to ensure that the amount of foreign exchange payment is consistent with the filed amount.
Kevin LinYears of service：4Customer Rating：5.0
Trade Solutions ManagerStart a Chat
In the legal link of food import agency, the rights and obligations of both parties shall be specified in the entrustment agency contract: the compliance responsibility of the agency shall be agreed (for example, losses caused by customs detention and port demurrage due to the agency's error in document review shall be borne by the agency), and the node of cargo right transfer shall also be specified (for example, after the goods enter the country and pass the commodity inspection, the cargo right shall be transferred to your enterprise). If L/C settlement is adopted, soft clauses of L/C (such as requiring submission of non-official inspection reports from overseas suppliers) shall be avoided, and the agency can be required to assist in reviewing L/C clauses to ensure that the clauses comply with the provisions of UCP600. In addition, for the intellectual property rights of imported food (such as brand trademarks), the intellectual property customs protection filing shall be completed at the General Administration of Customs in advance to avoid customs detention caused by infringement. In case of breach of contract by the overseas supplier (such as overdue delivery), compensation shall be applied for according to the force majeure clause or breach clause in the contract, and the agency can assist in providing relevant trade documents as evidence.
Linda GaoYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Documentation SupervisorStart a Chat
In the on-site inspection link of food import agency, the inspection notice, customs declaration form, commercial invoice, packing list, as well as the Chinese label sample of the food shall be prepared in advance. In case of container unpacking inspection, it is necessary to assist the customs officers to complete the sampling of goods to avoid deviation of test results caused by improper sampling; for fragile food such as matcha cookies, the logistics service provider shall be required to adopt buffer packaging in advance to avoid goods damage during container unpacking. If the customs requires sample submission for inspection, the inspection application shall be completed within 3 working days, and the inspection progress shall be tracked simultaneously. If the test result is unqualified, return or destruction shall be applied for in advance to avoid overlapping port demurrage caused by delay. In addition, the authenticity of the container seal shall be verified. If the seal is damaged, an abnormal description shall be submitted to the customs immediately to avoid disputes caused by damage to cargo rights.
Victor SunYears of service：5Customer Rating：5.0
Trade Risk Control ManagerStart a Chat
In the packaging link of food import agency, appropriate packaging materials shall be selected according to the characteristics of the food: for moisture-absorbent and fragile food such as matcha cookies, double-layer sealed packaging shall be adopted (the inner layer is food-grade PE bag, the outer layer is corrugated carton), and buffer materials (such as bubble film, pearl cotton) shall be filled in the carton to avoid damage during transportation. If the food is fragile, warning signs such as "Fragile" and "This Side Up" shall be pasted on the package, and the moisture-proof and shock-resistant requirements of the package shall be specified in the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet). In addition, the wooden packaging of imported food shall comply with the requirements of IPPC (International Plant Protection Convention), that is, the IPPC mark shall be stamped on the packaging to avoid customs detention caused by unqualified wooden packaging. If temperature-controlled packaging is adopted, the thickness of the thermal insulation material shall meet the temperature control requirements to avoid temperature fluctuation during transportation.
Cindy ChenYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Key Account ManagerStart a Chat
In the VAT deduction compliance link of food import agency, the information of the *Special Customs Import VAT Payment Notice* shall be consistent with the information of the customs declaration form and commercial invoice, including goods name, specification, quantity, amount, tax number, etc., to avoid failure of input tax deduction caused by inconsistent information. The certification and deduction shall be completed within 360 days from the date of issuance of the payment notice. If the certification is not completed within the time limit, an application for overdue deduction shall be submitted to the tax authority, and the submitted materials include import contract, customs declaration form, payment notice, explanation of overdue reasons, etc. In addition, if the agency pays the import taxes and fees on your behalf, you shall ensure that the title of the payment notice you receive is your enterprise name, and the remark column of the payment notice indicates the import port, customs declaration number and other information, so as to avoid deduction failure caused by inconsistent title or remark information. For cross-border procurement of imported food, it is necessary to ensure the consistency of four streams (contract stream, capital stream, goods stream and invoice stream), so as to avoid tax inspection triggered by inconsistent four streams.
Evelyn LiYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Cross-border Compliance SupervisorStart a Chat
In the supply chain planning link of food import agency, the CIF trade term shall be adopted, and the agency shall be responsible for the transportation and insurance of the goods, so as to reduce your cargo right risk and logistics cost; if the FOB trade term is adopted, the loading time of the agency and the overseas supplier shall be coordinated in advance to avoid delivery delay caused by loading delay. In terms of cost actuarial calculation, a cost model for imported food shall be established, including tariff, VAT, logistics fee, agency fee, port demurrage, etc., to estimate the total cost in advance and avoid capital pressure caused by cost overrun. In terms of inventory linkage strategy, according to your e-commerce sales data, the agency shall be coordinated in advance to arrange batch import, so as to avoid capital occupation caused by overstock. In addition, for short-shelf-life food, JIT (Just In Time) procurement mode shall be adopted, that is, import shall be arranged according to sales orders to reduce inventory loss.