China Inbound Legal Guides · Trade & Customs

Trade & Customs

A shipment is a classification-and-clearance transaction. Export controls sit beside duty. Do not start with the commercial invoice story.

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Classification, value, origin — then the declaration. Open the matching topic route or counsel — this hub does not decide the legal outcome on your facts.

China trade and customs route covering classification, valuation, declaration and audit controls.

LifecycleCode → value → declare → pay → audit

UpdatedAugust 2026

AudienceImporters, exporters, trading companies and in-house counsel

Duty and clearance clocks

A duty payment window, detention or audit response date can change the next action. This is a customs clock, not an FX blocked-payment clinic and not a family-safety route.

Open duty & clocks

Signature · Shipment / classification / clearance route

Code, value, origin, then the declaration — not the invoice story first.

goods → classification → documents → clearance → audit/remedy

GoodsWhat is actually moving?
ClassHS code, value, origin
DocsContract, packing, licences
ClearDeclaration and duty clock
AfterAudit, controls, sanctions

Customs lifecycle

Which customs file controls the next step?

Start with the situation

Classification, value, origin — then the declaration.

Each topic owns one bounded decision, then connects to deeper guides, local context or counsel. This hub does not duplicate long-form analysis.

HS code

Tariff classification

HS codes, tariff treatment and the first decision that drives duty, licences and later audits.

First jobName the goods and the candidate code before arguing valuation or a special regime.

Open topic route

Value

Customs valuation

Transaction value, related-party pricing and the additions that change the duty base.

First jobSeparate valuation from the HS code, then test related-party or assist facts.

Open topic route

Clearance

Declaration & clearance

Import/export declaration, documents and the clearance path the goods actually take.

First jobMatch the shipment file to a declaration route before the goods move.

Open topic route

04Priority screen

Clocks

Duty payment & clocks

Duty, VAT on import and the payment windows that become enforcement risk.

First jobIdentify the payment due date before expanding a classification theory.

Open topic route

Audit

Audit & enforcement

Post-clearance audit, disputes over code or value, and the record customs will ask for.

First jobPreserve the declaration file and the live issue before treating it as a new import plan.

Open topic route

Regimes

Bonded, CBEC & special regimes

Bonded, FTZ and cross-border e-commerce paths — different from general trade.

First jobConfirm whether the goods are on a special regime before applying general-trade rules.

Open topic route

Common entry points

Already know what is happening?

01We need the right HS codeStart with classification before valuation.02Related-party or valuation riskStart with the customs value file.03A duty payment window is openStart with the clock, not a new tariff essay.

Curated resources

Go deeper without losing the route.

Long-form analysis lives on canonical guides. This hub only points.

core guide

China trade and customs law guide

National classification, valuation, declaration, clocks and audit map.

checklist

Prepare a trade and customs enquiry

Organise high-level shipment facts before counsel or Ask a Lawyer.

deep guide

Import-export classification, tariffs and trade remedies

HS and tariff orientation for foreign trading companies.

deep guide

Customs valuation and tariff compliance

Value and duty-base questions for importers and exporters.

deep guide

China customs declaration process

Import and export clearance steps as an operating file.

city guide

Beijing trade and customs lawyers

Local counsel layer when port or bureau practice is material.

Local context

Add the port when local customs practice changes.

Clearance, bonded and audit practice can differ by port and FTZ after the national question is identified.

Open city and province guides

Counsel hand-off

Need trade and customs counsel?

This hub organises classification, value, clearance and clocks. It does not declare goods, compute duty or bind Customs on your facts.

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