Inbound and outbound express consignments refer to goods and articles carried into or out of a country by express operators under a fast commercial operation model as promised to customers.
Inbound and outbound express consignments are classified into three categories: documents, personal articles, and goods.
Document express consignments consist of papers, certificates, bills, and materials that are exempt from duty under applicable laws and regulations and have no commercial value.
Personal articles express consignments include unaccompanied passenger baggage, gifts exchanged between relatives and friends, and other personal articles transported across borders for personal use in reasonable quantities as defined by customs regulations.
Goods express consignments encompass all express shipments that do not fall under the document or personal articles categories.
(1) Express operators applying to provide customs declaration agency services for inbound and outbound express consignments shall register with the local customs authority.
(2) Express operators shall maintain dedicated facilities, warehouses, and equipment that meet customs supervision requirements within designated customs supervision premises for express consignments.
(3) Customs clearance of express consignments shall be conducted at customs-approved designated supervision premises. Where special circumstances require clearance outside such premises, prior approval from the local customs authority must be obtained.
(4) Inbound express consignments shall be declared to customs within 14 days from the date the means of transport reports its arrival. Outbound express consignments shall be declared at least 3 hours before the means of transport departs.
(5) Express operators shall transmit or submit manifests or lists of inbound and outbound express consignments to customs. Customs will accept the declaration upon confirmation. When advance declaration is required, operators shall provide written notice to customs in advance regarding the transport and arrival of the shipments, and transmit or submit the manifests or lists. Customs will accept the advance declaration upon confirmation.
1. Unless otherwise specified, when clearing inbound or outbound express consignments through customs, operators shall submit relevant customs declaration documents to customs according to express consignment classification and complete the corresponding declaration and tax payment procedures.
2. For document express consignments, operators shall submit to customs the "People's Republic of China Customs KJ1 Express Consignment Customs Declaration Form," a copy of the master waybill, and any other documents required by customs.
3. For personal articles consignments, operators shall submit to customs the "People's Republic of China Customs Personal Articles Express Consignment Declaration Form," house waybills for each shipment, a photocopy of the consignee's identification (for inbound) or consignor's identification (for outbound), and any other documents required by customs.
4. When declaring inbound express consignments, operators shall submit customs declaration documents to customs according to the following circumstances:
For goods with a duty amount within the exemption threshold prescribed by the State Council, and for duty-free samples and advertising materials permitted by law, operators shall submit the "People's Republic of China Customs KJ2 Express Consignment Customs Declaration Form," house waybills for each inbound shipment, invoices, and any other documents required by customs.
For dutiable samples and advertising materials (excluding those subject to licensing requirements under laws and regulations, and those requiring foreign exchange payment for imports), operators shall submit the "People's Republic of China Customs KJ3 Express Consignment Customs Declaration Form," house waybills for each inbound shipment, invoices, and any other documents required by customs.
5. For all other goods not specified above, clearance shall be processed in accordance with customs regulations for import cargo.
6. When declaring outbound goods consignments, operators shall submit customs declaration documents to customs according to the following circumstances:
For samples and advertising materials (excluding those subject to licensing requirements under laws and regulations, those subject to export duties, those requiring foreign exchange collection for exports, and those requiring export tax rebates), operators shall submit the "People's Republic of China Customs KJ2 Express Consignment Customs Declaration Form," house waybills for each outbound shipment, invoices, and any other documents required by customs.
For all other goods, clearance shall be processed in accordance with customs regulations for export cargo.
Express consignments are carried and declared to customs by express operators.
Mail is carried and declared to customs by postal enterprises.
Cross-border e-commerce goods encompass various categories, including:
1. The B2C retail import model includes direct purchase imports and bonded online purchase imports.
Direct purchase imports: After domestic consumers make cross-border online purchases, relevant enterprises transmit transaction, payment, and logistics electronic data to customs and submit "Declaration Lists." The goods enter the country via mail or express consignment.
Bonded online purchase imports: E-commerce enterprises' domestic agents transport bulk goods into special customs supervision areas or bonded logistics centers (Type B) and file customs declarations. Customs implements ledger-based management. After domestic consumers purchase goods within these zones online, relevant enterprises transmit transaction, payment, and logistics electronic information to customs and submit the "People's Republic of China Customs Cross-Border E-Commerce Retail Import/Export Goods Declaration List." Customs collects duties on the goods as cross-border e-commerce retail imports. Following release, the goods are delivered domestically via express courier.
2. The B2C retail export model includes three types.
General retail exports: After overseas consumers make cross-border online purchases, relevant enterprises transmit transaction, payment collection, and logistics electronic information to customs separately and submit "Declaration Lists." Clearance is processed using the "list-based clearance with consolidated declaration" method. Eligible goods within Cross-Border E-Commerce Comprehensive Pilot Zones may also be cleared using the "list-based clearance with consolidated statistics" method.
Special zone exports: This encompasses two forms: "cross-border e-commerce special zone parcel retail exports" and "cross-border e-commerce special zone overseas warehouse retail exports."
Cross-border e-commerce special zone parcel retail exports involve enterprises exporting goods in bulk to special customs supervision areas or bonded logistics centers (Type B), with customs implementing ledger-based management. After overseas consumers purchase goods through e-commerce platforms, the goods are delivered to them abroad via express courier.
Cross-border e-commerce special zone overseas warehouse retail exports involve enterprises exporting goods in bulk to special customs supervision areas or bonded logistics centers (Type B), with customs implementing ledger-based management. After completing cargo sorting and container consolidation within the special customs supervision areas or bonded logistics centers (Type B), enterprises export the goods in bulk to overseas warehouses. Following retail sales through e-commerce platforms, goods are delivered from overseas warehouses to overseas consumers via express courier.
B2B export model: This encompasses both the direct export model and the cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouse export model. Under the direct export model, domestic enterprises and overseas enterprises conduct transactions through cross-border e-commerce platforms, with goods shipped directly to overseas enterprises via cross-border logistics. Under the cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouse export model, domestic enterprises export goods to overseas warehouses through cross-border logistics. After transactions are completed through cross-border e-commerce platforms, goods are delivered from overseas warehouses to purchasers.
1. Value limits for personal articles express consignments and mail:
For articles mailed from abroad into the country, the limit per shipment is 2,000 yuan. For articles mailed to Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, China, the limit per shipment is 800 yuan. For articles mailed to other countries and regions, the limit per shipment is 1,000 yuan.
2. Value limits for cross-border e-commerce retail imports:
The single transaction limit is 5,000 yuan, and the annual transaction limit is 26,000 yuan.
(By Cao Yingchun)
Disclaimer：The above content is translated from Chinese version of China Inspection and Quarantine Times. The China Inspection and Quarantine Times version shall prevail.
