Full Process Guide for Food Import Customs Clearance Agency

I.5 Core Regulatory Red Lines for Food Import Customs Clearance

Unlike general goods,imported food is subject to dual supervision by customs and CIQ.According to the latest 2026 requirements,3 mandatory red lines must be avoided in advance:

• Pre-requirement for label filing: All pre-packaged food must complete Chinese label filing before import,and the label content must include 11 mandatory information items such as ingredient list,allergen,shelf life,storage condition,none of which is dispensable.
• Validity period of animal and plant quarantine certificate: Meat,dairy products and other related products are required to provide PHYTOSANITARY CERTIFICATE or HEALTH CERTIFICATE issued by the country of origin,and the interval between the certificate issuance date and the import customs declaration date shall not exceed 90 days.
• Additive compliance: The 2024 version of GB 2760-2 National Food Safety Standard - Standard for Use of Food Additives has been implemented.If imported food contains additives such as sunset yellow and potassium sorbate,the content must strictly comply with the latest limit standards,and goods exceeding the standards will be directly returned.
• Registration of overseas production enterprises: In accordance with GACC Decree No.248,overseas production enterprises of imported food must complete registration with the General Administration of Customs,and food produced by unregistered enterprises will be directly rejected.
• Classified management of import licenses: Meat,infant formula milk powder and other products are required to apply for Import License separately,and the license is only valid for 6 months,which needs to be applied 30 days in advance.

Supervisor Ke once handled a case: A Southeast Asian enterprise imported chocolate,and failed to check the usage limit of caramel color specified in GB 2760-2024,resulting in 3 batches of goods being returned at Yangshan Port,and it took 45 days to rework the labels before the goods were cleared.

II.Full Process Breakdown of Food Import at Shanghai Port

1.Access Qualification Pre-audit (Key Window Period: 15 Days Before Goods Arrival)

Zhongshitong’s pre-audit checklist covers 3 major modules:

• Overseas qualification verification: Verify whether the overseas production enterprise is included in the GACC registration list through the official website of the General Administration of Customs,focusing on checking whether the enterprise name,address and product category are consistent with the customs declaration form.
• Document integrity verification: 8 core documents including certificate of origin (FORM A/B/R,RCEP member states enjoy tariff reduction),health certificate,bill of lading and packing list need to be audited in advance to ensure "consistency between all documents".
• Chinese label pre-review: Submit the Chinese label template of imported food (including font size,position and information arrangement) to the CIQ department for pre-review,to avoid goods being detained after arrival due to labels not meeting national standards.

Manager Xie once encountered a client whose goods could not be exchanged for the delivery order after arrival because the mark on the bill of lading was inconsistent with that on the packing list,resulting in a demurrage fee of 12,000 yuan.This problem can be avoided by completing the document pre-audit 3 days in advance.

2.Customs Valuation and Classification Strategy

In food import,risks often arise due to "untruthful price declaration" in customs valuation.Zhongshitong’s coping strategies are as follows:

• Accurate HS Code classification: Classification shall be carried out according to product form (e.g.ready-to-eat bird’s nest is classified under 04081100,and seasoning sauce is classified under 21039090) to avoid tax rate deviation caused by wrong classification.
• Basis for price declaration: Provide import customs declaration forms and commercial invoices of similar products in the latest 3 months as price reference.If the declared price is lower than the warning value of the customs system,supplementary explanation (e.g.different production process leads to different cost) is required.
• Price verification for special food: For infant formula milk powder,formula food for special medical use and other products,the cost accounting statement of the production enterprise shall be additionally provided to prove the rationality of the declared price.

Since January 2026,customs has intensified the verification of dutiable value for imported nuts.A certain brand of nuts was questioned by customs for "under-declaring price" because its declared price was 20% lower than that of similar products,and the valuation was finally passed after supplementary provision of certificate of origin and production process description.

3.CIQ Inspection and Sampling Testing

CIQ departments focus on "sensory properties" and "microbial indicators" in food inspection.Zhongshitong suggests that:

• Inspection appointment skills: Apply to the CIQ department for inspection 1 day in advance,choose the "priority inspection" channel (an expedite fee of about 500 yuan per time is required) to avoid long-term detention of goods in the yard.
• Preparation for sampling testing: Prepare sampling record form in advance for dairy products,edible oil and other products,ensure that the whole sampling process is video recorded to avoid disputes with CIQ officers.
• Risk level prediction: For high-risk products (such as imported meat and infant food),it is recommended to complete "pre-inspection" 24 hours before commodity inspection,to ensure that key indicators (such as protein content and heavy metal content) meet national standards.

Manager Ling once acted as the agent for a batch of imported cheese.Due to the failure to complete self-inspection of microbial indicators before inspection,the sampling result showed that the total bacterial count exceeded the standard,and the goods were centrally destroyed,resulting in a direct loss of 1.2 million yuan.This case proves the necessity of "placing self-inspection in advance".

III.Typical Risk Cases and Coping Solutions

Case Background: A trading company imported 10 tons of Italian olive oil.After the goods arrived at the port,it was found that "olive oil" was mistakenly written as "edible vegetable oil" in the label filing,resulting in failure to clear customs.

Task: Complete label rectification and customs clearance within 48 hours.

Actions:

1.Immediately contact the original Italian manufacturer to re-issue the health certificate (emphasizing the product attribute of "extra virgin olive oil");

2.Use "PS + AI" technology to simulate the rectified label style,and submit it to the CIQ department for re-review;

3.Apply for "emergency release" at the same time,providing goods value certificate and sales contract as guarantee.

Result: The label filing modification was completed within 36 hours,and the goods were successfully cleared within 48 hours,avoiding demurrage loss of 86,000 yuan.

IV.2026 Food Import Policy and Risk Warning

New regulatory requirements added in 2026 need to be focused on:

• Tariff preference for RCEP member states: From July 2026,the tariff on products such as Australian wine and New Zealand dairy products will be reduced from 5% to 2.5%.It is necessary to confirm in advance whether the issuance date of the certificate of origin falls before the effective date of tariff adjustment.
• New EU regulation on food contact materials: Imported food packaging materials are required to provide "EU REACH Regulation Compliance Statement",in which the migration limit of bisphenol A (BPA) is reduced from 0.05mg/kg to 0.01mg/kg.
• Dynamic tracking of anti-dumping duties: Attention shall still be paid to the change of anti-dumping duty rate for products such as Argentine beef and Thai rice,and confirm the application of the latest tax rate with customs 30 days in advance.

In addition,holidays have a significant impact on customs clearance efficiency: during the 2026 Ramadan period (April 2,2026 to May 1,2026),CIQ inspection efficiency at Shanghai Port drops by 40%,so it is recommended to complete all pre-arrival preparation work 15 days in advance.

V.Value of Zhongshitong One-Stop Service

As a long-established food import agency enterprise at Shanghai Port,our core advantages are reflected in:

• Nationwide port linkage: Through the "Zhongshitong Cloud Customs Declaration System",remote declaration is realized at 9 major ports including Shanghai,Ningbo and Qingdao,shortening the average customs clearance time by 2-3 days.
• Global agency network: We have set up 6 branches in Southeast Asia,Europe and North America,which can book overseas shipping spaces in advance to avoid goods backlog in peak seasons (such as Christmas season).
• 24-hour emergency response: If goods encounter inspection after arrival,we will immediately launch the "emergency team" to coordinate the synchronous operation of CIQ,customs and warehousing parties to reduce the risk of port detention.

Mr.Dong once entrusted us to act as the agent for 12 batches of imported Japanese sake,which were returned due to label filing problems.Through our "72-hour label rectification + re-declaration" plan,the final loss was reduced from the originally planned 300,000 yuan to 58,000 yuan.

(Note: All the above data are from the statistics of Zhongshitong’s agency cases in the first quarter of 2026,and the specific operation plan needs to be adjusted according to the actual situation of the goods.)