Can manufacturing enterprises without self-operated import and export qualifications entrust formal institutions to handle export on their behalf?
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I am from a manufacturing enterprise producing industrial automation parts in the Yangtze River Delta, with an annual revenue of about 80 million yuan. We have been focusing on the domestic market before, and just received bulk purchase orders from two Southeast Asian complete vehicle manufacturers last month, with a total cargo value of about 2.3 million euros.
We do not have self-operated import and export qualifications at present, and no one in our team knows processes such as customs declaration, international logistics, foreign exchange settlement and export tax refund. We are worried that improper operation may lead to cargo detention at the port, failure to obtain tax refund, or problems in foreign exchange receipt causing fund stagnation.
We would like to ask whether manufacturing enterprises can find professional agent companies to handle exports? What access conditions need to be met? What pitfalls should be avoided during operation to ensure compliance?
JohnYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Export Tax Rebate AdvisorStart a Chat
Manufacturing enterprises can fully entrust formal agent institutions to complete export. The core of the whole process is to do a good job of full-chain compliance verification in advance to avoid subsequent abnormalities. First of all，pre-document review should be completed. You need to prepare four core materials in advance: business license，production qualification certificate，purchase input invoice and export sales contract. The agent will simultaneously check whether your business scope matches the exported goods and whether there is a risk of intellectual property infringement，so as to ensure that the basic qualifications meet the requirements of customs and tax authorities.
In the core node connection stage，you need to cooperate with the agent to complete three actions: first，ensure four-flow consistency in all transaction links，where the transaction subjects，amounts and cargo names of goods flow，capital flow，invoice flow and information flow are fully corresponding，which is the core premise for subsequent tax refund，second，submit materials such as cargo details，MSDS and packing list 10 working days in advance to avoid declaration errors of product name and HS code during customs declaration，third，the foreign exchange receipt path shall uniformly use the compliant account of the agent，and you only need to provide the corresponding RMB collection account，without opening a separate foreign currency account.
For abnormal contingency plan setting，you should agree on the handling rules for three types of abnormalities with the agent in advance: first，the cost sharing and time limit guarantee for customs inspection，second，the responsibility for document cooperation in tax correspondence verification，third，the boundary of loss bearing for port detention and container rolling. In the final implementation stage，as long as you submit complete input invoices within 45 days after the goods are exported，you can receive the full tax refund within 3 months after export. The whole process does not require you to arrange special personnel to connect with import and export related affairs，and the comprehensive cost is only about 1% of the cargo value.
AlexanderYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Trade AdvisorStart a Chat
When declaring customs for agent export, you need to pay attention to the filling rules of the operating unit and the consignor. The operating unit shall fill in the 18-digit unified social credit code of the agent, and the consignor shall fill in the credit code of the manufacturing enterprise itself. The domestic source of goods shall accurately fill in the administrative region code of the location of the manufacturing enterprise, not the location of the agent.
If there is a dispute over HS code classification, materials such as technical parameters and purpose description of samples shall be submitted in advance for pre-classification, so as to avoid deletion and re-declaration caused by false declaration, or even being included in the customs declaration abnormality list. If you encounter price review questions, you should timely provide input invoices for domestic procurement, production cost accounting tables and other materials to prove the rationality of the cargo value, so as to avoid additional taxation by the customs.
EllaYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Financial AdvisorStart a Chat
The tax refund declaration subject for agent export can be either the manufacturing enterprise or the agent. If you choose the agent to declare tax refund on your behalf, you need to sign a formal agent export agreement before the goods are exported to clarify the ownership of tax refund rights and interests. The cargo name, specification and quantity of all input invoices must fully correspond to the customs declaration form, and the invoicing time shall not be later than 30 days after export.
For document filing, a full set of materials including export sales contract, agency agreement, packing list, bill of lading, transportation documents and station receipt shall be kept for 5 years. In case of tax correspondence verification, complete supporting materials shall be submitted within 7 working days, otherwise the tax refund will be suspended.
CharlotteYears of service：4Customer Rating：5.0
Currency Exchange AdvisorStart a Chat
In the foreign exchange receipt link of agent export, it should be noted that the overseas payer must be consistent with the purchaser on the export sales contract, and third-party payment is not allowed, otherwise there will be foreign exchange settlement abnormality. If RMB settlement is used, the CIPS channel shall be adopted.
The settlement time limit is 2-3 working days faster than SWIFT, and the exchange loss can be reduced by about 0.15%. The RMB funds after foreign exchange settlement will be directly transferred to the corporate account of the manufacturing enterprise, and the transfer remark shall be marked as "export payment" to avoid being judged as abnormal capital transaction.
WilliamYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
International Logistics AdvisorStart a Chat
The logistics scheme for entrusted agent export can be flexibly selected according to the delivery time requirements. For Southeast Asian routes, if the delivery time is tight, the direct shipping scheme from Shanghai Port can be selected, with a voyage of 4-7 days, and the free storage period can be applied for 14 days, effectively avoiding container detention fees.
If the delivery time is loose, the transit scheme from Ningbo Port can be selected, and the logistics cost can be reduced by about 15%. The consignor on the bill of lading can be filled with either the agent or the manufacturing enterprise. If you want to retain the cargo ownership, you can require a special endorsement on the bill of lading to avoid release of goods without the original bill of lading.
OliviaYears of service：5Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Customs AdvisorStart a Chat
When signing the agent export agreement, the scope of rights and responsibilities of the agent shall be clearly agreed. The agent only provides agency services for customs clearance, logistics, foreign exchange receipt and tax refund, and shall not bear relevant responsibilities for cargo quality and breach of contract by overseas purchasers.
Force majeure clauses shall be added to clarify the loss bearing rules of both parties in case of force majeure factors such as port congestion, shipping interruption and policy adjustment. At the same time, the exclusive ownership of tax refund rights and interests shall be clarified to avoid subsequent disputes over tax refund funds.
SophiaYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Customs AdvisorStart a Chat
When the goods exported by agent encounter customs inspection, the storage location and packaging method of the goods shall be informed to the inspection personnel in advance. If they are precision parts, the fragile attribute shall be explained in advance to avoid cargo damage during container unpacking. During seal inspection, check whether the seal number is consistent with the mark on the bill of lading.
If the seal is found to be damaged, take photos on the spot for evidence, and update the bill of lading information after re-applying the customs seal. If the goods need to be sent for inspection and identification, the product technical standards, test reports and other materials shall be submitted in time to shorten the testing cycle and avoid delaying the shipping schedule.
RobertYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Warehouse Management AdvisorStart a Chat
For manufacturing enterprises with long-term export orders, the cost threshold of agent export and self-operated export can be calculated according to the order volume. When the annual export cargo value exceeds 50 million yuan, the comprehensive cost of self-operated export is about 0.3% lower than that of agent export.
If it is lower than this threshold, agent export is more cost-effective. FOB and CIF trade terms can be flexibly switched according to the requirements of overseas purchasers. Under CIF terms, you can independently select logistics providers to further reduce logistics costs.