How deep is the water in chemical imports?

When Mr. Zhang first tried to import a batch of industrial cleaning agents from Southeast Asia, he thought that preparing only the contract and invoice would be enough. It was not until the goods were detained at Xiamen Customs for two weeks that he realized that the import of general chemicals was far more complicated than he had imagined. As the second largest chemical import port in China, Xiamen handles tens of thousands of batches of general chemicals every year, but only those enterprises that master the little-known industry know-how can achieve efficient customs clearance.

The "ordinary" traps of general chemicals

Many people are misled by the name "general chemicals" and think that the import process of such products is simple. In fact, according to the Classification Guide for Import and Export Chemicals revised by the General Administration of Customs in 2023:

• Liquids with a flash point ≤ 60°C need to provide a classification and identification of dangerous characteristics
• If the organic solvent content exceeds 30%, an environmental protection approval document needs to be obtained
• If the packaging volume exceeds 450L, it must be declared as a pressure vessel

Last year, a batch of metal surface treatment agents represented by Ms. Li was returned due to a 2.3% excess in the pH value test, resulting in a loss of over 200,000 yuan for the entire container of goods.

The special customs clearance advantages of Xiamen Port

Compared with other ports, Xiamen Customs implements a classification management system for general chemicals:

• Class A enterprises can enjoy the "advance declaration + inspection and release upon arrival" mode
• Commodities with clear dangerous characteristics are applicable to the "qualified guarantee" fast track
• The free trade zone warehouse provides a 60-day duty-free bonded inspection period

The customs clearance team of Zhongshitong once helped a client complete all inspection reports before the goods arrived at the port by taking advantage of the free trade zone policy, shortening the original 28-day customs clearance cycle to 72 hours.

The true value of agencies

The role of professional agencies lies not only in document preparation, but more importantly:

• Anticipate the risk of HS code adjustment (217 chemical product tax numbers will change in 2024)
• Establish a compliant version of the commodity safety data file (SDS)
• Plan the optimal tax scheme (such as the comparison and application of ASEAN agreement tax rates and RCEP tax rates)

Last year, a client's imported rubber additives incurred an overpayment of 98,000 yuan in taxes due to the agent's misuse of the old version of the code, a lesson that all importers should be vigilant about.

Are your chemicals really "ordinary"?

Next time when you are about to import so-called general chemicals, you might as well ask yourself three questions first:

• Does the goods' MSDS contain a complete 16-item content in both Chinese and English?
• Has the packaging UN mark passed the annual pressure test?
• Is the percentage of ingredient content accurate to two decimal places?

Recent cases seized by Xiamen Customs show that about 34% of misdeclaration cases stem from enterprises' cognitive biases towards "general chemicals". Now log in to the official website of Zhongshitong to obtain the latest version of the white paper on chemical customs clearance at Xiamen Port, and you can also make an appointment for experts to evaluate your import plan for free.