1. What qualifications must a foreign trade agency possess?

Under the 2025 Implementing Rules of the latest Foreign Trade Law, compliant foreign trade agencies must meet the following requirements:

• Basic Qualifications
  • Valid import and export operation rights (Customs Registration Certificate)
  • SAFE-registered foreign-exchange receipt and payment qualification
  • Electronic Port Operator IC Card
• Professional Certification
  • ISO 28000 Supply Chain Security Management Certification (Essential for Cross-Border Logistics)
  • AEO Authorized Economic Operator (Advanced Certification) Status – Fast-Track Customs Clearance Credential

It is recommended to request the agency to provideCustoms credit rating records for the past three years, give priority to enterprises with a credit rating of Class A or above. A daily necessities exporter once chose an agency without AEO authorization, resulting in a full container being held up at EU customs for 28 days and incurring an additional storage fee of 120,000 yuan.

II. What are the core documents that must be submitted for entrusted export?

Basic documents include:

• Proforma Invoice
• Purchase and Sale Contract (must be stamped by both buyer and seller)
• Packing List (gross/net weight and volume accurate to two decimal places)
• Agency Agreement (Clear Division of Rights and Responsibilities)

Special documentation requirements:

• Chemicals: MSDS Safety Data Sheet + Dangerous Goods Transport Identification Report
• Food products: Sanitary Certificate + Certificate of Origin Quarantine
• Electronic Products: CE/FCC certification documents (note the new EU energy-label regulation effective 2025)

3. What items are included in the agency export fees?

Typical cost structure (example of converting an EXW quote to FOB):

• Basic service fee: 0.8%–1.5% of the cargo value (including customs declaration, document preparation, and foreign-exchange collection)
• Documentation Fee：USD 200–800 per document (Certificate of Origin, Embassy Authentication, etc.)
• Other Expenses：
  • Bank handling fee: 0.1% of the received amount
  • Inspection service fee: RMB 500 per occurrence (applicable when customs inspection is required)
  • Logistics Surcharges: Peak-season booking deposits, etc.

A case study of a mechanical parts export shows that choosing an all-inclusive freight forwarder saved 17% in overall costs compared to a split-price model, but attention must be paid to whether the contract includes contingency-handling clauses.

IV. How to Guard Against Legal Risks in Export Agency Arrangements?

Three risk points that require focused attention:

• title risk：三方契約を締結し、「B/Lコントロール権」を明確にしなければならない
• Tax risk: Ensure that the agency promptly provides the special VAT invoice
• Compliance risk: Verify whether the product is subject to export controls (e.g., the three newly added categories of semiconductor materials in 2025).

It is recommended to require the agency to make the purchase.Professional Liability Insurance, the recommended coverage amount should not be less than RMB 2 million. A textile exporter was ordered to pay an additional RMB 430,000 in taxes due to an incorrect HS code caused by the freight forwarder’s operational error; because the forwarder had taken out professional liability insurance, the exporter ultimately received full compensation from the insurer.

五、輸出稅還付How can I operate more efficiently?

Key Points of the 2025 Tax Refund Policy:

• Tax refund timeline: Category I enterprises receive funds within 5 working days
• Document Filing: Electronic archiving replaces paper documents (must comply with State Taxation Administration Announcement No. 3 of 2025)
• Cross-provincial collaboration: trial mutual recognition of tax refund documents in the Yangtze River Delta

It is recommended to choose those with輸出稅還付Advance payment service, the agency can receive 80% of the tax refund in advance. However, attention should be paid to the interest calculation method for the advance funding; the prevailing market rate is 0.03% per day on the advanced amount.

6. How do you evaluate the professional competence of an agency?

Four key evaluation dimensions:

• Industry Case: Does the company have prior experience exporting similar products?
• Emergency Response: Are there any documented cases of overseas customs-clearance crisis management?
• System Integration: Are ERP data interfaces provided?
• Service Network: Whether there is a cooperative customs clearance agent in the destination country

May request the agency to provideStatistics on customs declaration accuracy over the past 6 months, a high-quality broker should maintain a declaration accuracy rate of over 98%. By comparing the historical error-rate data of three brokerage firms, an auto-parts company successfully reduced its customs declaration errors by 82%.

7. How is the time frame for entrusted agency export calculated?

Standard Process Timeline (Example: Ocean Export):

• Document preparation: 1–3 business days (extended if special certification is required)
• Customs release: 0.5–1 working day (AEO enterprises can shorten it to 2 hours)
• Tax Refund Declaration: Within 3 working days after receiving the full foreign exchange

ある緊急受注のケースでは、専門の代理會社が「事前申告＋擔保付き通関」方式を採用し、輸出全體のプロセスを72時間に圧縮し、通常の手続きと比べて4日間の短縮を実現した。

8. What common cognitive misconceptions should be avoided?

• Misconception 1：「代理費用はできるだけ安い方がよい」（安価にはリスクの転嫁が潛んでいる可能性がある）
• Misconception 2：「FOB條項下では仕向港費用を気にする必要はない」（それでも高額な滯港料リスクは殘る）
• Misconception 3：「電子データで紙のバックアップに代えられる」（法定の保存期間は依然として5年）

It is recommended to hold a meeting with the agency every quarterBusiness Retrospective Meeting, review the completion status of KPIs. An electronics company established an agent service scoring system, boosting order processing speed by 35%.