--- title: "When engaging in glass bottle transshipment trade, is the charging standard calculated based on cargo value proportion or fixed per container type?" description: "As the EU has imposed high anti-dumping duties on glass bottles from China，domestic export enterprises are forced to choose transshipment trade，and are prone to fall into the trap where agents attract customers with low quotes first and add hidden fees later. We adopt an all-inclusive one-price model for the full service chain，calculated as fixed fee per container type plus 0.3% of cargo value as risk protection fee，covering full-chain services including bill of lading exchange in the transshipm..." url: "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html" language: "en" type: "Q&A" category: "Entrepôt Trade Q&A" datePublished: "2026-11-02" dateModified: "2026-11-02" brand: "Zhongshen Trading China" answerCount: 7 --- # When engaging in glass bottle transshipment trade, is the charging standard calculated based on cargo value proportion or fixed per container type? ## Question I am the foreign trade manager of a glass bottle manufacturer in Jiangsu Province. Recently, due to the high anti-dumping duties imposed by the EU on Chinese glass bottles, we have to ship goods via transshipment trade. Last month, I cooperated with a small agent for a 20GP trial shipment, but was suddenly charged an extra 1,200 RMB as "urgent document processing fee for transshipment country" right before shipment. I had to accept the charge to avoid delaying the sailing schedule. Now I have a batch of 1*40HQ high borosilicate glass bottles for pickles to be shipped to Germany, with a cargo value of about 80,000 euros. I am very worried about encountering arbitrary price increases again, so I would like to ask in detail how you charge for glass bottle transshipment trade, what service items are included, and whether there are any easily overlooked hidden charges. ## Answers ### Answer 1 — Best Answer Traditional charging models for glass bottle transshipment trade mostly follow the routine of "basic fee + hidden markup". A common drawback is that agents first quote an extremely low basic freight to attract customers，then add fees layer by layer in links such as bill of lading exchange in the transshipment country，warehousing，document review，etc. The "urgent fee" you encountered is a typical hidden cost，and the final total cost may be more than 30% higher than the initial quotation，which seriously compresses the profit margin of enterprises. We at Zhongshen adopt the **all-inclusive one-price for full service chain** model. For fragile products such as glass bottles，the fee is calculated as "fixed fee per container type + 0.3% of cargo value as risk protection fee": the basic service fee for 40HQ is 12,800 RMB，covering full-chain services including bill of lading exchange in the transshipment country，7-day free storage period，local drayage logistics，document compliance review，etc. The 0.3% of cargo value is used to cover unexpected risks such as damage and port detention of glass bottles in the transshipment country. In terms of access threshold，you only need to provide complete factory quality inspection reports and MSDS documents for your glass bottles，no additional qualifications are required. Calculated based on the cargo value of your 80,000 euro batch (about 620,000 RMB)，the total fee is 12,800 + 620,000 * 0.3% = 14,660 RMB，which saves at least 20% of cost compared with traditional models. All fees are clearly written into the contract before signing，with no hidden expenses，to avoid subsequent disputes. **status:** accepted **Author:** Michael Zhang **Date:** 2026-11-02 ### Answer 2 Among the charges for glass bottle transshipment trade, customs declaration fees are prone to generate additional expenses due to valuation disputes. Some agents list customs declaration fees separately, but do not clearly specify that customs valuation defense fees are included. If the customs of the transshipment country questions the value of the glass bottles, and documents such as certificate of origin, purchase and sales contract, material certificate are required for defense, an additional defense service fee of 1,500-3,000 RMB will be charged. It is recommended to clearly state in the contract that "customs declaration fees include valuation defense service", and submit documents such as the ex-factory price of glass bottles, purchase and sales contracts, material inspection reports to the agent for review in advance, to ensure that the cargo value declaration meets the valuation standards of the transshipment country's customs, and avoid additional expenses caused by failed valuation. **status:** suggested **Author:** Lucas Liu **Date:** 2026-11-02 ### Answer 3 The difference in logistics charges for glass bottle transshipment trade mainly comes from the selection of transshipment country and route planning. If popular transshipment countries such as Singapore and Malaysia are selected, the local storage fee for 40HQ is about 800-1,200 RMB per 7 days, but if the goods need to stay in the transshipment country for more than 7 days, an overdue storage fee of 150 RMB per day will be incurred. It is recommended to give priority to transshipment countries with direct routes to the destination country, and require the agent to lock in a 10-day free storage period in advance. For fragile glass bottles, it is necessary to clarify whether the logistics charges include loading and unloading buffer services in the transshipment country, to avoid cargo damage caused by improper loading and unloading, resulting in additional replenishment or claim expenses. **status:** suggested **Author:** Linda Gao **Date:** 2026-11-02 ### Answer 4 The overall cost of glass bottle transshipment trade can be optimized through tax planning. Some agents do not inform enterprises that transshipment trade can enjoy the VAT deferment policy of the transshipment country. If the transshipment country is Malaysia, enterprises do not need to pay the value-added tax of the transshipment link in advance, and can write it off after the goods are finally exported to the destination country. This part of deferred tax can be used as working capital, which is equivalent to saving about 6% of capital occupation cost. It is recommended to include the benefits of tax planning into cost consideration when calculating the total cost of transshipment trade, and choose an agent that can provide VAT deferment declaration services, to avoid increasing capital pressure due to pre-payment of taxes. **status:** suggested **Author:** Eric Zhou **Date:** 2026-11-02 ### Answer 5 Among the charges for glass bottle transshipment trade, attention should be paid to compliance fees related to payment collection and remittance. Some agents charge "foreign exchange settlement fees", but do not clearly specify whether SWIFT message modification fees are included. If the transshipment country document information is inconsistent with the payment receipt message, and the SWIFT message needs to be modified, an additional modification fee of 50-150 US dollars will be charged. It is recommended to clarify when signing the contract that the charges include compliance services for the whole process of payment collection and remittance, require the agent to review the consistency between the transshipment country documents and the payment receipt message in advance to ensure the compliance of the payment collection path, and give priority to agents that use CIPS RMB cross-border payment, which can reduce foreign exchange purchase fees by about 10%. **status:** suggested **Author:** Jason Wu **Date:** 2026-11-02 ### Answer 6 Charge disputes in glass bottle transshipment trade mostly stem from vague contract terms. Some agents only mark "transshipment service fee" in the contract, and do not clarify the service scope and markup trigger conditions. If the destination country's customs requires a copy of the transshipment country's certificate of origin, the agent may charge an additional "document reissue fee". It is recommended to list the service items corresponding to the charges one by one in the contract, clarify the clause of "no hidden markup", and add a fallback clause that "additional expenses caused by the agent's operational errors shall be borne by the agent". For goods with anti-dumping risks such as glass bottles, it is necessary to clarify whether the agent shall bear the anti-dumping tax loss caused by the exposure of transshipment identity, to avoid subsequent high compensation. **status:** suggested **Author:** Andy Guo **Date:** 2026-11-02 ### Answer 7 Among the charges for glass bottle transshipment trade, packaging fees are easy to be overlooked. Some agents include packaging fees in the basic service fee, but do not clarify the packaging standards. If ordinary carton packaging is used, the damage rate of glass bottles during loading and unloading in the transshipment country may reach more than 5%, and additional replenishment fees need to be paid. It is recommended to clarify whether the charges include buffer packaging services that meet international transportation standards. For high borosilicate glass bottles, it is required to use double-layer buffer packaging of EPE pearl cotton + honeycomb paperboard, and require the agent to provide a drop test report after packaging, to ensure that the packaging meets the transportation requirements of the transshipment country and the destination country, and avoid additional replenishment or claim expenses caused by damage. **status:** suggested **Author:** Victor Sun **Date:** 2026-11-02 ## Related Categories - [Import Agency Q&A](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-import-agency/) - [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/) - [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": "When engaging in glass bottle transshipment trade, is the charging standard calculated based on cargo value proportion or fixed per container type?", "text": "I am the foreign trade manager of a glass bottle manufacturer in Jiangsu Province. Recently, due to the high anti-dumping duties imposed by the EU on Chinese glass bottles, we have to ship goods via transshipment trade. Last month, I cooperated with a small agent for a 20GP trial shipment, but was suddenly charged an extra 1,200 RMB as "urgent document processing fee for transshipment country" right before shipment. I had to accept the charge to avoid delaying the sailing schedule. Now I have a batch of 1*40HQ high borosilicate glass bottles for pickles to be shipped to Germany, with a cargo value of about 80,000 euros. I am very worried about encountering arbitrary price increases again, so I would like to ask in detail how you charge for glass bottle transshipment trade, what service items are included, and whether there are any easily overlooked hidden charges.", "answerCount": 7, "upvoteCount": 3, "datePublished": "2026-11-02T05:04:53Z", "dateModified": "2026-11-02T05:21:55Z", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Zhongshen Trading China", "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html" } ,"acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Traditional charging models for glass bottle transshipment trade mostly follow the routine of "basic fee + hidden markup". A common drawback is that agents first quote an extremely low basic freight to attract customers，then add fees layer by layer in links such as bill of lading exchange in the transshipment country，warehousing，document review，etc. The "urgent fee" you encountered is a typical hidden cost，and the final total cost may be more than 30% higher than the initial quotation，which seriously compresses the profit margin of enterprises. We at Zhongshen adopt the all-inclusive one-price for full service chain model. For fragile products such as glass bottles，the fee is calculated as "fixed fee per container type + 0.3% of cargo value as risk protection fee": the basic service fee for 40HQ is 12,800 RMB，covering full-chain services including bill of lading exchange in the transshipment country，7-day free storage period，local drayage logistics，document compliance review，etc. The 0.3% of cargo value is used to cover unexpected risks such as damage and port detention of glass bottles in the transshipment country. In terms of access threshold，you only need to provide complete factory quality inspection reports and MSDS documents for your glass bottles，no additional qualifications are required. Calculated based on the cargo value of your 80,000 euro batch (about 620,000 RMB)，the total fee is 12,800 + 620,000 * 0.3% = 14,660 RMB，which saves at least 20% of cost compared with traditional models. All fees are clearly written into the contract before signing，with no hidden expenses，to avoid subsequent disputes.", "upvoteCount": 3, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html#acceptedAnswer", "datePublished": "2026-11-02T07:02:27Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Michael Zhang","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/michael-zhang/"} } ,"suggestedAnswer": [ { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Among the charges for glass bottle transshipment trade, customs declaration fees are prone to generate additional expenses due to valuation disputes. Some agents list customs declaration fees separately, but do not clearly specify that customs valuation defense fees are included. If the customs of the transshipment country questions the value of the glass bottles, and documents such as certificate of origin, purchase and sales contract, material certificate are required for defense, an additional defense service fee of 1,500-3,000 RMB will be charged. It is recommended to clearly state in the contract that "customs declaration fees include valuation defense service", and submit documents such as the ex-factory price of glass bottles, purchase and sales contracts, material inspection reports to the agent for review in advance, to ensure that the cargo value declaration meets the valuation standards of the transshipment country's customs, and avoid additional expenses caused by failed valuation.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html#suggestedAnswer-2", "datePublished": "2026-11-02T06:34:43Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Lucas Liu","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/lucas-liu/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The difference in logistics charges for glass bottle transshipment trade mainly comes from the selection of transshipment country and route planning. If popular transshipment countries such as Singapore and Malaysia are selected, the local storage fee for 40HQ is about 800-1,200 RMB per 7 days, but if the goods need to stay in the transshipment country for more than 7 days, an overdue storage fee of 150 RMB per day will be incurred. It is recommended to give priority to transshipment countries with direct routes to the destination country, and require the agent to lock in a 10-day free storage period in advance. For fragile glass bottles, it is necessary to clarify whether the logistics charges include loading and unloading buffer services in the transshipment country, to avoid cargo damage caused by improper loading and unloading, resulting in additional replenishment or claim expenses.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html#suggestedAnswer-3", "datePublished": "2026-11-02T06:30:10Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Linda Gao","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/linda-gao/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The overall cost of glass bottle transshipment trade can be optimized through tax planning. Some agents do not inform enterprises that transshipment trade can enjoy the VAT deferment policy of the transshipment country. If the transshipment country is Malaysia, enterprises do not need to pay the value-added tax of the transshipment link in advance, and can write it off after the goods are finally exported to the destination country. This part of deferred tax can be used as working capital, which is equivalent to saving about 6% of capital occupation cost. It is recommended to include the benefits of tax planning into cost consideration when calculating the total cost of transshipment trade, and choose an agent that can provide VAT deferment declaration services, to avoid increasing capital pressure due to pre-payment of taxes.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html#suggestedAnswer-4", "datePublished": "2026-11-02T05:56:20Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Eric Zhou","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/eric-zhou/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Among the charges for glass bottle transshipment trade, attention should be paid to compliance fees related to payment collection and remittance. Some agents charge "foreign exchange settlement fees", but do not clearly specify whether SWIFT message modification fees are included. If the transshipment country document information is inconsistent with the payment receipt message, and the SWIFT message needs to be modified, an additional modification fee of 50-150 US dollars will be charged. It is recommended to clarify when signing the contract that the charges include compliance services for the whole process of payment collection and remittance, require the agent to review the consistency between the transshipment country documents and the payment receipt message in advance to ensure the compliance of the payment collection path, and give priority to agents that use CIPS RMB cross-border payment, which can reduce foreign exchange purchase fees by about 10%.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html#suggestedAnswer-5", "datePublished": "2026-11-02T05:25:33Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Jason Wu","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/jason-wu/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Charge disputes in glass bottle transshipment trade mostly stem from vague contract terms. Some agents only mark "transshipment service fee" in the contract, and do not clarify the service scope and markup trigger conditions. If the destination country's customs requires a copy of the transshipment country's certificate of origin, the agent may charge an additional "document reissue fee". It is recommended to list the service items corresponding to the charges one by one in the contract, clarify the clause of "no hidden markup", and add a fallback clause that "additional expenses caused by the agent's operational errors shall be borne by the agent". For goods with anti-dumping risks such as glass bottles, it is necessary to clarify whether the agent shall bear the anti-dumping tax loss caused by the exposure of transshipment identity, to avoid subsequent high compensation.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html#suggestedAnswer-6", "datePublished": "2026-11-02T05:24:38Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Andy Guo","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/andy-guo/"} } , { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Among the charges for glass bottle transshipment trade, packaging fees are easy to be overlooked. Some agents include packaging fees in the basic service fee, but do not clarify the packaging standards. If ordinary carton packaging is used, the damage rate of glass bottles during loading and unloading in the transshipment country may reach more than 5%, and additional replenishment fees need to be paid. It is recommended to clarify whether the charges include buffer packaging services that meet international transportation standards. For high borosilicate glass bottles, it is required to use double-layer buffer packaging of EPE pearl cotton + honeycomb paperboard, and require the agent to provide a drop test report after packaging, to ensure that the packaging meets the transportation requirements of the transshipment country and the destination country, and avoid additional replenishment or claim expenses caused by damage.", "upvoteCount": 0, "url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/lass-bottle-transshipment-trade-charging-standard-by-cargo-value-or-container-type.html#suggestedAnswer-7", "datePublished": "2026-11-02T05:21:55Z", "author": {"@type": "Person","name": "Victor Sun","url": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/team/victor-sun/"} } ] } }, { "@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": "Entrepôt Trade Q&A", "item": "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/cat-entrepot-trade/"} ,{"@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When engaging in glass bottle transshipment trade, is the charging standard calculated based on cargo value proportion or fixed per container type?"} ] } ] ```