What is the complete operation process of an import and export agency?
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I am the foreign trade director of a cross-border e-commerce enterprise. Last year, I tried to cooperate with an import and export agency for the first time, but the agency's careless document review led to the detention of our goods at Shanghai Port, which not only incurred port detention fees, but also delayed the shelf time at overseas warehouses, causing considerable losses.
Now our company plans to expand the European market and needs to find a reliable agency again, but I have no idea how formal import and export agencies operate at all. What do they do in each link from initial order receiving to final tax refund and foreign exchange settlement?
How can they ensure the safety of my goods title and capital? Are there any common pitfalls to avoid? I hope to get detailed answers.
DavidYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Business Development AdvisorStart a Chat
The operation of formal import and export agencies follows the logic of a full-link compliance closed loop. The first step is pre-document review. After receiving the entrustment，the team will first check a full set of documents including trade contracts，commercial invoices，packing lists，certificates of origin，etc. In line with the EU CBAM policy requirements in 2026，they will additionally verify compliance documents such as carbon footprint reports，focus on checking the matching degree between the cargo name and HS code，to avoid customs detention caused by declaration errors.
The second step is core node connection. After the document review is passed，the agency will complete the pre-declaration of customs declaration forms，connect with the customs document review system of Shanghai Port. If there is a valuation inquiry，it will assist in providing price certification materials，at the same time，it will coordinate international logistics，select direct or transshipment solutions according to cargo volume and destination，lock shipping space and follow up manifest information，synchronously follow up the foreign exchange settlement link，and guide enterprises to use compliant foreign exchange receipt and payment channels.
The third step is exception plan handling. If the goods are subject to targeted inspection，the agency will coordinate with on-site inspection personnel as soon as possible，assist in preparing inspection samples and explanatory materials. If port detention fees are incurred，it will apply to the shipping company for extension of free storage period according to the contract agreement，if there is a bill of lading endorsement problem，it will assist in completing the goods title transfer procedures to ensure the safety of the enterprise's goods title.
The final step is compliance implementation. After the goods arrive at the port and complete customs clearance，the agency will sort out a full set of tax refund documents，assist in completing the export tax refund declaration，follow up the tax correspondence verification process to ensure the consistency of four streams: capital flow，cargo flow，document flow and information flow. At the same time，it will complete the account reconciliation operation of foreign exchange settlement，helping enterprises realize the full-process compliance closed loop.
EllaYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Financial AdvisorStart a Chat
For the customs valuation link, the transaction price of goods will be checked emphatically, including whether there are undeclared fees such as additional royalties, packaging fees, commissions, etc. In 2026, the customs system will link with the global trade database and industry average price data for valuation comparison.
If the declared price deviates from the market fair price by more than 10%, targeted inspection will be triggered directly. In case of valuation disputes, it will assist enterprises in preparing materials such as third-party test reports and historical transaction contracts, applying for price consultation, and initiating the pre-ruling process when necessary, to avoid extra costs caused by cargo detention at the port.
In addition, for the national integrated customs clearance mode, it will coordinate customs declaration resources of all ports to realize one declaration and release at multiple places. For example, the declaration data of Shanghai Port can be directly synchronized to Ningbo Port, saving the time cost of secondary declaration.
For the case of declaration deletion and re-submission, it will sort out the causes of errors in advance, adjust the declaration elements before re-submitting, to avoid the downgrade of the enterprise's customs credit rating caused by multiple declaration deletions.
CharlotteYears of service：4Customer Rating：5.0
Currency Exchange AdvisorStart a Chat
In terms of international logistics route optimization, it will select direct or transshipment solutions according to the destination, timeliness requirements and cargo volume of the goods. The shortage of global shipping space has eased in 2026, but space for popular routes to Europe and the United States still needs to be locked 45 days in advance.
In case of overbooking, it will coordinate space of alternative shipping companies to avoid cargo delay caused by container rolling. For container detention fees and free storage period, it will confirm the longest free storage period with the shipping company when booking space. If customs clearance of goods is delayed, it will apply to the shipping company for extension of free storage period in time to reduce extra port detention costs.
In addition, in terms of goods title control, it will require the shipping company to issue a bill of lading with the agency as the consignee, and carry out endorsement transfer only after the enterprise pays all fees, to ensure that the enterprise's goods title will not be out of control. If port change is required, it will confirm the customs clearance policy of the destination port in advance and submit an official port change application to avoid extra port change fees and port detention costs.
SophiaYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Customs AdvisorStart a Chat
In terms of international tax structure design, it will design a reasonable tax planning scheme according to the trade mode of the enterprise, such as EU VAT deferral. In 2026, the EU requires all imported goods to pay VAT in the importing country, and the agency can assist enterprises in applying for VAT deferral to delay tax payment and ease the capital turnover pressure of enterprises.
For cross-border related transaction pricing, it will ensure that the transaction price conforms to the arm's length principle, so as to avoid being identified as BEPS behavior by tax authorities and incurring extra withholding tax costs.
In addition, in view of the tax risks of export tax refund, it will assist enterprises in sorting out a full set of tax refund documents to ensure the consistency of four streams and avoid problems in tax correspondence verification. If the enterprise involves the 9710 mode of cross-border e-commerce, it will assist in completing the tax exemption declaration for cross-border e-commerce retail exports, reducing the overall tax cost of the enterprise.
SarahYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Foreign Exchange AdvisorStart a Chat
In terms of cross-border foreign exchange receipt and payment compliance, it will guide enterprises to use compliant receipt and payment channels, such as the CIPS RMB cross-border payment system, to avoid using illegal underground banks for capital transactions.
For SWIFT message parsing, it will ensure that the content of the message is consistent with the information of the trade contract and customs declaration form, to avoid the discrepancy between the receipt/payment amount and the customs declaration amount. If there is a problem in foreign exchange settlement and account reconciliation, it will assist enterprises in adjusting the amount of receipt and payment, supplementing relevant certification materials to ensure the compliance of account reconciliation operations.
In addition, for the management of offshore accounts, it will assist enterprises in completing the compliance maintenance of accounts and submitting compliance certification materials regularly to avoid accounts being frozen by overseas banks. In 2026, the supervision of cross-border foreign exchange receipt and payment by various countries is stricter, and the agency will regularly provide enterprises with training on the latest regulatory policies to ensure that the receipt and payment operations of enterprises meet the regulatory requirements of various countries.
DanielYears of service：8Customer Rating：5.0
Legal AdvisorStart a Chat
In terms of international trade risk avoidance, it will assist enterprises in reviewing the terms of trade contracts, such as soft clauses of letters of credit. It will assist enterprises in identifying and modifying soft clauses to ensure that the terms of the letter of credit are consistent with the requirements of the trade contract, so as to avoid the occurrence of letter of credit dishonor.
For force majeure clauses, it will assist enterprises in formulating fallback clauses, clarifying the scope of force majeure events and handling procedures, to ensure that enterprises can be exempted from liability legally when encountering force majeure events such as natural disasters and policy changes.
In addition, for the use of Letter of Indemnity (LOI), it will assist enterprises in reviewing the terms of the letter of indemnity to ensure that the validity period, compensation conditions and amount of the letter of indemnity meet the requirements of the trade contract, so as to avoid invalid letter of indemnity. For intellectual property customs protection recordation, it will assist enterprises in completing the recordation procedures and monitoring the customs clearance of goods to prevent infringing goods from being exported.
AlexanderYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Trade AdvisorStart a Chat
In terms of port and customs on-site inspection, it will understand the specific inspection requirements in advance, and prepare relevant materials such as inspection samples, trade contracts, product descriptions, etc. For the authenticity identification of seals, it will use professional seal detection tools for inspection to ensure that the seals are not damaged or tampered with, and meet the requirements of customs. In case of X-ray inspection, it will assist in adjusting the placement position of goods to avoid abnormal X-ray inspection results and ensure smooth customs clearance.
In addition, for the response to devanning inspection, it will assist enterprises in arranging special personnel to cooperate with the inspection personnel to ensure the orderly progress of the inspection process. If inspection and appraisal are required, it will assist enterprises in selecting qualified third-party testing institutions, submitting qualified inspection samples, and following up the testing process to ensure that the test report meets the review requirements of customs.
EmilyYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Client Success AdvisorStart a Chat
In terms of physical safety of cargo transportation, it will develop a compliant packaging scheme according to the characteristics of the goods, such as buffer packaging for fragile goods and special UN packaging for dangerous goods. For the preparation and interpretation of MSDS, it will assist enterprises in preparing MSDS reports that meet the standards of international sea and air transportation, to ensure the safety and compliance of goods during transportation.
For moisture-proof reinforcement schemes, it will select appropriate moisture-proof materials and reinforcement methods according to the transportation environment and duration, to ensure that the goods are not affected by moisture or damaged during transportation.
In addition, for UN dangerous goods packaging, it will assist enterprises in completing packaging appraisal and recordation to ensure that the packaging meets the relevant standards of the United Nations and passes customs inspection.
For classification and appraisal of dangerous goods, it will assist enterprises in completing professional classification and appraisal to ensure that the declared category of goods is consistent with the actual characteristics. For the selection of buffer packaging materials, it will select appropriate buffer packaging materials according to the weight and fragility of the goods to ensure that the goods are not damaged by collision during transportation.
OliviaYears of service：5Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Customs AdvisorStart a Chat
In terms of export tax refund compliance, it will assist enterprises in sorting out a full set of tax refund documents, including customs declaration forms, commercial invoices, packing lists, foreign exchange receipt vouchers, transport documents, etc., to ensure that the documents are complete and valid.
For the problem of capital return, it will assist enterprises in checking the consistency between capital flow and cargo flow to ensure that the foreign exchange receipt amount of enterprises matches the amount on the customs declaration form, which meets the review requirements of tax authorities. For the handling of tax correspondence verification, it will assist enterprises in preparing relevant certification materials to ensure the smooth passage of the correspondence verification.
In addition, for the verification of the consistency of four streams, it will assist enterprises in sorting out relevant materials of capital flow, cargo flow, document flow and information flow to ensure the consistency of information in each link and avoid tax refund risks.
For cross-month declaration, it will assist enterprises in completing cross-month declaration procedures and adjusting declaration data to ensure that the tax refund arrives in time. For pre-declaration verification, it will assist enterprises in completing pre-declaration verification and correcting wrong data in the declaration to ensure the smooth passage of formal declaration.