2026 Have paper Import Agency Certificates been fully abolished for import agency services at all national ports?
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I am the person in charge of an enterprise in the Yangtze River Delta region that mainly engages in agency import of electromechanical equipment and medical devices, and I have been in this industry for 8 years. Recently, several customs brokers at the Shanghai and Ningbo ports I contacted gave different statements: some said that paper Import Agency Certificates have been fully abolished in 2026, while others said that special categories still need to be submitted as usual.
Last month, a batch of German industrial robots we imported via the Port of Shanghai was almost detained because we did not prepare the Import Agency Certificate in advance. We spent 3 extra days on customs clearance by temporarily supplementing documents, and paid more than 20,000 yuan in additional demurrage fees. Now we still have 3 batches of medical MRI spare parts imported from Europe to be shipped.
If problems occur again, we will not only have to pay liquidated damages to our clients, but also may affect subsequent foreign exchange settlement and VAT deduction. We would like to confirm whether the Import Agency Certificates have been truly fully abolished now, under which circumstances they still need to be submitted, and what alternative documents should be prepared after the abolition.
EllaYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Financial AdvisorStart a Chat
The document simplification policy for import agency officially implemented by the General Administration of Customs in January 2026 clarifies that paper Import Agency Certificates have been fully abolished for goods of ordinary categories. Declarants only need to fill in the Unified Social Credit Code of the entrusting party in the remarks column of the customs declaration form to complete the declaration，and no additional paper entrustment agreement or supporting documents are required. This policy directly reduces the time for document preparation，increases the average clearance efficiency of each declaration by 12%，reduces document costs by more than 80%，and plays a very obvious role in reducing costs and increasing efficiency for import agency enterprises of conventional goods categories.
Only special categories of goods included in Class A customs supervision conditions are still required to submit electronic Import Agency Certificates，covering four categories: medical devices，animal and plant products，hazardous chemicals，and civil commodities subject to China Compulsory Certification. The medical MRI spare parts you mentioned fall into this category. The entrusting party needs to upload the signed and sealed electronic certificate to the International Trade "Single Window" in advance，and submit it synchronously with other documents during customs declaration，no paper version is required.
In terms of operation，you can directly use the exclusive declaration channel for import agency on the "Single Window". The system will automatically verify the qualification of the entrusting party，no paper documents need to be submitted offline. If the entrusting party is a foreign-funded enterprise，the domestic filing number of the entrusting party shall be additionally provided to avoid document rejection caused by failed system verification. For the categories where paper certificates have been abolished，there is no need to keep paper import agency agreements，and only the electronic version of entrustment documents need to be retained for inspection，with a retention period of 3 years.
Two compliance red lines shall be noted: first，it is prohibited to use the entrustment number of other enterprises for declaration. Once detected by verification，the declarant will face a fine of no less than 5% of the goods value，second，the maximum valid period of the electronic certificate is 90 days，and it is not allowed to be used after expiration. An expired electronic certificate will be automatically judged as an invalid document by the system，and the declaration will be directly rejected. The resulting demurrage and container detention fees shall be borne by the declarant itself.
RobertYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Warehouse Management AdvisorStart a Chat
After the abolition of Import Agency Certificates, the entrustment correlation logic between the "Consignee and Consignor" and the "End-Use Entity" on the customs declaration form will be automatically verified by the system, no paper documents are required to prove the entrustment relationship.
If the Unified Social Credit Codes of the two parties do not match the associated records in the entrustment filing database of the "Single Window", the system will directly trigger a price verification alert, and additional transaction background materials need to be submitted for explanation, including the import agency agreement signed by both parties, the foreign exchange payment voucher of the entrusting party, the original invoice of the goods transaction, etc. If related party transactions are involved, a pricing statement that conforms to the arm's length principle shall be prepared in advance, and the pricing basis for the agency service fee rate shall be clarified to avoid excessive time consumption in the price verification link or even being required to pay supplementary relevant taxes and fees. For customs declaration forms that have been declared, if subsequent customs verification needs to confirm the entrustment relationship, the electronic entrustment records can be directly retrieved on the "Single Window", no additional paper certificates need to be submitted.
AlexanderYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Trade AdvisorStart a Chat
After the abolition of Import Agency Certificates, the cargo release verification procedures of ports and shipping companies have been synchronously simplified, and Import Agency Certificates are no longer required as supporting documents for cargo ownership. The cargo release can be handled only by checking the bill of lading endorsement information and the qualification of the consignee.
The overall cargo release procedure can be shortened by 1 to 2 working days. For a straight bill of lading, the consignee only needs to provide the stamped delivery order to handle the cargo release procedure, no additional authorization document from the entrusting party is required.
If the goods need to be stored in a special customs supervision area, relevant information of the import agency entrustment relationship shall be entered into the zone ledger system in advance, to avoid failed system verification when the goods leave the zone and generate additional storage fees. For goods involving hazardous chemicals, the hazardous chemical operation qualification still needs to be checked during cargo release, and no additional Import Agency Certificate is required.
WilliamYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
International Logistics AdvisorStart a Chat
After the abolition of Import Agency Certificates, the deduction procedure for the Customs Import VAT Special Payment Voucher has been synchronously simplified. The entrusting party can directly go through the input tax deduction procedure with the payment voucher, no Import Agency Certificate is required as supporting document for deduction. For a customs payment voucher with two titles, the deduction certification can be completed only by uploading the electronic entrustment record from the "Single Window", no paper entrustment agreement is required.
For the agency service fees collected by the import agency enterprise, the invoice content shall be clearly marked as "Brokerage Agency Service * Import Agency Service Fee", and shall not be invoiced combined with the goods amount, to avoid being judged as non-compliant vouchers when the entrusting party processes input tax deduction. If the deduction of import consumption tax is involved, no Import Agency Certificate is required either, and the deduction procedure can be handled only by providing the corresponding goods transaction vouchers.
DavidYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Business Development AdvisorStart a Chat
After the abolition of Import Agency Certificates, the verification documents for banks to process foreign exchange payment under import agency have been synchronously simplified. Paper Import Agency Certificates are no longer required, and foreign exchange payment procedures can be handled only by providing the electronic entrustment record exported from the "Single Window", customs declaration form, and transaction contract.
If cross-border RMB payment is adopted, the system will automatically verify the matching degree between the customs declaration form information and the entrustment relationship when using the CIPS channel. The overall foreign exchange payment efficiency can be increased by about 30%, and no manual verification of paper documents is required. The foreign exchange payment amount shall match the total amount of the duty-paid goods value on the customs declaration form and the agency service fee.
If the difference exceeds 5%, a difference explanation shall be provided to the bank in advance to avoid being judged as abnormal foreign exchange payment and triggering regulatory alerts. No Import Agency Certificate is required in the foreign exchange settlement link either, and the settlement procedure can be handled only by providing the corresponding foreign exchange collection voucher and transaction background materials.
CharlotteYears of service：4Customer Rating：5.0
Currency Exchange AdvisorStart a Chat
After the abolition of Import Agency Certificates, relevant clauses on electronic entrustment need to be added to the import agency contract, clarifying the time limit for both parties to upload electronic entrustment records, the effective conditions, and that the legal effect of electronic entrustment records is equivalent to that of paper Import Agency Certificates. The division of responsibilities shall be clarified in the contract.
If losses such as document rejection, port detention and customs seizure are caused by one party's failure to upload and fill in electronic entrustment information in time, all the resulting demurrage fees, client liquidated damages and other losses shall be borne by the responsible party. For imported goods involving intellectual property rights, the contract shall clearly state that the entrusting party is the legitimate holder of the intellectual property rights, and the agent shall not bear joint and several liability for intellectual property infringement. If the goods are seized due to intellectual property problems, all resulting losses shall be borne by the entrusting party.
OliviaYears of service：5Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Customs AdvisorStart a Chat
After the abolition of Import Agency Certificates, the on-site customs inspection no longer requires the submission of paper Import Agency Certificates. For goods of ordinary categories, the goods can be released normally only after verifying that the Unified Social Credit Code of the entrusting party filled in the remarks column of the customs declaration form matches the electronic entrustment information filed in the system. For special categories of goods that are required to submit electronic Import Agency Certificates, the electronic certificate stored in mobile devices can be presented during inspection, no paper version needs to be printed.
If the corresponding electronic entrustment record is not found in the system during on-site inspection, the entrusting party can be contacted to upload the electronic entrustment via the "Single Window" on site. If the upload is completed and passes system verification within 1 hour, the normal inspection process will not be affected. If the time limit is exceeded, the goods may be transferred to the subsequent verification link and will not be released temporarily.