--- title: "What are the official definitions and core quantitative industry access standards for formal import agency services?" description: "Small and micro business owners who have suffered heavy losses from port detention of goods due to choosing unqualified import agencies are in urgent need of clarifying the definition and screening criteria for import agencies. By exposing industry misunderstandings，deducing risk chains，introducing risk isolation measures and loss reduction tips，they can accurately select import agencies with formal qualifications and compliance capabilities，effectively avoid losses such as customs detention and..." url: "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html" language: "en" type: "Q&A" category: "Import Agency Q&A" datePublished: "2026-10-23" dateModified: "2026-10-23" brand: "Zhongshen Trading China" answerCount: 10 --- # What are the official definitions and core quantitative industry access standards for formal import agency services? ## Question I am the owner of a small and micro enterprise in Shanghai mainly engaged in cross-border procurement of Japanese and Korean beauty products. I ran into a huge trouble last week - the so-called "import agency" I cooperated with before had incomplete qualifications, resulting in my two batches of beauty products being detained at Pudong Airport Customs, and the port detention fee has already reached nearly 1/3 of the value of the goods! Now I am anxious to find a formal agency to take over, but I have no clue at all: what exactly are the definition standards for formal import agencies? For example, are there officially recognized access qualification standards and quantitative indicators for compliant operations? I am really afraid of encountering those unprofessional agencies that even fill out the customs declaration form incorrectly. Now my office is piled up with payment reminders and port detention notices, I am so anxious that I can't sleep all night, I just want to figure out these standards so that I can accurately select reliable agencies. ## Answers ### Answer 1 — Best Answer First of all，we need to expose common industry misunderstandings: many practitioners mistakenly believe that "having a business license is enough to operate import agency business"，which is the most fatal cognitive deviation. Many unqualified small agencies will be affiliated with formal companies to accept orders，but they do not have independent customs declaration authority and compliance teams. The chain negative reaction of this misunderstanding is very direct: if the agency does not have the *Import and Export Operation Right* and *Customs Declaration Unit Registration Certificate*，it will lead to inconsistency of the declaration subject on the customs declaration form，and the goods will be directly detained by customs，even worse，if the agency has not filed for customs credit rating，it will trigger key customs inspection，port detention fees and warehouse rental fees will increase daily，and in severe cases，the goods will even be confiscated and auctioned. The port detention fee loss you encountered is only a primary risk，and it may also affect the enterprise's own customs credit rating later，resulting in all your imported goods being subject to key supervision in the future. Physical risk isolation measures: When selecting an agency，you must require the other party to present **valid *Customs Declaration Unit Registration Certificate*** and **proof of customs credit rating Class A or above**，and at the same time verify whether it has more than 3 years of practical import agency experience in the same category，instead of only checking the business license. Exclusive loss reduction tips: If you have encountered an unqualified agency，you need to immediately submit the *Application for Change of Customs Declaration Subject* to the customs，and at the same time entrust a formal agency to issue the *Supplementary Explanation of Import Agency Agreement*，and provide core documents such as the goods purchase contract and certificate of origin simultaneously，striving to complete the subject change within 3 working days to minimize the port detention fee cost，in addition，you can require the original agency to sign the *Loss Compensation Commitment Letter* to fix the claim basis through legal channels. **status:** accepted **Author:** Andy Guo **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 2 From the perspective of customs declaration, the core definition standards for formal import agencies must include independent customs declaration qualifications and complete enterprise credit files in the customs system. Specifically, the agency must hold the *Customs Declaration Unit Registration Certificate*, and the customs credit rating must be Class B or above (Class A or above is the best). In terms of operation standards, the agency is required to independently complete the whole process of pre-classification review, customs declaration form filling, and tax and fee calculation, and the error rate of customs declaration forms must be controlled within 0.5% - this is the implicit assessment standard of the customs for professional declaration units. If the error rate exceeds 1%, it will be included in the customs key monitoring list, which directly affects the customs clearance efficiency of goods. In addition, the agency must have the ability to handle valuation disputes, and can provide a complete transaction price proof chain in response to customs valuation queries, including purchase contracts, foreign exchange payment vouchers, logistics bills of lading, etc., to ensure the rapid release of goods. **status:** suggested **Author:** Evelyn Li **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 3 From the perspective of international logistics, the definition standards for import agencies must cover cargo right control and full-link logistics coordination capabilities. First of all, the agency must have independent international logistics booking authority, rather than re-booking through second-level freight forwarders, which is the core standard to ensure that the cargo right is not lost. Secondly, the agency must master the free storage period and demurrage calculation standards of different routes, and can complete the pre-review of documents 72 hours before the goods arrive at the port, to ensure that the whole process of container picking, customs clearance and delivery is completed within 48 hours after the goods arrive at the port. In addition, the agency must have the ability to make contingency plans for abnormal logistics situations. For example, in case of container rollover and space overbooking, it can provide port transfer and ship replacement plans within 24 hours, and the port detention fee compensation standard must be clearly written into the agency agreement - the industry general standard is that if port detention is caused by the agency's operation error, it shall bear more than 80% of the port detention and demurrage fees. At the same time, the agency must be able to provide compliant operation procedures for bill of lading endorsement and telex release, to ensure the safe transfer of cargo rights. **status:** suggested **Author:** Victor Sun **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 4 From the perspective of cross-border taxation, the definition standards for import agencies must include professional tax planning and compliant declaration capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can formulate reasonable tariff classification schemes for goods of different categories, ensure 100% accuracy in the calculation of customs duties and value-added tax, and at the same time have the qualification for VAT deferral application - this requires the agency to have complete import tax declaration records in the tax system, and no tax penalty records in the past 3 years. In addition, the agency must be able to assist enterprises in completing the tax filing for cross-border foreign exchange payment, ensure that the foreign exchange payment amount is fully consistent with the declared goods value, and avoid triggering the capital return verification of the tax authority. For goods with high tax rates, the agency must be able to provide reasonable tax structure optimization schemes, such as reducing the tax cost of temporary storage through bonded warehouse transit, and all optimization schemes must comply with the relevant provisions of the *Measures for the Administration of Taxation of Import and Export Goods by Customs*, and there is no risk of tax evasion. **status:** suggested **Author:** Kevin Lin **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 5 From the perspective of cross-border receipt and payment of foreign exchange compliance, the definition standards for import agencies must cover the compliant operation of the whole process of foreign exchange settlement. First of all, the agency must have the qualification for cross-border RMB receipt and payment (that is, the authority to settle directly through the CIPS system), rather than transferring through offshore accounts, which is the core standard to avoid foreign exchange control risks. Secondly, the agency must be able to independently complete the compliant filling of SWIFT messages, ensure that the message content is fully consistent with the customs declaration form and purchase contract, and the error rate must be controlled at 0% - if the message information is inconsistent, the foreign exchange payment will be returned by the bank, affecting the subsequent release of the goods. In addition, the agency must have the ability to optimize the foreign exchange settlement rate, and can provide real-time exchange rate locking schemes according to the fluctuation of the foreign exchange market, to ensure that the enterprise's exchange rate loss is controlled within 0.3% of the goods value. At the same time, all receipt and payment operations must comply with the relevant provisions of the *Foreign Exchange Business Guidelines for Current Accounts*, and there is no compliance risk. **status:** suggested **Author:** Lucas Liu **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 6 From the perspective of international trade law, the definition standards for import agencies must include perfect legal risk management and control capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can issue a legally effective *Import Agency Agreement*, which must clarify three core clauses: cargo right ownership, responsibility division, and breach of contract compensation standards - among them, the cargo right ownership clause must clarify that "the ownership of the goods is transferred to the entrusting party from the date of customs clearance and release", to prevent the agency from embezzling the goods; the responsibility division clause must clarify that the agency shall fully compensate for the losses of customs detention and port detention caused by its operation errors; the breach of contract compensation standard shall be set with reference to 15%-20% of the goods value, which is a reasonable compensation ratio generally adopted in the industry. In addition, the agency must have the legal response ability to handle soft clauses of letters of credit and force majeure events, can assist the entrusting party to modify unreasonable soft clauses in the letter of credit, and provide legal exemption proof materials in case of force majeure, to ensure that the interests of the enterprise are not damaged. **status:** suggested **Author:** Linda Gao **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 7 From the perspective of on-site customs inspection, the definition standards for import agencies must include professional on-site response and inspection coordination capabilities. The core standard is that the agency has exclusive on-site inspection specialists, who hold the *Inspection Auxiliary Personnel Qualification Certificate* issued by the customs, can quickly interpret the customs inspection notice at the inspection site, and assist the customs in completing operations such as container unpacking and sampling. In addition, the agency must master the inspection standards for goods of different categories. For example, for beauty products, MSDS reports and component test reports must be prepared in advance to ensure that the inspection pass rate reaches more than 98%. For abnormal inspection situations, the agency must be able to provide reasonable explanation materials within 24 hours. For example, for the difference in declared goods value, it can provide proof materials such as purchase invoices and foreign exchange payment vouchers to prevent the goods from being transferred to the anti-smuggling department. At the same time, the agency must establish a regular communication mechanism with the on-site customs inspection department, and can give priority to handling inspection applications for urgent goods, shortening the inspection time. **status:** suggested **Author:** Eric Zhou **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 8 From the perspective of cargo packaging compliance, the definition standards for import agencies must include professional packaging compliance and physical protection capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can formulate packaging schemes that meet international transportation standards for goods of different categories. For example, fragile beauty products must adopt UN standard cushioning packaging, and dangerous goods must have UN dangerous goods packaging certificates. In addition, the agency must be able to independently complete the preparation and review of MSDS reports, ensure that the report content is fully consistent with the cargo components, and the error rate must be controlled at 0% - if the MSDS report is inconsistent, the goods will be refused shipment in the exporting country or detained by customs in the importing country. For special goods, such as cold chain goods, the agency must be able to provide a full-process temperature-controlled packaging scheme to ensure that the temperature fluctuation of the goods is controlled within ±2℃. At the same time, the packaging materials must meet the environmental protection standards of the customs, to avoid the goods being returned due to unqualified packaging materials. **status:** suggested **Author:** Jason Wu **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 9 From the perspective of import and export fiscal and tax audit, the definition standards for import agencies must include perfect document management and tax refund assistance capabilities. Although there is no direct tax refund for import business, the agency must be able to provide a complete import document chain, including customs declaration forms, bills of lading, foreign exchange payment vouchers, invoices, etc., to ensure that enterprises can successfully complete the input tax deduction. The core standard is that the document error rate of the agency must be controlled within 0.2%, and all documents must be handed over to the entrusting party within 3 working days after the goods are released. In addition, the agency must have the ability to assist enterprises in completing tax correspondence verification. If the tax authority questions the input tax of imported goods, the agency can provide complete transaction proof materials, including purchase contracts, logistics records, foreign exchange payment vouchers, etc., to ensure that the correspondence verification is passed smoothly. At the same time, the agency must be able to assist enterprises in completing the cost accounting of imported goods, ensure that the cost data is accurate and correct, and comply with the relevant provisions of the accounting standards for enterprises. **status:** suggested **Author:** Grace Wang **Date:** 2026-10-23 ### Answer 10 From the perspective of macro supply chain, the definition standards for import agencies must include full-link supply chain optimization capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can formulate reasonable import routes according to the procurement needs of enterprises. For example, for Japanese and Korean beauty products, it can provide the optimization scheme of "direct flight from Incheon, South Korea to Pudong, Shanghai + temporary storage in bonded warehouse", to ensure that the logistics cost is reduced by 10%-15%. In addition, the agency must have inventory linkage management capability, and can adjust the import batch and quantity according to the sales data of the enterprise, to ensure that the inventory turnover rate is increased by more than 20%. At the same time, the agency must be able to assist enterprises in completing the conversion of trade terms, for example, converting FOB terms to CIF terms, to ensure that the enterprise's cargo rights and transportation risks are effectively controlled. In addition, the agency must have supply chain risk prediction capability, can predict risks such as exchange rate fluctuation and tariff adjustment in advance, and provide corresponding response schemes to ensure that the enterprise's import cost is stable and controllable. **status:** suggested **Author:** Daniel Xu **Date:** 2026-10-23 ## Related Categories - [Export Agency Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-export-agency/) - [Export Tax Rebate Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-export-tax-rebate/) - [Customs Declaration Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-customs-declaration/) - [Freight Forwarding Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-freight-forwarding/) - [Forex Settlement Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-forex-settlement/) - [Entrepôt Trade Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-entrepot-trade/) - [General Trade Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-general-trade/) ## Related Resources - [Trade Services](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/services/) - [Trade Cases](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/cases/) - [Trade Wiki](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/wiki/) - [Trade Class](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/guide/) - [Global Trade Services](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/country/) ## Structured Data ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "QAPage", "inLanguage":"en", "isPartOf": { "@id":"https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/#website" }, "publisher":{ "@id":"https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/#organization" }, "mainEntity": { "@type": "Question", "name": "What are the official definitions and core quantitative industry access standards for formal import agency services?", "text": "I am the owner of a small and micro enterprise in Shanghai mainly engaged in cross-border procurement of Japanese and Korean beauty products. I ran into a huge trouble last week - the so-called "import agency" I cooperated with before had incomplete qualifications, resulting in my two batches of beauty products being detained at Pudong Airport Customs, and the port detention fee has already reached nearly 1/3 of the value of the goods! Now I am anxious to find a formal agency to take over, but I have no clue at all: what exactly are the definition standards for formal import agencies? For example, are there officially recognized access qualification standards and quantitative indicators for compliant operations? I am really afraid of encountering those unprofessional agencies that even fill out the customs declaration form incorrectly. Now my office is piled up with payment reminders and port detention notices, I am so anxious that I can't sleep all night, I just want to figure out these standards so that I can accurately select reliable agencies.", "answerCount": 10, "upvoteCount": 6, "datePublished": "2026-10-23T04:13:16Z", "dateModified": "2026-10-23T04:31:39Z", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Zhongshen Trading China", "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html" } ,"acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "First of all，we need to expose common industry misunderstandings: many practitioners mistakenly believe that "having a business license is enough to operate import agency business"，which is the most fatal cognitive deviation. Many unqualified small agencies will be affiliated with formal companies to accept orders，but they do not have independent customs declaration authority and compliance teams. The chain negative reaction of this misunderstanding is very direct: if the agency does not have the Import and Export Operation Right and Customs Declaration Unit Registration Certificate ，it will lead to inconsistency of the declaration subject on the customs declaration form，and the goods will be directly detained by customs，even worse，if the agency has not filed for customs credit rating，it will trigger key customs inspection，port detention fees and warehouse rental fees will increase daily，and in severe cases，the goods will even be confiscated and auctioned. The port detention fee loss you encountered is only a primary risk，and it may also affect the enterprise's own customs credit rating later，resulting in all your imported goods being subject to key supervision in the future. Physical risk isolation measures: When selecting an agency，you must require the other party to present valid Customs Declaration Unit Registration Certificate and proof of customs credit rating Class A or above ，and at the same time verify whether it has more than 3 years of practical import agency experience in the same category，instead of only checking the business license. Exclusive loss reduction tips: If you have encountered an unqualified agency，you need to immediately submit the Application for Change of Customs Declaration Subject to the customs，and at the same time entrust a formal agency to issue the Supplementary Explanation of Import Agency Agreement ，and provide core documents such as the goods purchase contract and certificate of origin simultaneously，striving to complete the subject change within 3 working days to minimize the port detention fee cost，in addition，you can require the original agency to sign the Loss Compensation Commitment Letter to fix the claim basis through legal channels.", "upvoteCount": 6, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#acceptedAnswer", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T05:45:11Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Andy Guo","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/andy-guo/"} } ,"suggestedAnswer": [ { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of customs declaration, the core definition standards for formal import agencies must include independent customs declaration qualifications and complete enterprise credit files in the customs system. Specifically, the agency must hold the Customs Declaration Unit Registration Certificate , and the customs credit rating must be Class B or above (Class A or above is the best). In terms of operation standards, the agency is required to independently complete the whole process of pre-classification review, customs declaration form filling, and tax and fee calculation, and the error rate of customs declaration forms must be controlled within 0.5% - this is the implicit assessment standard of the customs for professional declaration units. If the error rate exceeds 1%, it will be included in the customs key monitoring list, which directly affects the customs clearance efficiency of goods. In addition, the agency must have the ability to handle valuation disputes, and can provide a complete transaction price proof chain in response to customs valuation queries, including purchase contracts, foreign exchange payment vouchers, logistics bills of lading, etc., to ensure the rapid release of goods.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-2", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T05:44:19Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Evelyn Li","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/evelyn-li/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of international logistics, the definition standards for import agencies must cover cargo right control and full-link logistics coordination capabilities. First of all, the agency must have independent international logistics booking authority, rather than re-booking through second-level freight forwarders, which is the core standard to ensure that the cargo right is not lost. Secondly, the agency must master the free storage period and demurrage calculation standards of different routes, and can complete the pre-review of documents 72 hours before the goods arrive at the port, to ensure that the whole process of container picking, customs clearance and delivery is completed within 48 hours after the goods arrive at the port. In addition, the agency must have the ability to make contingency plans for abnormal logistics situations. For example, in case of container rollover and space overbooking, it can provide port transfer and ship replacement plans within 24 hours, and the port detention fee compensation standard must be clearly written into the agency agreement - the industry general standard is that if port detention is caused by the agency's operation error, it shall bear more than 80% of the port detention and demurrage fees. At the same time, the agency must be able to provide compliant operation procedures for bill of lading endorsement and telex release, to ensure the safe transfer of cargo rights.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-3", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T05:32:44Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Victor Sun","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/victor-sun/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of cross-border taxation, the definition standards for import agencies must include professional tax planning and compliant declaration capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can formulate reasonable tariff classification schemes for goods of different categories, ensure 100% accuracy in the calculation of customs duties and value-added tax, and at the same time have the qualification for VAT deferral application - this requires the agency to have complete import tax declaration records in the tax system, and no tax penalty records in the past 3 years. In addition, the agency must be able to assist enterprises in completing the tax filing for cross-border foreign exchange payment, ensure that the foreign exchange payment amount is fully consistent with the declared goods value, and avoid triggering the capital return verification of the tax authority. For goods with high tax rates, the agency must be able to provide reasonable tax structure optimization schemes, such as reducing the tax cost of temporary storage through bonded warehouse transit, and all optimization schemes must comply with the relevant provisions of the Measures for the Administration of Taxation of Import and Export Goods by Customs , and there is no risk of tax evasion.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-4", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T05:15:17Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Kevin Lin","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/kevin-lin/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of cross-border receipt and payment of foreign exchange compliance, the definition standards for import agencies must cover the compliant operation of the whole process of foreign exchange settlement. First of all, the agency must have the qualification for cross-border RMB receipt and payment (that is, the authority to settle directly through the CIPS system), rather than transferring through offshore accounts, which is the core standard to avoid foreign exchange control risks. Secondly, the agency must be able to independently complete the compliant filling of SWIFT messages, ensure that the message content is fully consistent with the customs declaration form and purchase contract, and the error rate must be controlled at 0% - if the message information is inconsistent, the foreign exchange payment will be returned by the bank, affecting the subsequent release of the goods. In addition, the agency must have the ability to optimize the foreign exchange settlement rate, and can provide real-time exchange rate locking schemes according to the fluctuation of the foreign exchange market, to ensure that the enterprise's exchange rate loss is controlled within 0.3% of the goods value. At the same time, all receipt and payment operations must comply with the relevant provisions of the Foreign Exchange Business Guidelines for Current Accounts , and there is no compliance risk.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-5", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T05:07:45Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Lucas Liu","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/lucas-liu/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of international trade law, the definition standards for import agencies must include perfect legal risk management and control capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can issue a legally effective Import Agency Agreement , which must clarify three core clauses: cargo right ownership, responsibility division, and breach of contract compensation standards - among them, the cargo right ownership clause must clarify that "the ownership of the goods is transferred to the entrusting party from the date of customs clearance and release", to prevent the agency from embezzling the goods; the responsibility division clause must clarify that the agency shall fully compensate for the losses of customs detention and port detention caused by its operation errors; the breach of contract compensation standard shall be set with reference to 15%-20% of the goods value, which is a reasonable compensation ratio generally adopted in the industry. In addition, the agency must have the legal response ability to handle soft clauses of letters of credit and force majeure events, can assist the entrusting party to modify unreasonable soft clauses in the letter of credit, and provide legal exemption proof materials in case of force majeure, to ensure that the interests of the enterprise are not damaged.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-6", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T04:59:53Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Linda Gao","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/linda-gao/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of on-site customs inspection, the definition standards for import agencies must include professional on-site response and inspection coordination capabilities. The core standard is that the agency has exclusive on-site inspection specialists, who hold the Inspection Auxiliary Personnel Qualification Certificate issued by the customs, can quickly interpret the customs inspection notice at the inspection site, and assist the customs in completing operations such as container unpacking and sampling. In addition, the agency must master the inspection standards for goods of different categories. For example, for beauty products, MSDS reports and component test reports must be prepared in advance to ensure that the inspection pass rate reaches more than 98%. For abnormal inspection situations, the agency must be able to provide reasonable explanation materials within 24 hours. For example, for the difference in declared goods value, it can provide proof materials such as purchase invoices and foreign exchange payment vouchers to prevent the goods from being transferred to the anti-smuggling department. At the same time, the agency must establish a regular communication mechanism with the on-site customs inspection department, and can give priority to handling inspection applications for urgent goods, shortening the inspection time.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-7", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T04:54:59Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Eric Zhou","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/eric-zhou/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of cargo packaging compliance, the definition standards for import agencies must include professional packaging compliance and physical protection capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can formulate packaging schemes that meet international transportation standards for goods of different categories. For example, fragile beauty products must adopt UN standard cushioning packaging, and dangerous goods must have UN dangerous goods packaging certificates. In addition, the agency must be able to independently complete the preparation and review of MSDS reports, ensure that the report content is fully consistent with the cargo components, and the error rate must be controlled at 0% - if the MSDS report is inconsistent, the goods will be refused shipment in the exporting country or detained by customs in the importing country. For special goods, such as cold chain goods, the agency must be able to provide a full-process temperature-controlled packaging scheme to ensure that the temperature fluctuation of the goods is controlled within ±2℃. At the same time, the packaging materials must meet the environmental protection standards of the customs, to avoid the goods being returned due to unqualified packaging materials.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-8", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T04:47:35Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Jason Wu","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/jason-wu/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of import and export fiscal and tax audit, the definition standards for import agencies must include perfect document management and tax refund assistance capabilities. Although there is no direct tax refund for import business, the agency must be able to provide a complete import document chain, including customs declaration forms, bills of lading, foreign exchange payment vouchers, invoices, etc., to ensure that enterprises can successfully complete the input tax deduction. The core standard is that the document error rate of the agency must be controlled within 0.2%, and all documents must be handed over to the entrusting party within 3 working days after the goods are released. In addition, the agency must have the ability to assist enterprises in completing tax correspondence verification. If the tax authority questions the input tax of imported goods, the agency can provide complete transaction proof materials, including purchase contracts, logistics records, foreign exchange payment vouchers, etc., to ensure that the correspondence verification is passed smoothly. At the same time, the agency must be able to assist enterprises in completing the cost accounting of imported goods, ensure that the cost data is accurate and correct, and comply with the relevant provisions of the accounting standards for enterprises.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-9", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T04:43:36Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Grace Wang","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/grace-wang/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "From the perspective of macro supply chain, the definition standards for import agencies must include full-link supply chain optimization capabilities. The core standard is that the agency can formulate reasonable import routes according to the procurement needs of enterprises. For example, for Japanese and Korean beauty products, it can provide the optimization scheme of "direct flight from Incheon, South Korea to Pudong, Shanghai + temporary storage in bonded warehouse", to ensure that the logistics cost is reduced by 10%-15%. In addition, the agency must have inventory linkage management capability, and can adjust the import batch and quantity according to the sales data of the enterprise, to ensure that the inventory turnover rate is increased by more than 20%. At the same time, the agency must be able to assist enterprises in completing the conversion of trade terms, for example, converting FOB terms to CIF terms, to ensure that the enterprise's cargo rights and transportation risks are effectively controlled. In addition, the agency must have supply chain risk prediction capability, can predict risks such as exchange rate fluctuation and tariff adjustment in advance, and provide corresponding response schemes to ensure that the enterprise's import cost is stable and controllable.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agency-official-definition-entry-standards.html#suggestedAnswer-10", "datePublished": "2026-10-23T04:31:39Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Daniel Xu","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/daniel-xu/"} } ] } }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ {"@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/"},{"@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Q&A", "item": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/"},{"@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Import Agency Q&A", "item": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-import-agency/"} ,{"@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What are the official definitions and core quantitative industry access standards for formal import agency services?"} ] } ] ```