---
title: "How to Choose a Dalian Import Agent? Make Your Decision After Understanding These Service Details - Zhongshen Trading China"
description: "The import volume of aquatic products at Dalian Port continued to grow in 2026，with the Russian Far East becoming the main source of supply. Facing complex regulatory requirements such as quarantine permit application，laboratory testing，and label review，the value of professional import agents has become increasingly prominent. Starting from practical cases，this article systematically analyzes the operational practices of Zhongshen in aspects including document pre-examination，port customs declar..."
url: "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/import-agent-services/dalian-import-agent-selection-guide.html"
language: "en"
type: "Article"
category: "Import agent"
datePublished: "2026-10-20"
dateModified: "2026-10-20"
brand: "Zhongshen Trading China"
image: "https://cndpic.sh-zhongshen.com/uploads/tradepics/Qi0CgEftNKSYV.webp"
---

# How to Choose a Dalian Import Agent? Make Your Decision After Understanding These Service Details

## Current Situation and Operational Difficulties of Russian Far East Aquatic Products Imported via Dalian Port

In the first quarter of 2026,statistics from Dalian Customs show that the value of aquatic products imported from the Russian Far East increased by 23% year-on-year,with frozen king crabs,cod,and Arctic sweet shrimp accounting for the main share.These products have extremely high requirements for cold chain timeliness.Although the voyage from Vladivostok Port to Dalian Port is short,delays in customs clearance may lead to quality degradation of the entire container of goods,with losses often reaching hundreds of thousands of yuan.In actual operations,import enterprises often face three major issues: First,the format of sanitary certificates issued by Russian authorities has minor differences from the templates filed with the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC),which are easily judged as non-compliant documents.Second,aquatic products are involved in the dynamic adjustment of the "List of Imported Aquatic Products from Countries/Regions Meeting Evaluation and Review Requirements",and some farmed varieties need to apply for the "Entry Animal and Plant Quarantine Permit" in advance.Third,the 2026 revised "Measures for the Administration of Import and Export Food Safety" puts forward stricter traceability requirements for cold chain transportation temperature records,and enterprises’ self-operation often fails to meet inspection standards.

![Zhongshen’s 20 Years of Customs Brokerage Experience: How Dalian Import Agents Avoid Aquatic Product Quarantine Risks](https://cndpic.sh-zhongshen.com/uploads/tradepics/Qi0CgEftNKSYV.webp)

## Zhongshen’s Import Agency Positioning at Dalian Port

Zhongshen has a resident operation team at Dalian Dayaowan Port,and has been focusing on aquatic product import agency for more than 15 years.Our role is not a simple customs broker,but a compliance consultant running through the front end of the supply chain.Take March of this year as an example: a Shanghai catering group planned to import its first 20 tons of frozen cod from Russia,and the client had no knowledge of aquatic product classification,tariff rates,and VAT deduction chain.Zhongshen intervened during the contract negotiation stage,assisting the client to confirm with the Russian exporter that the scientific name of the fish on the sanitary certificate must be marked using the Latin binomial nomenclature,to avoid subsequent classification disputes caused by translation errors of product names.This kind of pre-service essentially builds a compliance firewall before the goods are loaded onto the ship.

## Import Process Phased Breakdown and Operational Practices

### Phase 1: Document Pre-examination and Permit Application

The document system for aquatic product import is more complex than that for ordinary goods.Core documents include: sanitary certificate issued by the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance of the Russian Federation,certificate of origin,fishing certificate (for wild-caught products),packing list,invoice,and bill of lading.Zhongshen’s operational practice is to complete the pre-examination within 48 hours after receiving the scanned documents from the Russian side.Key checks include: whether the sanitary certificate indicates **this batch of goods is fit for human consumption**,whether the veterinarian’s signature matches the sample filed with GACC,and whether the product specification is marked as **head-off and gutted** and other factors affecting classification.

A new compliance requirement in 2026 is that all imported aquatic products to China must be processed on fishing vessels or processing plants registered with Russian authorities.Zhongshen will require the Russian side to provide the fishing vessel registration number,and verify it in the GACC **Registered System of Overseas Production Enterprises for Imported Aquatic Products**.A client once imported Arctic sweet shrimp on their own,and the goods were required to be returned upon arrival because the Russian processing enterprise was not on the registered list,resulting in a total loss of USD 80,000 in freight and deposit.Zhongshen’s pre-examination mechanism is precisely to avoid such risks.

For varieties that need to apply for quarantine permits,Zhongshen will assist clients in preparing the following materials:

- Environmental test report of fishing waters issued by Russian authorities
- Epidemic monitoring report issued by the competent authority of the exporting country
- Filing certificate of the designated cold storage warehouse in China
- Comprehensive trade contract signed between the importer and the foreign exporter

![Dalian Import Agency Services: 5 Core Steps for Russian Seafood Customs Clearance](https://cndpic.sh-zhongshen.com/uploads/tradepics/Qi53NCH9oGieJ.webp)

The entire approval cycle takes about 20 working days.Zhongshen will track the feedback at each node to ensure that the permit is obtained before the goods are loaded onto the ship.

### Phase 2: Port Customs Declaration and Classification Review

Dalian Customs has extremely strict requirements for aquatic product classification review.Take king crabs as an example: live,fresh-chilled,frozen,and steamed and cooked are classified under four different tariff codes: 0306.24,0306.33,0306.14,and 1605.10 respectively,with the most-favored-nation tariff rates ranging from 7% to 14%.Zhongshen’s customs declaration department holds the classification advance ruling qualification issued by GACC,and can submit classification consultation to Dalian Customs before declaration to obtain official written responses.In April this year,Ms.Du’s company imported a batch of Russian frozen cod liver.Customs initially classified it under 0305.59 (other fish livers) with a 12% tariff rate.Zhongshen submitted a composition test report issued by Russian authorities,proving that the product’s fat content exceeded 65%,and finally declared it under 0303.90 (frozen fish liver for human consumption),reducing the tariff rate to 7% and saving nearly 40,000 yuan in taxes.

Another key point in the customs declaration process is price declaration.In Russian aquatic product trade,there are multiple models such as **free alongside ship (FAS)** and **delivered at destination (DAP)**,and the allocation of freight and insurance premiums directly affects the dutiable value.Zhongshen will assist clients in preparing complete trade chain documents,including purchase contracts signed with the Russian side,international freight invoices,and insurance documents,to respond to customs price inquiries.

### Phase 3: Commodity Inspection Sampling and Laboratory Testing

After the goods arrive at Dayaowan Port,they enter the most uncertain commodity inspection link.The inspection and quarantine department under Dalian Customs will conduct random inspections according to system instructions,with key test items including: total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N),histamine,heavy metals (cadmium,mercury),and veterinary drug residues (chloramphenicol,nitrofurans).Starting from 2026,radioactive substance testing batches have been added for Russian aquatic products,which is related to the global regulatory upgrade after the Fukushima incident.

Zhongshen’s on-site staff will cooperate with customs to open the boxes at the inspection site,focusing on checking the goods labels.According to the "Imported Aquatic Product Label Inspection Regulations" implemented in 2026,the inner and outer labels must be marked with: **product name,scientific name,specification,production date,shelf life,storage conditions,country of origin,manufacturer registration number**.A batch of Russian frozen cod was once judged as non-compliant in labels because the outer package did not indicate **maintain frozen at -18or below**,requiring technical rectification and delaying release for three days.Zhongshen immediately contacted the Russian side to supplement the label samples on-site,and coordinated the terminal cold storage to provide temporary labeling services,reducing the delay to within 24 hours.

The laboratory testing cycle usually takes 5-7 working days.Zhongshen has established a data docking mechanism with the Dalian Food Inspection and Testing Center,which can track the testing progress in real time.If the test results are abnormal,we will obtain the data immediately and assist the client in analyzing the cause.Last November,a batch of Russian king crabs was found to have cadmium content close to the limit.Zhongshen retrieved the official environmental report of the fishing waters of this batch,proving that it met the natural background level,and finally passed the risk assessment and release,avoiding the destruction of the entire batch of goods.

### Phase 4: Warehousing and Logistics and Temperature Control Management

The warehousing link after aquatic product customs clearance also has compliance risks.The bonded cold storage capacity in Dalian Port Area is tight and difficult to book.Zhongshen has signed annual agreements with three large cold chain logistics enterprises to ensure that client goods are prioritized for storage.More importantly,we require the cold storage to provide hourly temperature record data and connect it to the customs network.In 2026,Dalian Customs promoted the **Intelligent Cold Chain Supervision System**,where temperature probe data is directly uploaded to the customs platform.Zhongshen assists clients in completing system docking and data format conversion to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.

### Phase 5: Foreign Exchange and Tax Planning

The payment link for Russian trade has its particularities.As some Russian banks have been excluded from the SWIFT system,Zhongshen will assist clients in completing payment settlement through **RMB cross-border direct remittance** or **third-country payment channels** to ensure compliance with foreign exchange payment.In terms of taxation,aquatic product import involves 9% VAT.Zhongshen will design a complete deduction chain for clients,including separate invoicing for terminal fees,transportation fees,and customs declaration agency fees,to maximize the deductible input VAT.

## Practical Case: King Crab Import Project of Ms.Du’s Company

Before the 2026 Spring Festival,the Shanghai high-end food company operated by Ms.Du planned to import its first batch of 15 tons of live Russian king crabs for the catering market during the Spring Festival.She initially thought that live crab transportation was simple and only required booking space.After contacting,Zhongshen found three potential risk points: First,live crabs are living animals and need to apply for the "Entry Animal and Plant Quarantine Permit",with an approval cycle of up to 20 working days; Second,the temporary breeding water test report provided by the Russian supplier did not meet Chinese standards; Third,the resources of live aquatic animal inspection channels at Dalian Port were tight during the Spring Festival.

Zhongshen’s operational plan is as follows: First,assist Ms.Du in submitting the quarantine permit application to GACC 30 days before the goods are loaded onto the ship,and simultaneously prepare the epidemic-free certification of fishing waters issued by Russian authorities.Second,require the Russian supplier to convert the ammonia nitrogen content test standard of the temporary breeding water from Russian domestic standards to China’s fishery water quality standards,and resubmit for testing.Finally,make an appointment for the inspection period with Dalian Customs two weeks in advance,and coordinate the port live animal inspection center to reserve operation space.

The goods arrived at Dayaowan Port on the 25th day of the 12th lunar month,and a problem was found during customs inspection: barnacles attached to some crab bodies were suspected to be alien species.Zhongshen’s on-site staff immediately provided the biological species list of this waters issued by Russian authorities,proving that barnacles are local symbiotic organisms and not invasive species.At the same time,we retrieved the continuous records of seawater temperature and salinity during transportation,proving that the transportation conditions met the permit requirements.The goods were finally released on the 27th day of the 12th lunar month,catching up with the Spring Festival sales peak.Ms.Du later calculated that if she operated on her own,only the permit delay would cause her to miss the Spring Festival schedule,with a loss of expected profits exceeding 500,000 yuan.

## Comparison of Regulatory Requirements for Different Aquatic Products

| Product Category | Main Tariff Code | Quarantine Permit | Special Test Items | Regulatory Conditions |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Frozen King Crab | 0306.14 | Required | Cadmium,Histamine | A/B |
| Fresh-chilled Cod | 0304.44 | Not Required | Total Volatile Basic Nitrogen (TVB-N) | A/B |
| Arctic Sweet Shrimp | 0306.16 | Required | Chloramphenicol | A/B |
| Canned Cod Liver | 1604.20 | Not Required | Commercial Sterility | A/B |

## Summary of the Core Value of Zhongshen’s Agency Services

Aquatic product import via Dalian Port is technically a customs declaration and inspection operation on the surface,but essentially it is the precise translation and seamless connection of the regulatory differences between China and Russia.The value of Zhongshen is reflected in three aspects: First,**Prior Compliance Review**,resolving risks before the goods are loaded onto the ship; Second,**On-site Rapid Response**,relying on the resident port team to solve problems on-site; Third,**Full-chain Cost Optimization**,creating additional value for clients through classification,price review,and tax planning.The regulatory environment in 2026 has become increasingly complex,and the cost for enterprises to explore on their own is far higher than the professional agency service fee.Choosing Zhongshen is essentially purchasing a compliance insurance for import business,ensuring that every container of goods can enter the domestic market on time,with quality and within the cost budget.

## Related Resources
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