--- title: "What Core Items Are Included in Imported Health Food Agency Fees and What Are the Common Billing Models?" description: "E-commerce procurement teams that have just transformed to import health food often suffer port detention losses due to non-transparent agency charging. Facing large quotation differences among multiple agencies and vague miscellaneous charges，they urgently need to clarify the charging items，hidden costs and fluctuation standards of imported health food agency services. Adopting a transparent all-inclusive pricing model that covers core services such as document review and customs clearance，comb..." url: "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html" language: "en" type: "Q&A" category: "Import Agency Q&A" datePublished: "2026-05-05" dateModified: "2026-05-05" brand: "Zhongshen Trading China" answerCount: 7 --- # What Core Items Are Included in Imported Health Food Agency Fees and What Are the Common Billing Models? ## Question I am the head of e-commerce procurement who just transitioned to importing health food. Last week, due to the non-transparent charging of the small agency I worked with before, a batch of probiotic powder was detained at the port for 3 days, and I spent nearly 20,000 RMB more on detention fees and warehouse rent. I'm really anxious right now! I have contacted several foreign trade agencies recently, and their quotations vary wildly. Some charge 1.2% of the cargo value, some charge 5,000 RMB per order directly, and some quote a low price but vaguely mention "subsequent miscellaneous charges". I currently have a batch of 1,200 cartons of deep-sea fish oil with a cargo value of about 800,000 RMB, shipped by sea from Los Angeles, USA to Shanghai Port. I want to fully figure out how imported health food agencies charge, what core items are included, whether there are easily overlooked hidden costs, whether fees will be adjusted according to product category and cargo volume. I'm really afraid of stepping into a trap again, it will be a huge loss if I miss the 618 launch schedule! ## Answers ### Answer 1 — Best Answer First of all，a common disadvantage of the traditional agency model is "low-price baiting"，that is，only quoting the basic customs clearance fee，splitting core services such as document reissuance fee，emergency port detention handling fee，and compliance filing fee，and charging extra under the pretext of "emergency" afterwards. The extra detention fee you encountered before is the chain cost caused by the agency's failure to complete document review and ship schedule connection in advance. We adopt **transparent all-inclusive pricing model**，our charges cover four core projects: preliminary document review，customs declaration & inspection，port customs clearance and compliance filing，with no hidden charges at all. For your batch of deep-sea fish oil with a cargo value of 800,000 RMB，you can also apply for **VAT deferral planning**，which eliminates the need to pay import VAT in advance，releases nearly 120,000 RMB of working capital and reduces capital occupation costs，at the same time，by locking the real-time exchange rate difference，we can avoid about 1.2% of exchange rate fluctuation loss. In terms of threshold，orders with more than 1,000 cartons and a cargo value of more than 500,000 RMB can enjoy bulk discounts，with agency fees charged at 0.8%-1% of the cargo value，functional health food has a small increase of 0.1%-0.2% due to stricter document review. However，if you submit documents for preliminary review 7 days in advance，you can avoid reissuance fees caused by inconsistent data. Calculated based on your order，the all-inclusive agency fee is about 6,400-8,000 RMB. Combined with the benefits of VAT deferral and exchange rate difference lock-in，compared with the traditional agency model，the actual cost can be reduced by 30%-40%，which can fully match your 618 launch schedule. **status:** accepted **Author:** Victor Sun **Date:** 2026-05-06 ### Answer 2 For imported health food agency fees, the core fees in the customs declaration link include price assessment assistance fee, customs declaration entry fee, and tax payment agency service fee. It should be noted that China Customs has relatively strict price assessment for health food. If the agency fails to assist in sorting out price assessment materials such as purchase contracts and payment vouchers in advance, it may cause Customs to question the cargo value, resulting in extra fees for declaration deletion and re-submission, which is about 1,500-2,000 RMB per order. In addition, if the health food involves a new variety imported for the first time, you need to complete Chinese label filing in advance. Some agencies charge the filing fee separately, it is recommended to clearly specify that it is included in the basic agency fee in the contract. We review all price assessment materials 7 days in advance to ensure that the cargo value declaration conforms to the Customs' fair price range, avoid extra costs caused by price assessment disputes, and include the Chinese label filing fee in the all-inclusive price, with no additional charges afterwards. **status:** suggested **Author:** Andy Guo **Date:** 2026-05-06 ### Answer 3 Logistics-related charges for imported health food agency services include international freight coordination fee, domestic drayage fee, port miscellaneous charges, and detention charge reduction assistance service fee. Most health food are either refrigerated or general cargo requiring timeliness guarantee. If the agency fails to confirm the free storage period of the shipping company in advance, it may lead to high detention charges after exceeding the free period. According to different container specifications, a 20GP container costs about 100-150 RMB per day, and a 40HQ container costs about 200-250 RMB per day. For your 1,200 cartons of deep-sea fish oil, we will coordinate with the shipping company in advance to apply for a 7-10 day extension of the free storage period, and select a direct voyage to Shanghai Port to avoid extra drayage and storage costs caused by transshipment. If container rolling occurs, we will immediately coordinate to rebook the fastest voyage on the same route to ensure no delay to your launch schedule. All these services are included in the basic agency fee, no extra charge. **status:** suggested **Author:** Evelyn Li **Date:** 2026-05-06 ### Answer 4 Tax-related charges for imported health food agency services include import tax calculation fee, VAT deferral application fee, and tax compliance filing fee. Most traditional agencies charge a calculation fee of 0.5%-1% of the actual tax paid, but do not provide tax planning services, forcing enterprises to pay large amounts of import VAT in advance and occupy working capital. For high-value categories such as health food, we can assist in applying for VAT deferral, which means you do not need to pay import VAT during customs clearance, and complete tax declaration in the next month. This can release working capital equivalent to 13% of the cargo value, and we only charge a small deferral application fee which is included in the all-inclusive price. In addition, if it involves withholding tax declaration for overseas suppliers, we will assist in optimizing related party transaction pricing to reduce the withholding tax burden, and this service is also included in the basic agency fee, no extra expenditure. **status:** suggested **Author:** Eric Zhou **Date:** 2026-05-06 ### Answer 5 Payment and settlement-related charges for imported health food agency services include payment route optimization fee, settlement assistance fee, and compliance filing fee. Some small agencies process payment through offshore accounts, which may have compliance risks, lead to investigation by the foreign exchange authority, and result in account freezing or fines. We adopt CIPS RMB cross-border payment route, directly connect with overseas suppliers, have lower payment costs, and fully comply with foreign exchange regulatory requirements to avoid compliance risks. For your order with a cargo value of 800,000 RMB, we will assist you to lock in the optimal exchange purchase rate, reduce the exchange rate difference loss by about 0.3%-0.5%, and include the payment compliance filing fee in the all-inclusive price, no extra payment required. In addition, if it involves multi-batch payment, we will assist in establishing a payment ledger to ensure that each payment corresponds to the corresponding purchase contract and customs declaration, meeting the requirement of four-flow consistency. **status:** suggested **Author:** Linda Gao **Date:** 2026-05-06 ### Answer 6 Legal-related charges for imported health food agency services include agency contract review fee, intellectual property customs protection filing fee, and dispute assistance handling fee. Some small agencies have "unfair clauses" in their contracts. For example, for port detention and customs detention losses caused by agency negligence, they only compensate 1-2 times the basic agency fee, which is far from enough to cover the actual loss of the enterprise. We provide customers with customized agency contracts, clearly stipulate that we will fully compensate for losses caused by our faults, and assist in completing intellectual property customs protection filing for health food, to avoid goods being detained due to infringement during customs clearance. This filing fee is included in the all-inclusive price. If an overseas supplier breaches the contract, we will assist in issuing legal documents, coordinate with the shipping company and port to handle the goods, and ensure the security of cargo title. All these services do not require extra charges. **status:** suggested **Author:** Michael Zhang **Date:** 2026-05-05 ### Answer 7 Supply chain-related charges for imported health food agency services include inventory linkage planning fee, trade term conversion optimization fee, and cost actuarial model service fee. Traditional agencies only provide customs clearance services and do not consider the overall cost of the supply chain. For example, when using FOB trade terms, if the connection between logistics and customs clearance is not coordinated in advance, it may lead to no one picking up the goods after arrival, resulting in detention fees. For your e-commerce business, we will assist you in converting the trade term from FOB to CIF, and we will be fully responsible for the connection between logistics and customs clearance, ensuring that customs clearance is completed within 24 hours after the goods arrive at the port. We also provide inventory linkage planning, optimize the arrival time of goods according to your 618 launch plan, and avoid overstock or stockout. All these supply chain optimization services are included in the basic agency fee, which is charged at 0.8%-1% of the cargo value, no extra charge. **status:** suggested **Author:** Lucas Liu **Date:** 2026-05-05 ## 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 Core Items Are Included in Imported Health Food Agency Fees and What Are the Common Billing Models?", "text": "I am the head of e-commerce procurement who just transitioned to importing health food. Last week, due to the non-transparent charging of the small agency I worked with before, a batch of probiotic powder was detained at the port for 3 days, and I spent nearly 20,000 RMB more on detention fees and warehouse rent. I'm really anxious right now! I have contacted several foreign trade agencies recently, and their quotations vary wildly. Some charge 1.2% of the cargo value, some charge 5,000 RMB per order directly, and some quote a low price but vaguely mention "subsequent miscellaneous charges". I currently have a batch of 1,200 cartons of deep-sea fish oil with a cargo value of about 800,000 RMB, shipped by sea from Los Angeles, USA to Shanghai Port. I want to fully figure out how imported health food agencies charge, what core items are included, whether there are easily overlooked hidden costs, whether fees will be adjusted according to product category and cargo volume. I'm really afraid of stepping into a trap again, it will be a huge loss if I miss the 618 launch schedule!", "answerCount": 7, "upvoteCount": 3, "datePublished": "2026-05-05T23:22:56Z", "dateModified": "2026-05-05T23:27:52Z", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Zhongshen Trading China", "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html" } ,"acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "First of all，a common disadvantage of the traditional agency model is "low-price baiting"，that is，only quoting the basic customs clearance fee，splitting core services such as document reissuance fee，emergency port detention handling fee，and compliance filing fee，and charging extra under the pretext of "emergency" afterwards. The extra detention fee you encountered before is the chain cost caused by the agency's failure to complete document review and ship schedule connection in advance. We adopt transparent all-inclusive pricing model ，our charges cover four core projects: preliminary document review，customs declaration & inspection，port customs clearance and compliance filing，with no hidden charges at all. For your batch of deep-sea fish oil with a cargo value of 800,000 RMB，you can also apply for VAT deferral planning ，which eliminates the need to pay import VAT in advance，releases nearly 120,000 RMB of working capital and reduces capital occupation costs，at the same time，by locking the real-time exchange rate difference，we can avoid about 1.2% of exchange rate fluctuation loss. In terms of threshold，orders with more than 1,000 cartons and a cargo value of more than 500,000 RMB can enjoy bulk discounts，with agency fees charged at 0.8%-1% of the cargo value，functional health food has a small increase of 0.1%-0.2% due to stricter document review. However，if you submit documents for preliminary review 7 days in advance，you can avoid reissuance fees caused by inconsistent data. Calculated based on your order，the all-inclusive agency fee is about 6,400-8,000 RMB. Combined with the benefits of VAT deferral and exchange rate difference lock-in，compared with the traditional agency model，the actual cost can be reduced by 30%-40%，which can fully match your 618 launch schedule.", "upvoteCount": 3, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html#acceptedAnswer", "datePublished": "2026-05-06T00:57:40Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Victor Sun","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/victor-sun/"} } ,"suggestedAnswer": [ { "@type": "Answer", "text": "For imported health food agency fees, the core fees in the customs declaration link include price assessment assistance fee, customs declaration entry fee, and tax payment agency service fee. It should be noted that China Customs has relatively strict price assessment for health food. If the agency fails to assist in sorting out price assessment materials such as purchase contracts and payment vouchers in advance, it may cause Customs to question the cargo value, resulting in extra fees for declaration deletion and re-submission, which is about 1,500-2,000 RMB per order. In addition, if the health food involves a new variety imported for the first time, you need to complete Chinese label filing in advance. Some agencies charge the filing fee separately, it is recommended to clearly specify that it is included in the basic agency fee in the contract. We review all price assessment materials 7 days in advance to ensure that the cargo value declaration conforms to the Customs' fair price range, avoid extra costs caused by price assessment disputes, and include the Chinese label filing fee in the all-inclusive price, with no additional charges afterwards.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html#suggestedAnswer-2", "datePublished": "2026-05-06T00:52:10Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Andy Guo","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/andy-guo/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Logistics-related charges for imported health food agency services include international freight coordination fee, domestic drayage fee, port miscellaneous charges, and detention charge reduction assistance service fee. Most health food are either refrigerated or general cargo requiring timeliness guarantee. If the agency fails to confirm the free storage period of the shipping company in advance, it may lead to high detention charges after exceeding the free period. According to different container specifications, a 20GP container costs about 100-150 RMB per day, and a 40HQ container costs about 200-250 RMB per day. For your 1,200 cartons of deep-sea fish oil, we will coordinate with the shipping company in advance to apply for a 7-10 day extension of the free storage period, and select a direct voyage to Shanghai Port to avoid extra drayage and storage costs caused by transshipment. If container rolling occurs, we will immediately coordinate to rebook the fastest voyage on the same route to ensure no delay to your launch schedule. All these services are included in the basic agency fee, no extra charge.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html#suggestedAnswer-3", "datePublished": "2026-05-06T00:42:05Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Evelyn Li","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/evelyn-li/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Tax-related charges for imported health food agency services include import tax calculation fee, VAT deferral application fee, and tax compliance filing fee. Most traditional agencies charge a calculation fee of 0.5%-1% of the actual tax paid, but do not provide tax planning services, forcing enterprises to pay large amounts of import VAT in advance and occupy working capital. For high-value categories such as health food, we can assist in applying for VAT deferral, which means you do not need to pay import VAT during customs clearance, and complete tax declaration in the next month. This can release working capital equivalent to 13% of the cargo value, and we only charge a small deferral application fee which is included in the all-inclusive price. In addition, if it involves withholding tax declaration for overseas suppliers, we will assist in optimizing related party transaction pricing to reduce the withholding tax burden, and this service is also included in the basic agency fee, no extra expenditure.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html#suggestedAnswer-4", "datePublished": "2026-05-06T00:20:02Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Eric Zhou","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/eric-zhou/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Payment and settlement-related charges for imported health food agency services include payment route optimization fee, settlement assistance fee, and compliance filing fee. Some small agencies process payment through offshore accounts, which may have compliance risks, lead to investigation by the foreign exchange authority, and result in account freezing or fines. We adopt CIPS RMB cross-border payment route, directly connect with overseas suppliers, have lower payment costs, and fully comply with foreign exchange regulatory requirements to avoid compliance risks. For your order with a cargo value of 800,000 RMB, we will assist you to lock in the optimal exchange purchase rate, reduce the exchange rate difference loss by about 0.3%-0.5%, and include the payment compliance filing fee in the all-inclusive price, no extra payment required. In addition, if it involves multi-batch payment, we will assist in establishing a payment ledger to ensure that each payment corresponds to the corresponding purchase contract and customs declaration, meeting the requirement of four-flow consistency.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html#suggestedAnswer-5", "datePublished": "2026-05-06T00:08:38Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Linda Gao","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/linda-gao/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Legal-related charges for imported health food agency services include agency contract review fee, intellectual property customs protection filing fee, and dispute assistance handling fee. Some small agencies have "unfair clauses" in their contracts. For example, for port detention and customs detention losses caused by agency negligence, they only compensate 1-2 times the basic agency fee, which is far from enough to cover the actual loss of the enterprise. We provide customers with customized agency contracts, clearly stipulate that we will fully compensate for losses caused by our faults, and assist in completing intellectual property customs protection filing for health food, to avoid goods being detained due to infringement during customs clearance. This filing fee is included in the all-inclusive price. If an overseas supplier breaches the contract, we will assist in issuing legal documents, coordinate with the shipping company and port to handle the goods, and ensure the security of cargo title. All these services do not require extra charges.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html#suggestedAnswer-6", "datePublished": "2026-05-05T23:58:58Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Michael Zhang","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/michael-zhang/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Supply chain-related charges for imported health food agency services include inventory linkage planning fee, trade term conversion optimization fee, and cost actuarial model service fee. Traditional agencies only provide customs clearance services and do not consider the overall cost of the supply chain. For example, when using FOB trade terms, if the connection between logistics and customs clearance is not coordinated in advance, it may lead to no one picking up the goods after arrival, resulting in detention fees. For your e-commerce business, we will assist you in converting the trade term from FOB to CIF, and we will be fully responsible for the connection between logistics and customs clearance, ensuring that customs clearance is completed within 24 hours after the goods arrive at the port. We also provide inventory linkage planning, optimize the arrival time of goods according to your 618 launch plan, and avoid overstock or stockout. All these supply chain optimization services are included in the basic agency fee, which is charged at 0.8%-1% of the cargo value, no extra charge.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/import-health-food-agency-fees-core-items-common-billing-models.html#suggestedAnswer-7", "datePublished": "2026-05-05T23:27:52Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Lucas Liu","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/lucas-liu/"} } ] } }, { "@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 Core Items Are Included in Imported Health Food Agency Fees and What Are the Common Billing Models?"} ] } ] ```