1. Why don’t companies export directly on their own but instead choose agency services?

According to the latest 2025 data from China Customs, 63% of small and medium-sized enterprises use export agents, with the main reasons including:

• Qualification threshold restrictions: Obtaining import and export rights requires meeting rigid criteria such as registered capital and business premises.
• Complexity of document processing: From FORM E certificates of origin to AEO authorization, the error rate for professional documentation has dropped by 80%.
• cash flow pressure: The agency service can provide a 30–90-day payment-term buffer (taking a Ningbo-based home-appliance company as an example, the agency’s advance funding raised its capital-turnover rate by 40%).

II. Does export agency affect a company's overseas customer relationships?

Professional agency adoptionDual-header modeSolve this problem:

• The customs declaration simultaneously displays both the manufacturer and the agent company information.
• The shipper on the bill of lading may, upon negotiation, be shown as the actual exporter.
• The newly implemented electronic customs declaration system in 2025 already supports encrypted three-party information transmission.

III. What hidden costs are included in the agency service fee?

Fee Structure Requiring Special Attention:

• Basic Service Package: Customs declaration, logistics, foreign-exchange collection (typically charged at 0.8%–1.5% of the cargo value)
• Value-added service items：
  • 輸出稅還付Advance funding (reference rate: LPR + 2%)
  • Special Document Certification (e.g., Saudi SABER certification averages RMB 2,800 per batch)

4. How to evaluate a proxy company’s true service capabilities?

It is recommended to verify the following three dimensions:

• Customs Credit Rating: Prioritize AEO Authorized Economic Operator (Advanced Certified) enterprises
• Risk Response Case Repository: Please provide three recent examples of solutions for cargo customs detainment.
• Information System Level：同社の通関システムが稅関「単一窓口」2025年版に接続されているかどうかを確認(rèn)する

V. How should goods in special supervision areas be handled?

Taking the export from a comprehensive bonded zone as an example, the value of agency services is highlighted in:

• 「區(qū)間流転」の申告手続きを完了（通関時(shí)間を平均12時(shí)間短縮）
• 増値稅「免稅?相殺?還付」特殊計(jì)算の処理（蘇州の某精密機(jī)器企業(yè)はこれにより稅負(fù)擔(dān)を9％削減）
• Seamlessly coordinate warehousing and trunk-line transportation within the coordination zone

VI. What are the new changes in agency services under the RCEP Agreement?

The upgraded RCEP provisions effective in 2025 bring:

• Digitalization of Origin Declarations (requires the agent to possess a certified electronic seal system)
• ASEAN Country-Specific Tariff Intelligent Matching (Professional agency system automatically identifies the optimal tariff plan)
• Cross-border logistics tracking visualization (requires agents to interface with IoT platforms of customs authorities in various countries)

7. What responsibilities does the agent bear when a trade dispute arises?

Special attention must be paid to the contractual stipulationsResponsibility boundary：

• Responsibility for document authenticity (e.g., fines resulting from discrepancies in declared product names)
• Cargo damage compensation during transportation (liability is typically determined by the applicable ocean freight terms)
• Guaranteed timeliness for foreign-exchange collection and settlement (it is recommended to stipulate clear breach-of-contract compensation clauses)

8. How Should Cross-Border E-Commerce Models Choose an Agency Service?

According to the new 1210 supervision regulations of the General Administration of Customs for 2025:

• B2C small parcels: choose an agent with postal express customs clearance qualifications
• Overseas warehouse stocking: Require the agent to provide proof of warehousing qualification in the destination country
• Return Processing: Verify the agent’s reverse-logistics solution (a 3C seller in Shenzhen cut return-related losses by 35% as a result).

9. Will export under an agency arrangement affect the accumulation of the company’s creditworthiness?

A new proxy service has been establishedcredit transmission mechanism：

• Authorized Customs Data Inquiry (Enterprises can obtain their own export statistics)
• Bank foreign-exchange settlement record synchronization (a key document for trade-finance applications)
• International Certification Support & Filing (e.g., agency assisted a Hangzhou apparel company in obtaining BSCI certification within 3 months)

10. How can a smooth transition be achieved from export agency to self-operated export?

It is recommended to implement it in three phases:

• Transition period (6–12 months): Assisting in establishing an in-house customs compliance team
• Parallel Phase (3–6 months): Some operations will shift to self-management, while agency-based emergency support will be retained.
• Handover Period: Complete the migration of customs credit information (note that AEO certification must be re-applied for)