Invisible barriers to imported equipment

The latest statistics for 2025 show that China's precision instrumentsEquipment ImportsThe amount exceeded 320 billion US dollars, but the return rate increased by 17% year-on-year. A semiconductor company recently had a complete set of wafer equipment detained at the port for 37 days due to incorrect HS code declaration, resulting in direct losses exceeding 2 million yuan. This typical case reveals that importing professional equipment is far more complex than customs clearance for ordinary goods.

Dual certification system for special categories

Medical EquipmentThe import of products such as industrial testing equipment must simultaneously meet the following requirements:

• Access qualification
  • Medical Device Registration Certificate (NMPA)
  • Compulsory Product Certification (CCC)
  • Environmental Approval Document (Involving Radioactive Equipment)
• Qualification for Use
  • Medical Equipment Configuration License (Class A)
  • Pressure Vessel Usage Registration Certificate (TSG)
  • Pattern Approval of Measuring Instruments (CMA)

Risk Prevention and Control in Customs Clearance Practices

The case of importing a CT machine handled by a certain agency is worth learning from:

• During the preliminary review stage, it was discovered that the equipment's power parameters exceed domestic standards.
• Please coordinate with the manufacturer in advance to issue a technical rectification commitment letter.
• Adopt the innovative customs clearance model of "port rectification + local acceptance".
• Ultimately, it saved 21 working days in customs clearance.

Actuarial Model of Cost Composition

The cost of importing professional equipment needs to be considered:

• Explicit Costs
  • Customs declaration fee (0.15%-0.3% of the cargo value)
  • Value-added tax (13%)
  • Tariffs (0-10%)
• Hidden Costs
  • Demurrage (USD80/day·container)
  • Technical rectification fee
  • Testing and Certification Fee

Four Criteria for Selecting Preferred Agencies

It is recommended that enterprises focus on evaluating:

• Industry experience level: Have you handled cases involving the same category of equipment before?
• Port Service Network: On-site operational capability of major port areas
• Case database: Whether to establish a risk early warning knowledge base
• : Document review process, historical data of error rates: Is there a professional pre-review engineer team available?

The experience of a certain laser cutting equipment importer is worth referencing: by selecting an agency company with German TüV certification, they reduced the originally required 60-day CE certification process to 28 days. Additionally, leveraging the "mutual recognition of test results" policy in the free trade pilot zone saved them 120,000 yuan in duplicate testing costs.