To which accounting subject should the import customs declaration agency fee be recorded?
Our company often has import business, and import customs declaration agency fees are incurred each time. Previously, the accounting bookkeeping subjects were rather chaotic. Some were recorded in administrative expenses, some in sales expenses, and some in the cost of main business. I want to standardize the accounts. I don't know exactly which subject the import customs declaration agency fee should be recorded in. Is there any professional who can give me an accurate answer?
Professional consultant answers
Sarah ZhangYears of service：8Customer Rating：5.0
Document expertConsult
The bookkeeping subject of the import customs declaration agency fee needs to be determined according to its purpose and nature. If the imported goods are for sale and the fee is directly related to the goods, then generally the import customs declaration agency fee is included in the "Inventory Goods" subject, because it belongs to the necessary expenditure to make the goods reach the salable state and will be carried forward to the cost of main business with the subsequent sales of the goods.
If the imported goods are for the enterprise's own production use, the fee can be included in the "Raw Materials" subject as part of the cost of raw materials.
If the import business is not frequent and it is difficult to accurately divide it to specific goods, it can be included in the "Administrative Expenses - Customs Declaration Agency Fee" subject. In short, the bookkeeping subject should be determined by combining the actual business situation of the company and following the principles of accuracy and matching in accounting calculation.
Joseph ZhouYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior foreign trade managerConsult
If it is a trading company and this agency fee is directly related to a specific batch of sales goods, it can also be first included in "Sales Expenses - Customs Declaration Fee" because it helps the sale of this batch of goods.
Jennifer WangYears of service：4Customer Rating：5.0
Market development consultantConsult
When the imported goods are of fixed assets type, the import customs declaration agency fee can be included in the cost of fixed assets and will be gradually amortized through depreciation later.
Andrew HuangYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Supply chain optimization expertConsult
If the amount of this fee is small and has little impact on cost calculation, from the perspective of simplifying the calculation, it can also be included in administrative expenses.
Robert ChenYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Customer service consultantConsult
If the enterprise calculates costs by project, the customs declaration agency fee related to the imported goods of a certain project can be included in the cost of that project.
David LiYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Senior customs declaration consultantConsult
If it is an agency import business and the agency fee is paid after receiving the payment from the entrusting party, this fee generally offsets the agency income.
Elizabeth LiYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Compliance and risk managerConsult
When the imported goods are used for research and development, the import customs declaration agency fee can be considered to be included in the research and development expenditure.
Amanda YangYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Cost control consultantConsult
If the imported goods have the nature of free gifts, the customs declaration agency fee can be included in non-operating expenses, etc. according to the situation.
William YangYears of service：5Customer Rating：5.0
International logistics consultantConsult
For enterprises that import frequently and have a specialized import department, this fee can be included in "Manufacturing Expenses - Customs Declaration Agency Fee".