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Which party is responsible for fulfilling the foreign exchange payment obligation to the state throughout the entire process of import and export agency business?
or complex compliance issues.
clearance and fund security.
I am the foreign trade director of a small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprise in Shanghai mainly engaged in precision hardware accessories. Last month, I just signed an agency import agreement for German stainless steel raw materials with Zhongshen. These two days, the bank notified us to go through foreign exchange payment procedures, and I suddenly got confused: when we did self-operated import before, our factory directly fulfilled the foreign exchange payment obligation to the state, but now in the agency model, should our factory make the payment directly to the state, or should Zhongshen make the payment on our behalf?
Last week, I heard from peers that an enterprise mistakenly identified the payment subject, was not only fined 80,000 yuan by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), but also included in the foreign exchange supervision gray list, affecting subsequent import and export business. I am particularly anxious now.
This batch of raw materials is an urgent order for orders before National Day. If the cargo is detained at the port due to payment issues, the production line will stop, and we will suffer a loss of at least hundreds of thousands of yuan. I want to fully clarify who should make the foreign exchange payment to the state in import and export agency, as well as relevant risks and precautions.
Jason WuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
International Logistics & Supply Chain ManagerStart a Chat
First，we need to expose the common industry misconception: many enterprises mistakenly believe that during import and export agency，the payment subject is either fully the responsibility of the agency company or can be arbitrarily paid directly by the principal，ignoring the core compliance principle of whoever imports shall make the payment.
Falling into this misconception will trigger a chain of negative consequences: if the payment subject is inconsistent with the consignee in the customs declaration form，the SAFE system will directly mark it as abnormal receipt and payment，trigger manual verification，resulting in frozen payment，cargo detention at the port and incurred container detention fees and port detention fees. If not resolved within 7 days，the customs will initiate detention procedures，and the enterprise will be included in the foreign exchange supervision gray list. All cross-border receipt and payment within the next 12 months will be strictly reviewed，affecting normal business operations.
Physical risk isolation measures need to start from three aspects: first，clearly agree on the payment subject and responsibility division when signing the agency agreement，and complete the agency receipt and payment filing on the Cross-border Financial Blockchain Service Platform simultaneously，second，check the consistency of subject information on the customs declaration form，import contract and agency agreement before payment，third，entrust the agency company to review the compliance of payment documents in advance.
Exclusive loss mitigation tip: If an error in the payment subject has occurred，contact the SAFE within 24 hours to submit a situation description and complete supporting materials for correction application. Meanwhile，ask the agency company to coordinate with the freight forwarder to apply for free extended container pickup for detained cargo，so as to minimize losses.
Victor SunYears of service：5Customer Rating：5.0
Trade Risk Control ManagerStart a Chat
From the perspective of customs declaration, the confirmation of the payment subject must be consistent with the "consignee in China" on the import customs declaration form. In 2026, the customs clearance integration system has realized real-time data linkage with the SAFE system. If the consignee in China on the customs declaration form is the principal, the payment subject must be the principal; if the consignee in China is the agency company, the agency agreement needs to be submitted for filing when declaring, and the agency company can act as the payment subject at this time.
If the two are inconsistent, the system will automatically trigger a customs declaration abnormality warning, resulting in the customs declaration form being returned, the goods cannot be cleared normally, and even being included in the customs key supervision list. In addition, if customs verification is triggered due to the payment subject issue, complete documents such as agency agreement, payment voucher and import contract must be provided, otherwise goods detention, fines and other penalties may be faced.
Daniel XuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Director of Import & Export OperationsStart a Chat
From the tax perspective, the choice of payment subject will directly affect the enterprise's cost accounting and tax planning. According to the 2026 cross-border tax policy, if the principal acts as the payment subject, the foreign exchange funds paid by it can be included in the import cost for deducting value-added tax input tax; if the agency company acts as the payment subject, it needs to issue agency service fee invoices to the principal, and the principal can deduct input tax with the invoice, but the import cost accounting shall be based on the payment voucher and customs declaration form provided by the agency company.
It should be noted that if the payment subject is inconsistent with the actual importer, it may be recognized as a related party transaction by the tax authority, triggering transfer pricing verification. Relevant materials need to be prepared to prove the fairness of the transaction to avoid tax adjustment risks.
Evelyn LiYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Cross-border Compliance SupervisorStart a Chat
From the perspective of cross-border receipt and payment compliance, the SAFE requires in 2026 that the receipt and payment of import and export agency must be filed through the "Cross-border Financial Blockchain Service Platform", and the payment subject is clearly defined as the principal or the agency company. If you choose the agency company to make the payment on behalf, you need to upload materials such as agency agreement, import contract and customs declaration pre-entry form on the platform, and the payment can only be processed after being approved by the SAFE system.
If payment is made directly without filing, the system will mark the receipt and payment as abnormal, triggering on-site verification by the SAFE. The enterprise needs to cooperate to provide complete transaction materials, otherwise it will be restricted from subsequent receipt and payment quotas, and even included in the foreign exchange supervision gray list, affecting the development of all cross-border businesses.
Grace WangYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Foreign Trade ConsultantStart a Chat
From a legal perspective, the agency import and export agreement must clearly define the payment subject and responsibility division to avoid subsequent disputes. If the agreement does not clearly agree, according to the 2026 Civil Code provisions on entrusted contracts, the principal as the actual transaction subject shall bear the final responsibility for payment; the agency company only acts as a trustee, and has no obligation to pay on behalf without clear authorization.
If the agency company makes payment on behalf without authorization, it can recover from the principal according to the agreement, but if compliance risks such as foreign exchange penalties are caused by the payment on behalf, the responsibility shall be divided according to the degree of fault of both parties. In addition, if the error of the payment subject causes third-party losses, such as freight forwarder's port detention fees, the responsible party shall bear the compensation liability, and the agreement must clearly define the liability clauses for such risks.
Eric ZhouYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Manager of Foreign Exchange & Tax RebatesStart a Chat
From the perspective of tax compliance and cost accounting, the payment subject of import and export agency must be consistent with the information on import documents. In 2026, the tax authority requires that the subject information on the import payment voucher, customs declaration form and import contract must match, otherwise the import cost cannot be deducted before corporate income tax, and the value-added tax input tax deduction of manufacturing enterprises will also be rejected.
If tax verification is triggered due to the error of the payment subject, the enterprise needs to additionally provide supporting materials such as agency agreement, payment authorization letter and fund transfer voucher, increasing tax compliance costs. If the materials are incomplete, penalties such as tax payment and late payment fees may be imposed.
Linda GaoYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Documentation SupervisorStart a Chat
From the perspective of supply chain cost and capital planning, the choice of payment subject will affect the enterprise's capital occupation and exchange rate risk. In 2026, the two-way fluctuation of the RMB exchange rate has intensified. If the principal acts as the payment subject, it can independently control the timing of foreign exchange purchase and choose the time when the exchange rate is low to complete the payment, reducing exchange rate costs; if the agency company makes the payment on behalf, it needs to transfer sufficient RMB funds to the agency company in advance, which will occupy the enterprise's working capital and increase capital costs.
Enterprises can choose the payment subject according to their own capital status and exchange rate trends. If the capital is tight, they can entrust the agency company to make the payment on behalf and agree on an exchange rate locking clause to avoid additional losses caused by exchange rate fluctuations.