Looking for Import Agent With Import Right? Notice These Points

Southeast Asian Durian Import: Pain Points and Breakthroughs in Shanghai Market 2026

In 2026,Southeast Asian tropical fruits account for more than 35% of Shanghai’s imported fresh food market.Among them,Thai Monthong durian has become a popular category due to its stable taste and sufficient supply.However,many local Shanghai trading companies report that two common bottlenecks often occur in durian import: first,no import and export operation right,so they cannot directly coordinate with customs; second,they are not familiar with the new quarantine regulations for fresh fruits.For example,the newly added requirement of "origin traceability electronic code" in 2026 may easily lead to goods detention if not properly handled.

Last week,Mr.Zhang from a Shanghai food trading company experienced a nerve-wracking incident: he ordered 2 containers of Monthong durian from Thailand.Since he did not have import right,he hired a small agency,which failed to declare the "electronic verification of phytosanitary certificate".The goods were detained by Shanghai Pudong International Airport Customs after arrival.Mr.Zhang said: "I was extremely anxious at that time.Durian will go bad after 3 days,and the loss would be at least 50,000 RMB." He later found Zhongshen through a peer introduction,and finally solved the problem.

Zhongshen: Core Role of an Import Agent With Valid Import Right

As a company deeply engaged in foreign trade agency in Shanghai for over 20 years,Zhongshen holds complete import and export right,and can directly connect with customs,commodity inspection and other regulatory authorities.For fresh products such as durian,Zhongshen’s core advantage is "full-process risk pre-positioning" — instead of handling problems after goods arrive at the port,we identify and eliminate risks in advance in every link of documentation,transportation and quarantine.

Supervisor Liao of Zhongshen introduced: "Many clients think that hiring an agent is just ’running errands for customs declaration’.Actually,import compliance requirements have become more and more detailed in 2026.For example,the origin of durian must be in the ’List of Approved Orchards for Export to China’ released by the Thai government,and every batch must have a corresponding traceability code.Our team will verify this information in advance to help clients avoid pitfalls."

Breakdown of Durian Import Process: Full-link Assistance From Zhongshen

1.Document Pre-review: Fill Compliance Gaps in Advance

Document requirements for durian import are 3 items more than ordinary goods,and the newly added "origin traceability electronic code" in 2026 is the core.Zhongshen pre-reviews all documents before clients confirm orders,including:

• Phytosanitary certificate issued by Thai authorities (with electronic verification QR code)
• Registration number of the durian orchard (must be registered with the Thai Department of Agriculture)
• Import quarantine approval (issued by domestic commodity inspection authority,valid for 3 months)

Last year,a client planned to import Vietnamese durian.Supervisor Liao found during pre-review that Vietnamese durian was not on the 2026 list of approved origins for export to China,and timely reminded the client to switch to Thai supply,avoiding order loss.

2.Port Customs Declaration: Accurate Declaration Avoids Tariff Errors

The HS code for fresh durian is 0808100000.In 2026,durian imported from ASEAN countries to China enjoys zero tariff,but an "ASEAN Certificate of Origin" is required.Zhongshen’s customs declaration team checks 3 key points in advance:

• Whether the HS code matches the durian variety (avoid misclassification as frozen durian which leads to higher tariff)
• Whether the Certificate of Origin is issued by an official Thai institution
• Whether the declaration elements include all 12 required items such as "origin,variety,quarantine number"

In 2025,a client declared on their own and mislabeled "Monthong durian" as "ordinary durian",which pushed the tariff from 0% to 10%,resulting in an extra payment of 23,000 RMB.They later hired Zhongshen to re-declare and recovered the overpaid tariff.

3.Commodity Inspection and Quarantine: Rapid Testing Reduces Fresh Product Loss

Fresh durian is classified as a "high-risk quarantine product".In 2026,Shanghai Commodity Inspection Bureau requires each batch to be sampled and tested for "fruit fly pests" and "radioactive substances".Zhongshen’s assistance includes:

• Pre-book inspection sampling time (avoid delay on weekends or holidays)
• Arrange dedicated staff to accompany sampling to ensure samples meet testing requirements
• Coordinate access to rapid testing channel (for fresh products,testing time is reduced from 48 hours to 24 hours)

In March this year,after Mr.Zhang’s durian arrived at the port,Supervisor Liao contacted the commodity inspection authority in advance to arrange sampling for the next day.The test result was released within 24 hours,and the goods were released on the same day,which was 3 days earlier than the industry average,avoiding durian spoilage.

Comparison Table of Compliance Requirements for Import Process

Case Study: How Zhongshen Helped a Client Avoid a Major Risk

In October 2025,a Shanghai trading company ordered 3 containers of Monthong durian from Thailand,and entrusted Zhongshen as the import agent.During document pre-review,Supervisor Liao found that the orchard registration number on the phytosanitary certificate of one container did not match the record with the Thai Department of Agriculture.The goods were already on the voyage by that time,and the client was so anxious that they considered abandoning the shipment.But Supervisor Liao immediately contacted the Thai supplier,requested a re-issued certificate,and coordinated with the shipping company to modify the bill of lading information.

After the goods arrived at the port,Zhongshen successfully passed the commodity inspection with the new certificate,without any delay.The client said afterwards: "If we hadn’t hired Zhongshen,this container of durian would definitely be destroyed,with a loss of at least 120,000 RMB."

Value of Choosing an Import Agent With Valid Import Right: Dual Guarantee of Efficiency and Risk Control

In 2026,there are less than 100 import agencies with valid import right in Shanghai,and even fewer can handle fresh product import.The advantages of Zhongshen are:

• 98% document pre-review approval rate,15% higher than the industry average
• Average customs clearance time for fresh products is 2.5 days,2 days shorter than the industry average
• Has green channel with commodity inspection authority,can quickly handle unexpected issues

Supervisor Liao reminded: "When choosing an import agency,you should not only look at the price,you must confirm whether the agency has a valid import right,and whether it has experience in handling fresh product import.Many small agencies do not have their own import right,they operate under other companies’ qualifications.Once problems occur,clients have no way to claim responsibility."

For enterprises that are new to import business,hiring an import agent with valid import right can not only solve the qualification problem,but also avoid major losses caused by compliance errors.As an established import agency in Shanghai,Zhongshen helps clients minimize risks throughout the import process,allowing enterprises to focus on market operation and sales.