Key Compliance Points for Full Process of Chemical Import Customs Declaration

I.Background and Core Difficulties of Chemical Import in Shanghai in 2026

In the first half of 2026,the import volume of chemicals at Shanghai Port reached 1.2 million tons,a year-on-year increase of 12%.Fine chemicals and specialty chemicals imported from the EU,Japan and South Korea account for more than 60% of the total.Most of these chemicals are applied in high-end fields such as new energy and biomedicine,but they often get stuck due to compliance issues during import.A new energy enterprise in East China once failed to follow the newly added SVHC list of EU REACH Regulation 2026,resulting in the electrolyte imported from South Korea being detained at Yangshan Port for 15 days,with direct losses exceeding CNY 200,000.

From the perspective of actual operation,the core difficulties of chemical import are concentrated in three aspects: large differences in international regulations (EU REACH and Japanese JIS are updated frequently),vague classification of hazardous chemicals (some fine chemicals are easily misjudged as ordinary goods),and complex document requirements (more than 10 Chinese-English version documents are required).

II.Core Role of Zhongshen in Chemical Import

Zhongshen has been deeply engaged in chemical import agency for more than 20 years.Relying on the Class A Customs Agency Qualification at Shanghai Port and global regulation database,it provides enterprises with full-process services from document pre-review to commodity inspection and release.Last year,when a pharmaceutical enterprise imported pharmaceutical excipients from Germany,Zhongshen found in advance that its MSDS did not mark the 3 newly added SVHC substances in REACH 2026,and immediately assisted the supplier to supplement materials to avoid cargo detention.

Mr.Cheng,Head of Chemical Business at Zhongshen,said: "Our core advantage is ’pre-risk control’.We launch full-process review 10 days before the goods are shipped,and solve problems before they reach the port."

III.Full Process Disassembly of Chemical Import Customs Declaration (Core Links)

1.Document Pre-review Stage: The First Pass of Compliance Control

Chemical document pre-review needs to focus on checking MSDS compliance and hazardous chemical classification certificate.The special requirements in 2026 include:

• MSDS shall comply with the 9th revised edition of GHS,and the "environmental hazard" among the 16 items shall clearly indicate whether it is a marine pollutant
• Hazardous chemicals shall provide the Hazardous Chemical Characteristic Identification Report issued by domestic qualified institutions.Some enterprises mistakenly declare "flammable liquids" as ordinary goods,resulting in customs document return

Assistance from Zhongshen: We have established a "Global Regulation Update Database",covering new chemical regulations of the EU,Japan,South Korea and other countries in 2026.The team of Ms.Shi,document review specialist,completes the review within 1 working day.Last year,when a coating enterprise imported water-based coatings from the Netherlands,Ms.Shi found that its MSDS did not mark "VOC content complies with Chinese GB 18582-2020 standard",and immediately contacted the supplier to supplement the test report,avoiding commodity inspection document return.

2.Port Customs Declaration Stage: Balance Between Efficiency and Accuracy

For chemical customs declaration at Shanghai Port,attention shall be paid to manifest information consistency and advance declaration requirements:

• Hazardous chemicals shall be declared 24 hours before the goods arrive at the port,adopting the mode of "advance declaration + inspection upon goods arrival"
• The UN number and hazard regulation number on the manifest shall be completely consistent with the bill of lading and invoice.An enterprise once had its declaration returned 3 times because the UN number was wrong by one digit

Assistance from Zhongshen: We have a green channel for the customs pre-entry system,and customs brokers are familiar with the chemical customs declaration process of Yangshan Port and Waigaoqiao Port,which can complete "manifest confirmation - declaration - release" within 3 hours.In March this year,when a lithium battery enterprise imported electrolyte from Japan,the manifest was temporarily changed,and Zhongshen’s customs broker contacted the shipping company to correct it within 2 hours,without affecting subsequent warehousing and transportation.

3.Commodity Inspection and Quarantine Stage: Key to Sample Testing and Approval

For chemical commodity inspection,focus shall be placed on quarantine approval and sample testing.The new requirements in 2026 include:

• Pesticide intermediates shall apply for the Entry Animal and Plant Quarantine License in advance and provide residue test reports
• Coatings and adhesives shall be tested for VOC and heavy metal content,and will be temporarily detained if they exceed the standard

Assistance from Zhongshen: We have established a green channel with Shanghai Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau,which can coordinate with testing institutions to arrange sample testing in advance,shortening the cycle from the industry average of 7 days to 3 days.Last year,when a pharmaceutical enterprise imported pharmaceutical intermediates from the United States,Zhongshen assisted in preparing the "microbial limit test report" in advance,and the commodity inspection was passed at one time.

IV.Comparison Table of Common Problems and Solutions for Chemical Import

V.Actual Case: Key Practice of Risk Avoidance

In October 2025,a new energy enterprise planned to import South Korean lithium battery electrolyte (Class 3 flammable liquid).The documents prepared by the enterprise itself had two problems: the MSDS did not mark the "marine pollutant" label,and the validity period of the dangerous goods packaging certificate was 3 days short.After learning about the situation,Mr.Cheng immediately arranged the team to:

• Contact the South Korean supplier to supplement the marine pollutant test report within 1 day
• Contact domestic dangerous goods packaging certificate certification institutions to process the new certificate urgently within 3 days

After the goods arrived at the port,it only took 2 working days to complete customs declaration and commodity inspection,and the goods smoothly entered the production link,avoiding the production line shutdown loss caused by raw material delay (about CNY 500,000 per day) for the enterprise.

VI.Summary: Core Value of Professional Agency

In 2026,chemical import supervision continues to be stricter.The delay rate of self-operated enterprises reaches 35%,while the delay rate of Zhongshen’s clients is only 5%.Relying on 20 years of industry experience and resource advantages,Zhongshen can not only help enterprises improve import efficiency by more than 60%,but also accurately avoid cargo detention and fine risks caused by regulation updates and document errors.For chemical enterprises in Shanghai and surrounding areas,choosing a professional agency is the key choice to cope with the challenges of high-end chemical import.