Full Process of Domestic Brand Export Agency: Core Steps from Stock Preparation to Tax Refund

In 2026,demand for domestic brands to expand overseas continues to rise,and many enterprises hope to explore the global market through exports.However,the export process involves multiple departments and links.Unfamiliarity with the process can easily lead to problems such as delayed customs declaration,slow tax refund,and even detained goods.Director Xie,head of foreign trade business at Zhongshen,noted that the domestic brand export agency process covers the entire chain from preliminary preparation to subsequent tax refund.Systematic sorting of key actions in each link can help enterprises avoid detours and complete exports smoothly.

I.Preliminary Preparation and Demand Alignment (Goal: Clarify Export Direction and Lay Compliance Foundation)

1.Demand Confirmation and Brand Qualification Review

Key Actions: Clients are required to provide brand qualification documents (such as business license,trademark registration certificate,product test report,etc.),export product list (including product name,specification,quantity,HS Code),target market and order information.The Zhongshen team reviews whether the qualifications are complete,confirms whether the trademark of the brand has been registered in the target market,and whether the products meet the certification requirements of the target market (such as EU CE,US FDA).

Common Issues: Some brands only register their trademarks domestically and not in the target market,which easily leads to infringement risks.Some products fail to complete the target market certification in advance,resulting in customs clearance failure.

Role of Zhongshen: Assist clients to inquire about trademark registration status in the target market and provide registration consulting services; connect with third-party certification institutions,and launch a new certification green channel in 2026 to shorten the certification cycle by 30%; check product compliance in advance to avoid subsequent customs clearance obstruction.

2.Customized Export Solution Development

Key Actions: Develop personalized export solutions based on product characteristics (such as fragile goods and dangerous goods requiring special packaging),target market (such as strict requirements for eco-friendly packaging in Europe),and transportation timeliness requirements; clarify the scope of agency services (such as whether it includes local Shanghai warehousing,international transportation,destination port customs clearance,etc.) and sign an agency agreement.

Common Issues: Clients are unclear about the choice of transportation methods,resulting in excessive costs or timeliness delays; unclear understanding of the scope of agency services leads to hidden costs.

Role of Zhongshen: Recommend the optimal transportation method based on 2026 sea and air freight price fluctuation data (such as sea freight for bulk cargo,air freight for small-batch high-value goods); provide a detailed service list and clarify the charging standards for each link to avoid hidden costs; upgraded the solution customization system in 2026,and the first draft of the solution can be completed within 1 working day.

II.Stock Preparation and Document Preparation (Goal: Ensure Cargo Compliance and Complete Documentation)

1.Stock Preparation and Quality Control

Key Actions: Clients arrange production and stock preparation,and Zhongshen can provide local Shanghai warehousing services (including bonded warehouses and ordinary warehouses); conduct sampling inspection of goods to confirm whether the quality meets the target market standards and whether the packaging meets transportation requirements.

Common Issues: The stock quantity does not match the order,resulting in wasted packing space or overflow of goods; product quality fails to meet standards,leading to return by the target market.

Role of Zhongshen: Launched a new intelligent warehousing system in 2026,which monitors cargo inventory and status in real time and supports clients’ online inquiry; assist in connecting with third-party testing institutions such as SGS and Intertek to check quality problems in advance,and test reports are issued within 10 working days; provide customized packaging solutions to reduce the damage rate during transportation.

2.Document Preparation and Review

Key Actions: Zhongshen guides clients to prepare export documents (including packing list,commercial invoice,sales contract,customs declaration form,certificate of origin,customs clearance certificate for commodity inspection,etc.); check the consistency of document information through the intelligent review system (such as whether the product name,quantity,HS Code are consistent with the order).

Common Issues: Incorrect HS Code leads to delayed customs declaration; delayed processing of certificate of origin makes it impossible to enjoy tariff preferences in the target market; inconsistent document information leads to return by customs.

Role of Zhongshen: With 20 years of experience in document review,we launched the intelligent review system in 2026,completing the preliminary document review within 3 hours,with the error rate reduced to less than 1%; assist in processing GSP Certificate of Origin,CAFTA Certificate of Origin,etc.connect with commodity inspection authorities for fast certification,shortening the certification cycle from 5 working days to 2 working days.

III.Customs Declaration,Inspection and International Transportation (Goal: Smooth Customs Clearance and Safe Transportation)

In 2026,the space shortage in the international transportation market has eased,but the timeliness and cost differences between different transportation methods are still significant.The following is a comparison of common transportation methods:

1.Customs Declaration and Inspection Process

Key Actions: Zhongshen declares electronic data to customs and cooperates with commodity inspection authorities for cargo inspection; if customs conducts random inspection,assist clients to prepare inspection materials and cooperate with inspection on site.

Common Issues: The goods do not match the documents during customs inspection,resulting in cargo detention; failed commodity inspection leads to export failure; incorrect declaration information is rejected by customs.

Role of Zhongshen: Realized data connection with Shanghai Customs in 2026,with a declaration pass rate of 98%; dedicated personnel follow up the inspection process and handle problems in time,reducing cargo detention time (average detention time shortened from 7 days to 3 days); if commodity inspection fails,assist clients in rectification and provide rectification solutions.

2.International Transportation and Tracking

Key Actions: Zhongshen arranges booking,packing,loading onto ships/aircraft; monitors cargo location in real time through the logistics tracking system,and feeds back transportation status to clients daily; arranges customs clearance and pickup at the destination port.

Common Issues: Cargo is damaged during transportation,and no insurance is purchased,resulting in losses; destination port customs clearance is delayed with no follow-up; space cancellation leads to cargo detention.

Role of Zhongshen: Cooperates with 20 leading shipping companies (such as Maersk,MSC) and 15 airlines (such as Air China,China Eastern Airlines),and the space guarantee rate increased to 95% in 2026; provides full insurance coverage covering risks such as cargo damage and loss during transportation,and assists in claim settlement; dedicated personnel at the destination port handle customs clearance to ensure smooth pickup of goods,and the customs clearance timeliness is 2 days faster than the industry average.

IV.Foreign Exchange Receipt and Payment and Export Tax Refund (Goal: Secure Foreign Exchange Collection and Fast Tax Refund)

1.Foreign Exchange Receipt and Payment and Settlement

Key Actions: Zhongshen assists clients to open foreign exchange accounts (if clients do not have one) and receive overseas payments; completes foreign exchange settlement operations in accordance with 2026 foreign exchange administration policies,converts foreign exchange into RMB and transfers it to clients’ accounts.

Common Issues: Delayed foreign exchange receipt affects capital turnover; exchange rate fluctuations during settlement lead to losses; the foreign exchange account opening process is complex and time-consuming.

Role of Zhongshen: Has formal qualification for foreign exchange receipt and payment,and the foreign exchange arrival time was shortened to 1-2 working days in 2026; provides exchange rate locking service,clients can lock the exchange rate in advance to avoid losses caused by exchange rate fluctuations; assists clients to open foreign exchange accounts quickly,shortening the account opening cycle from 10 working days to 5 working days.

2.Export Tax Refund Declaration

Key Actions: Zhongshen collects tax refund documents (including tax refund copy of customs declaration form,special VAT invoice,export foreign exchange verification form,etc.),declares tax refund to the tax authority; follows up the tax refund progress and feeds back to clients in time.

Common Issues: Incomplete documents make it impossible to declare tax refund; slow tax refund progress leads to long capital occupation time; incorrect declaration information leads to tax refund rejection.

Role of Zhongshen: The tax refund declaration system was upgraded in 2026,shortening the document collection cycle to 5 working days; established a green channel with the tax authority,shortening the tax refund arrival time from 30 days to 15 days; dedicated personnel check the declaration information,with the error rate reduced to less than 0.5%,to ensure smooth arrival of tax refund.

V.Core Values of Zhongshen’s Agency Services

• Full process coverage: One-stop service from preliminary qualification review to subsequent tax refund,eliminating the need for clients to connect with multiple departments such as customs,commodity inspection and tax authorities,saving communication costs.
• Risk avoidance: 20 years of industry experience,familiar with the latest 2026 foreign trade policies and target market rules,check risks of infringement,cargo detention and tax refund in advance to avoid losses.
• Efficiency improvement: The intelligent system is connected with customs and tax data,shortening the timeliness of each link by more than 30%,for example,document review is shortened from 2 days to 3 hours,and tax refund arrival is shortened from 30 days to 15 days.
• Cost control: Recommend the optimal transportation method and service based on 2026 market price fluctuations to reduce hidden costs; exchange rate locking service avoids exchange rate losses and saves financial costs.

General Manager Mei,General Manager of Zhongshen,noted that many domestic brands have an export cycle 15 days longer than the industry average due to unfamiliarity with the process,and even encounter cargo detention.Choosing a professional agency company can help enterprises quickly grasp the key points of the process and complete exports smoothly.If you have demand for domestic brand export,you can consult Zhongshen’s relevant services to obtain a customized export solution.