---
title: "Can import agency fees include international freight? What are the core compliance requirements?"
description: "Many small purchasers mainly engaged in importing daily commodities hope to include freight into agency fees for packaged settlement due to the cumbersome multi-link coordination，but they worry about compliance risks and cost out of control. For this，a separate accounting mode can be adopted，which clearly lists agency fees and freight separately，and completes customs declaration and tax filing synchronously. This can not only simplify the process，but also avoid problems such as valuation dispute..."
url: "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-agent-fee-include-international-freight-compliance-requirements.html"
language: "en"
type: "Q&A"
category: "Import Agency Q&A"
datePublished: "2026-10-03"
dateModified: "2026-10-03"
brand: "Zhongshen Trading China"
answerCount: 8
---

# Can import agency fees include international freight? What are the core compliance requirements?

## Question

 I am a small purchaser based in Shanghai, mainly engaged in importing Japanese and Korean personal care daily necessities. Last month, I missed a payment of 300 yuan for the agency fee and terminal drayage fee when coordinating with the agency company separately, which caused my goods to be detained at the port for 8 hours. I not only paid more than 2000 yuan in container detention charges, but also delayed the restocking schedule for the e-commerce 618 Grand Promotion, which made me so anxious that I couldn't sleep all night. This time I plan to import a batch of amino acid shampoo from Japan, and I want to include international ocean freight and domestic trailer fees into the import agency fee for unified settlement to avoid repeated reconciliation and complicated procedures. But I am worried that this operation is not compliant -- I heard from peers before that mixed invoicing will affect VAT deduction, and may also be identified as under-declared cargo value during customs valuation. I am very confused now, and want to clarify whether this operation is allowed, whether there are hidden risks, and what core details I need to pay attention to? 

## Answers
                            
### Answer 1 — Best Answer

First of all，we need to expose a common industry misunderstanding: many agency companies will default to issuing unified "agency fee" invoices combining freight and agency fees，which seems to simplify the process，but actually hides major risks.

Deduction of chain negative reactions: If invoices are issued in a mixed manner，customs will include all packaged fees into agency fees during valuation，ignoring the actual proportion of freight in the cargo value，which will most likely trigger valuation disputes. In severe cases，it will be identified as under-declared cargo value，and the enterprise will face cargo detention，fines and even credit downgrade. At the same time，because the invoice items do not match the actual business，the tax authority will directly deny the normal deduction of import VAT，which will additionally increase the enterprise's tax burden.

Physical risk isolation measures: The **separate accounting and itemized listing** mode must be adopted. The agency agreement shall clearly define the amount and payment schedule of agency fees (accrued based on the proportion of cargo value) and freight (reimbursed for actual expenses)，and invoices for corresponding items shall be issued separately.

Exclusive loss prevention tip: You can require the agency company to list the freight separately in the "miscellaneous fees" column of the customs declaration form when declaring to customs，and upload the freight voucher synchronously to ensure the complete chain of customs valuation and tax deduction. If there is a valuation objection，you can provide **itemized contracts and invoices** for quick proof.

**status:** accepted
**Author:** Lucas Liu
**Date:** 2026-10-03

### Answer 2

The identification of dutiable value of imported goods in the customs valuation link follows the "transaction value method". If agency fees and freight are mixed and the freight amount is not separately declared to customs, the dutiable value on the customs declaration form will lack the freight item, triggering the customs price inquiry procedure.

At this time, supporting materials such as freight payment vouchers and transportation contracts need to be submitted within 3 working days. If they cannot be provided in time, the customs will adopt the "transaction value method for identical goods" or the "deductive value method" to re-approve the dutiable value, which will most likely increase the approved amount, raise the cost of import tariffs and VAT, and even affect the enterprise's customs credit rating, leading to an increase in the subsequent customs inspection rate.

**status:** suggested
**Author:** Kevin Lin
**Date:** 2026-10-03

### Answer 3

When incorporating freight into agency fees for packaged settlement, it is necessary to clearly distinguish the cost composition of different links such as international freight, domestic terminal drayage fee and trailer fee, so as to avoid the embezzlement of fees by the agency company during logistics scheduling.

If there is no clear division, when logistics abnormalities such as container rolling and overbooking occur, the agency company may use the originally budgeted freight to offset other additional costs, resulting in the failure to arrange the transshipment of goods in time, resulting in additional costs such as port demurrage and container detention charges. It is recommended to require the agency company to provide real-time tracking data of logistics nodes, and each freight expenditure shall be attached with the corresponding invoice of the logistics service provider and a copy of the bill of lading.

**status:** suggested
**Author:** Cindy Chen
**Date:** 2026-10-03

### Answer 4

From the tax perspective, import agency fee belongs to brokerage agency service, which is applicable to 6% VAT rate, while freight belongs to transportation service, which is applicable to 9% VAT rate. If the invoice is issued as agency fee in a mixed manner, the enterprise can only deduct input tax at 6%, which is 3% less than the input tax deduction when the freight invoice is issued separately, directly increasing the enterprise's tax burden.

In addition, if the freight is not listed separately in the customs declaration form, it cannot be included in the dutiable value of imported goods, resulting in the lack of the freight part in the tax base of import VAT, and the enterprise will be required to pay the difference in tax and late fee during the subsequent tax inspection.

**status:** suggested
**Author:** Evelyn Li
**Date:** 2026-10-03

### Answer 5

In the cross-border foreign exchange receipt and payment link, if the freight and agency fee are packaged as "agency fee" for external payment, clear contract clauses shall be submitted to the bank to prove that the packaged fee includes the specific amount of freight. Otherwise, the bank will determine that the foreign exchange receipt and payment are inconsistent with the actual business, refuse to handle the foreign exchange payment procedures, and even trigger the compliance verification of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

It is recommended to adopt the method of "one foreign exchange payment with itemized remarks", mark the amount of agency fee and freight respectively in the postscript of the foreign exchange payment message, and provide the bank with the itemized expense list and corresponding contract clauses at the same time.

**status:** suggested
**Author:** Victor Sun
**Date:** 2026-10-03

### Answer 6

The agency contract shall clearly stipulate the specific scope of agency fees including freight, whether it only includes international ocean freight, or includes domestic trailer fees, terminal handling charges, etc. At the same time, the division of rights and responsibilities of both parties shall be clarified: if the goods are detained at the port due to the agency company's failure to pay the freight in time, the agency company shall bear all losses such as port demurrage and container detention charges; if the freight needs to be re-approved due to customs valuation, the party responsible for the part exceeding the originally agreed amount shall be specified. In addition, the requirements for invoice issuance shall be clarified, and invoices for agency fees and freight must be issued separately to avoid subsequent invoice disputes.

**status:** suggested
**Author:** Eric Zhou
**Date:** 2026-10-03

### Answer 7

If the agency fee and freight are invoiced in a mixed manner, and the freight is not listed separately in the customs declaration form, when the goods enter the on-site inspection link, customs officers may suspect that the actual transaction price of the goods is under-declared, and the probability of triggering unpacking inspection will increase significantly.

At this time, if the actual weight and quantity of the goods are inconsistent with the customs declaration form, or there are other violations, it will directly lead to cargo detention, increasing additional costs such as inspection fees and storage fees. It is recommended to indicate the specific amount and payment method of freight in the "remarks column" of the customs declaration form to reduce the probability of triggering on-site inspection.

**status:** suggested
**Author:** Andy Guo
**Date:** 2026-10-03

### Answer 8

From the perspective of supply chain cost optimization, when incorporating freight into agency fees for packaged settlement, a dynamic cost accounting model should be established to track the fluctuation of international ocean freight in real time, so as to avoid the agency fee exceeding the budget due to the rise of ocean freight. In addition, it is necessary to evaluate the impact of the packaged mode on the supply chain cash flow.

If the agency company requires a one-time payment of all packaged fees, it will occupy the working capital of the enterprise. It is recommended to adopt the installment payment method of "prepaid part of the agency fee + freight payment after the goods arrive at the port" to optimize the use efficiency of cash flow. At the same time, it is necessary to regularly audit the expense details of the agency company to ensure the rationality and transparency of expense expenditure.

**status:** suggested
**Author:** Michael Zhang
**Date:** 2026-10-03

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