Ship from China to USA: The Pre-Shipment Checklist to Agree with Your Supplier

Step 1: Fix the delivery term in the purchase order

The Incoterm decides where the supplier’s responsibility ends and yours begins. With Chinese suppliers the common choices are:

• EXW (Ex Works) — you collect at the factory gate and handle everything, including Chinese export clearance. Workable only if your forwarder has a strong China team.
• FOB (Free on Board) — the supplier delivers the goods, export-cleared, onto the vessel at a named Chinese port. The FOB price is the most common quotation basis for sea freight and gives you control of the main freight.
• DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) — the seller arranges everything, including US import clearance and duties. The DDP shipping meaning sounds simple, but it requires the seller or its agent to act as importer, and you have less visibility over how goods are declared.

For most first orders from a new supplier, FOB is a sensible default: the factory handles what it knows (export packing and clearance), and you choose the forwarder. Write the named port (for example “FOB Shenzhen”) and the Incoterms version into the PO.

Step 2: Agree packing, labelling and marks

Packing is a supplier task that shapes your freight bill and your damage rate. Agree in writing:

• Carton dimensions, gross weight and units per carton — your forwarder needs these to quote.
• Whether goods are palletised, and pallet type (heat-treated wood carries an ISPM 15 mark).
• Shipping marks on each carton: your PO number, carton number, origin (“Made in China”) and any Amazon or retailer labels.
• Country-of-origin marking on the product itself. US Customs expects the English name of the country; rulings have found “PRC” on its own is not acceptable, so ask for “Made in China”. Our article on tracing a Made in PRC product touches on this too.

Step 3: Book inspection before final payment

Once goods leave China, your leverage drops sharply. Schedule a pre-shipment inspection when production is complete and at least most of the goods are packed, and tie the balance payment to a passed report. Define the sampling standard (usually an AQL level) in the contract — see our guide to OEM vs ODM, MOQ and AQL for how to write it.

Step 4: Line up forwarder and broker — and know the difference

The freight forwarder vs broker question comes up often. A freight forwarder books and coordinates transport: collecting from the supplier or port, booking space, and arranging delivery. A licensed customs broker in the US files your entry with Customs and Border Protection (CBP), classifies goods and calculates duties. Many forwarders have an in-house broker, but they are distinct roles.

For ocean shipments into the US, the ISF (often called “10+2”) must be filed before the cargo is loaded at the foreign port, and several data elements come from the supplier. Make sure your supplier knows it must send the required details to your forwarder promptly. Formal entries also require a customs bond, which your broker can arrange.

Step 5: Collect the documents from your supplier

Ask the supplier to send drafts for your broker to check before the goods sail:

1. Commercial invoice — seller, buyer, description, quantity, unit price, total value, Incoterm and origin.
2. Packing list — cartons, weights, dimensions and contents per carton.
3. Bill of lading or air waybill — issued by the carrier or forwarder.
4. Any product-specific certificates or test reports your product needs for the US market.

Descriptions should be specific enough for classification (“stainless steel kitchen tongs, 30 cm” rather than “kitchenware”). Vague invoices are a common cause of customs questions.

Step 6: Budget time realistically

Buyers often ask how long to ship from China to US. The honest answer is that the vessel or flight is only one stage; production, inspection, port handling and customs all add time, and each can slip. Our sister site CifyChina has a stage-by-stage shipping timeline breakdown. For planning, ask your forwarder for current transit estimates on your specific route and add a buffer for peak seasons and Chinese public holidays, when factories and ports slow down.

Step 7: Check duties before you confirm the order

US duty rates on Chinese goods depend on the product’s HTS classification and have changed several times in recent years, including additional tariffs specific to China. The low-value “de minimis” exemption that once let many small parcels enter duty-free no longer applies to most shipments from China. Rather than relying on any figure you read online, ask your customs broker to confirm the classification and current rate for your product before you sign the PO — duties can change the landed cost more than freight does.

The one-page checklist

• Incoterm, named port and Incoterms version written into the PO
• Carton specs, pallets, shipping marks and “Made in China” marking agreed
• Pre-shipment inspection booked, balance tied to the report
• Forwarder appointed; broker and customs bond in place
• ISF data flow from supplier to forwarder confirmed
• Draft invoice and packing list checked by the broker
• Duty rate confirmed for the HTS code

For a real example of a US-bound order, see our inquiry article on shipping a container of electric motorcycles to the USA, or browse more cases in the inquiry library. Still choosing a supplier? Start with how to find a supplier in China.

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