Entry portsLos Angeles / Long Beach · Oakland · Seattle / Tacoma · New York / New Jersey · Savannah · Houston
AirportsChicago O'Hare · Los Angeles · New York JFK
Modes we runSea Freight (FCL), Air Freight
Main leg, indicativeSea 13–42 days · Air 4–7 days
Documented routes8 lanes
Customs authorityU.S. Customs and Border Protection
China-side support for US importers
We are not just here to quote freight. We help you coordinate your suppliers, arrange factory pickup, manage export customs clearance, consolidate cargo, book ocean or air freight, and solve origin-side issues before they delay your shipment.
The United States is the lane where the paperwork starts earliest. The Importer Security Filing has to be lodged with U.S. Customs and Border Protection no later than 24 hours before the container is loaded at the Chinese port, and the data it needs sits at origin: the manufacturer, the seller, the container stuffing location, the consolidator and the commodity codes. A forwarder that works for the factory has no reason to chase that data on your timetable; one that works for you has every reason.
The transpacific split is the first routing decision. West Coast ports are materially faster on the water, around 14 to 20 days from South China to Los Angeles or Long Beach, but put the cargo a continent away from eastern demand. East Coast services through the Panama Canal run longer on the main leg, around 28 to 38 days to New York or Savannah, but land the container where it is needed. Air into Chicago, Los Angeles or New York covers the urgent part of an order in four to seven days.
Duty is the variable that most often outweighs freight on this lane. Chinese-origin goods carry the normal tariff rate for their classification plus, for many products, additional tariffs under Section 301 and later actions, and the combined rate can exceed the cost of shipping. Confirming the classification and the applicable rate is part of the purchasing decision. Product rules follow the product: electrical goods, consumer products, food-contact items and wood products each have their own agency, and goods with cotton or polysilicon content need supply-chain documentation to satisfy forced-labour rules.
On arrival, free time is short and clearance is not always fast, so the entry is prepared before the vessel docks. Everything it depends on is set in China: the commodity code that appears on the export declaration and on the invoice, the packing list the cargo must match, the verified gross mass, the ISPM 15 mark on the pallets, and the certificates and test reports the goods need. That is the part we run, and it is where a customs bond and a broker on your side do the rest.
What changes for United States
The rules an importer has to satisfy in United States, and where each one is decided. Your customs broker at destination makes the entry; the evidence it is made on comes from China.
- Importer Security Filing
- Ten data elements from the importer, filed at least 24 hours before loading in China. Late or inaccurate filings carry penalties. We supply the origin data on time because we are at origin.
- Additional tariffs on Chinese-origin goods
- Section 301 and subsequent actions add duty to many classifications. The rate depends on the HTS code and can exceed the freight. Confirm before the purchase order.
- Customs bond and broker
- A continuous bond and a licensed broker are needed to enter goods. Your broker files the entry; we make sure the documents match it.
- Product-specific agencies
- Electrical products, consumer goods, food-contact items, wood products and vehicles each have their own regulator. The evidence is obtained from the factory, not requested at the port.
- Supply-chain documentation
- Goods containing cotton, polysilicon or tomato products, and anything with a Xinjiang link, need traceability evidence to clear. Solar products are the most common case.
- Road weight limits
- A container legal for the vessel can be over the limit for the road at destination. Heavy cargo is loaded to the destination state's limits, or split.
