What are the basic components that make up the agency fee for foreign trade?

Professional foreign trade agency fees typically include the followingBasic Service Module：

• Agency service fee: Charged at 0.8%–1.5% of the cargo value (commodities calculated separately)
• 通関Inspection fee: RMB 500–2,000 per ticket (subject to surcharge for special regulatory modes)
• Documentation Fee: including preparation of the certificate of origin, commodity inspection documents, etc.
• Interest on advance funding: Calculated based on the actual number of days of advance funding (2025 current LPR rate + 3%)

How do you calculate the agency costs for different trade methods?

According toGeneral Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China Announcement No. 37 of 2025, the cost differences among different trade modes are mainly reflected in:

• general trade: Full VAT must be paid, but you are eligible for輸出稅還付
  • Example: Goods value $100,000, export rebate rate 13%, deductible cost approx. ￥84,500
• Processing trade: Security deposit required (the deposit rate remains at 5% in 2025)
• 越境EC: Applicable to the 9810 supervision code, eligible for comprehensive tax reduction.

Which hidden costs are easily overlooked?

Based on what we have processed327 disputed cases, companies often overlook the following cost items:

• Demurrage: A fee of ￥500–2,000 per day will be incurred after the free storage period expires.
• Amendment fee: Amendment of the customs declaration may incur customs penalties (1%–5% of the goods' value)
• Certification Surcharge: Certifications required by specific countries (e.g., Saudi SABER certification)
• Cost of foreign-exchange hedging: Forward foreign exchange settlement typically incurs a spread of 0.3%–0.8%.

What impact will the 2025 VAT reform have on agency costs?

In accordance withMinistry of Finance Document No. 1 of 2025, there are three important changes:

• 輸出稅還付The electronic processing rate is raised to 95% (shortening the tax refund cycle to 20 working days)
• クロスボーダーECのB2B輸出には「無領(lǐng)収書免稅」政策が適用されます。
• Change in the formula for calculating the deferred-duty interest on processing-trade goods sold domestically (from the original daily rate of 0.05% to LPR + 1.5%)

How to verify the reasonableness of an agent's quotation?

It is recommended to adoptThree-dimensional price comparison method：

• horizontal comparison: Obtain quotes from at least three top-tier agencies.
• Vertical decomposition: A detailed breakdown of 28 customs fee sub-items is required
• Dynamic estimation: Fluctuation range of fees when simulating a 1% deviation in cargo value

A certain auto parts company used this method to cut logistics costs by 17.3% in Q1 2025 while boosting customs clearance speed by 40%.

What key terms must be confirmed when choosing a foreign trade agent?

Based onIncoterms? 2025, special attention is required:

• Payment settlement cycle (it is recommended to negotiate for a 45-day payment term)
• Liability Allocation Clause (especially regarding the handling of disputes over product classification)
• 不可抗力免責範囲（最新に認定された「ネットワーク攻撃による稅関システムの麻痺」の狀況を含む）
• Data Confidentiality Agreement (must comply with the Measures for the Security Assessment of Cross-border Data Transfer)