Shipping from China to Vietnam

Shipping From China To Vietnam (The Ultimate Guide)

Vietnam’s major imports from China include machinery, equipment, electronics, and fabrics. If you’re looking to simplify your process of shipping from China to Vietnam, this guide is for you.

It covers essential steps, required documents, and available shipping methods. Additionally, we’ll walk you through customs clearance, costs, and transit times to ensure a smooth shipping experience.

9-Step Process For Shipping From China To Vietnam

The shipping process involves the following steps for your Vietnam business.

1. Find a Chinese Supplier

Finding the supplier or manufacturer of your product from China is not as difficult as you thought. You can find them on various online platforms like Alibaba or Aliexpress. The important thing in selecting the right one is the quality they provide in how much budget. Because these things decide how much profit you can generate from your business in Vietnam by sourcing from China.

In order to choose the right one that suits your budget, negotiate your rates and requirements with numerous manufacturers. Check their sample quality and compare their prices with the financial terms of your business. If you believe they are a good fit, create an agreement for bulk products with them.

2. Make an Incoterm Agreement

Now, you need to establish an incoterm agreement. Because this is the requirement for doing international trade. This thing describes your and the Chinese supplier’s duties in the whole shipping process. It also decides your shipping cost because if there are more responsibilities on the seller, he or she will charge more than usual from you.

However, it will free you from the tension of how you can import your products to Vietnam. In contrast, if you get more duties, the cost will become lower but you have to engage more in the process. Some of the common incoterms are:

• Delivered Duty Paid (DDP)
• Ex Works (EXW)
• Free on Board (FOB)
• Cost, Insurance and Freight (CIF)
• Carriage and Insurance Paid to (CIP)
• Free Alongside Ship (FAS)
• Delivered at Place (DAP)

3. Cargo Packaging & Labeling

Once the agreement is made and products are manufactured, it’s time for packaging. Proper packaging with sturdy material is necessary to protect your items from damage. Moreover, the size of your cargo boxes should not be greater than the items in them. 

Then, label your cartons with the manufacturer’s name, address, and contact details, the origin country which is China, the name and number of the items, the destination country which is Vietnam, and the receiver’s information.

4. Select Your Shipping Method

Now, choose the method for shipping from China to Vietnam. You can transport your products by rail freight, air freight, ocean shipping, or express delivery. You have to choose one, but you can use all of them at a time for shipping different types of items. This is called multimodal transport.

5. Local Transport From Supplier To Port

After planning the shipping method, you need to transport your products from the Chinese supplier’s place to the exporting location. This site may be a seaport, railway station, or airport in China. You can ask a local carrier for your cargo transport to this place.

6. Chinese Customs Clearance

When your cargo reaches the exporting point in China, the customs authority there will start inspecting it. They ensure the product is not of low quality and is not prohibited in Vietnam. You have to pay customs fees and export taxes there. Another thing is the timely submission of the following documents to the customs:

• Bill of lading (airway, railway, or sea freight bill)
• Commercial invoice (commercial goods) or Forma invoice (sample items)
• Export license
• Certificate of origin
• Packing list

7. Shipping & Tracking

After declaring through customs, you can start loading your items to start shipping to Vietnam. During the journey of your cargo, you can track the vessel carrying your items. To do this, you have to put the tracking ID, given by the exporter, on the cargo tracking page. 

8. Customs Declaration in Vietnam

When your shipment arrives at the import site in Vietnam, the customs authority will inspect your cargo. They also check for quality and prohibited items. Moreover, if there is any restricted item, the importer has to submit certain licenses to the authority for the cargo entry.

The documents you need to submit there are nearly identical to those required by Chinese customs. However, there is some additional paperwork:

• Import license 
• Inspection report
• Terminal handling receipts
• Cargo release order

9. Covering The Last Mile

Once you have successfully passed through customs of Vietnam, you can take your goods to any corner of the country. It can be your home, retail shop, or Amazon warehouse.

Import Taxes in Vietnam

Vietnam applies various taxes on most imported products, including import tax and value-added tax (VAT). Certain items are also subject to a special consumption tax (SCT). Import tax rates depend on the type and origin of goods.

Luxury items and consumer goods face high taxes. In contrast, machinery, equipment, and raw materials often have lower rates or are exempt from taxes. The import duties are categorized based on the product’s origin:

• Preferential Rates: For goods from countries offering Vietnam the “Most Favored Nation” status.
• Ordinary Rates: Applied to countries without trade benefits with Vietnam, generally up to 70% higher than preferential rates.
• Special Preferential Rates: For products from nations with special tax agreements, mainly ASEAN countries (China is in this category).

For ASEAN Free Trade members like China, essential goods such as livestock, agricultural machinery, meat, fruit, fish, vegetables, and pharmaceuticals often benefit from a lower tax rate of 0-5%.

Shipping Methods From China To Vietnam

Here are the ways that are used to import your items from China to Vietnam. 

1. Air Freight

Shipping through air is the fastest way to deliver your small shipments to their destination. However, this advantage comes with a higher shipping cost with some restrictions. The package you want to deliver to the airport of Vietnam must be less than 500 kg. Although, in certain cases, the weight limit can be exceeded to 1000 kg per unit. 

You can move fragile items like jewelry, time-sensitive goods like food items, and medical goods to Vietnam through air freight.

2. Railway Freight

Shipping your cargo from China to Vietnam by rail is an economical option. Plus, there are no such weight restrictions as in air freight. There are 2 modes for transporting your items by train. One is consolidated containers (FCL) while the other is non-consolidated (LCL) containers. 

You need to select one mode with respect to the size of your shipment. The consolidated shipments need a full container for transportation. You can choose from the 20-foot or 40-foot containers according to the volume of your cargo. On the other hand, non-consolidated containers are used for small shipments. 

Your product packages are placed in containers with other buyers’ cargo. It means a shared space is given at a lower cost than renting the whole container. 

3. Ocean Shipping

It is the slowest way to import your goods to Vietnam from China. But this con comes with the advantage of lower shipping costs. Yes, you read it right, it is the cheapest method of moving your goods from one country to another. 

Here, you have the same two options: FCL and LCL shipping. In Full container load, a whole container that can carry any type of cargo is required for your shipment. This cargo may be irregular-shaped, dry, liquid bulk, or refrigerated goods. 

In contrast, if you have small packages, you need to choose less than the container load. Because it will be cheaper than shipping through a full container load.

4. Expedited Delivery

Expedited delivery is also known as express shipping. It is a highly expensive way of transporting your cargo from China to Vietnam. However, it may cost you less for small cargo. Because, this method is commonly used for lighter packages, urgently needed documents, high-value items, or perishables. 

Major Trade Routes For Importing From China To Vietnam

The following are the major seaports, airports, and railway lines used for shipping from China to Vietnam.

Seaports of China

• Tianjin Port is considered the largest seaport in north China. It was previously known as Tanggu Port. There are 217 berths in total with the capacity of handling over 500 million tonnes of goods in a year.
• Port of Xiamen is situated on Xiamen Island in southern China near the mouth of Jiulong River. The port can accommodate 6th-generation vessels and can handle more than 200 million tonnes of goods annually.
• Jiangmen Port takes the second position for its size in South China. It is also known as Pengjiang Port and confronts the South China Sea.

Other major seaports of China for shipping to Vietnam include:

• Port of Shanghai 
• Seaport of Guangzhou
• Ningbo-Zhoushan Port
• Port of Qingdao
• Shenzhen Port 
• Lianyungang Port
• Port of Hong Kong
• Haikou New Seaport
• Lanshan port 
• Zhuhai Seaport

Seaports of Vietnam

• The Port of Da Nang occupies 299,256 m2 area in central Vietnam. It is managed by the Vietnam National Shipping Lines. The seaport is mainly connected with Thailand,  China, Laos, and Burma. 
• Port of Saigon occupies 36.06 hectares of land in Ho Chi Minh City. It mainly exports mineral and agricultural products and imports mechanical equipment.
• Vung Tau Port is a collection of seaports including Phu My, Ben Dam, Thi Vai, and Dinh River Seaport. This large port is located in the Southeast region of the country.

Additionally, there are some other seaports in Vietnam that receive cargo from China. These are:

• Quy Nhon Port
• Dung Quat Port
• Port of Hai Phong
• Chan Ma Port
• Cai Mep International Port
• Hai An Port
• Cua Lo Port

Vietnam International Airports 

• Cam Ranh Airport 

• Phu Bai Airport 
• Noi Bai Airport 
• Lien Khuong Airport 
• Vinh Airport 
• Tan Son Nhat Airport 
• Phu Quoc Airport 
• Buon Ma Thuot Airport 
• Da Nang Airport 
• Can Tho Airport
• Cat Bi Airport

Chinese International Airports 

• Beijing Capital Airport
• Shanghai Pudong Airport
• Shenzhen Baoan Airport
• Kunming Changshui Airport
• Shanghai Hongqiao Airport
• Guangzhou Baiyun Airport
• Chengdu Shuangliu Airport
• Hong Kong Airport
• Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport

Major Railway Routes Between China & Vietnam

The following are the primary routes used for shipping from China to Vietnam.

1. Kunming to Haiphong Railway line (855 km distant)
2. Beijing-Hanoi Railway line (Chinese capital to Vietnamese capital)
3. Chongqing to Vietnam Railway route (takes 3-4 days)
4. Hanoi to Nanchang Rail line (1700 km distant)

How Much Does It Cost To Ship From China To Vietnam?

Below is the shipping cost to Vietnam according to different shipping types:

Here is the ocean shipping cost from Chinese ports to Vietnamese ports.

Transit Time For Shipping From China To Vietnam

Below is the average shipping time according to different shipping methods:

Here is the ocean shipping duration from different origin ports to destination ports.

Prohibited & Restricted Items To Ship To Vietnam

There are two categories of products that have some limitations on entering Vietnam. Some items are completely prohibited from being imported into Vietnam while some have restrictions. Restricted items require specific licenses that importers must submit at the port of Vietnam to gain entry. 

Prohibited Products

• Sky lanterns
• Radioactive substances
• Forged currency including banknotes and coins
• Narcotic drugs
• Military communication equipment
• Copyright-violating goods
• Weapons and explosive items
• Fireworks excluding signal fires
• Used items like vehicles, or electrical equipment
• Postage stamps
• Speedometer manipulation tools
• Pornographic things 
• Endangered animals and plants 
• Detrimental food or medicinal products
• Precious stones (diamond) and metals (gold, platinum, etc)

Restricted Products

• Alcoholic and tobacco items 
• Hazardous chemicals (Work Safety Administration certification).
• Pharmaceutical products (Pharmaceutical Product Registration Certificate from NMPA).
• Medical supplements intended to improve health (get your health registration license from NMPA).
• Food items like seafood, rice, or meat (you must get your quarantine certificate from AQSIQ).
• Telecommunication devices (Network Access License (NAL) from MIIT).
• Publications and magazines (Publication Import License from NPPA).
• Cosmetics (Cosmetic Hygiene Sanitary License from CFDA).

These are the restricted products with their acquired certifications from importers of China.

Final Thoughts

Our team is prepared to manage your shipments from China to Vietnam via sea, rail, air, or express freight. We assist in importing from key locations in China to Vietnamese cities like Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, and more. You can connect with us for reliable, swift, and customized shipping solutions for your business.