China → United States clearance guide
Overview
- · De minimis is suspended indefinitely: non-postal modes since 2026-06-24, international mail since 2026-07-24. The US$800 duty-free entry no longer exists.
- · No federal VAT or GST. State sales or use tax is a separate matter handled after import, not at the border.
- · US$2,500 separates informal from formal entry. Mail shipments up to US$2,500 in HTSUS chapters 1-97 may use the new postal informal entry process, with duty due by the 7th day of the month following arrival.
- · The importer of record may self-file in ACE, but formal entries require a customs bond, and ocean cargo also requires an Importer Security Filing (ISF 10+2) at least 24 hours before loading.
- · Additional tariffs may apply as HTSUS Chapter 99 lines. As of 2026-09, verify the Section 232, Section 301 and surcharge position for your entry date rather than relying on a previously quoted number.
Procedure
China export side
An exporter must first complete customs registration as a consignee or consignor of imported and exported goods through the China International Trade Single Window. The separate foreign trade operator registration was abolished with the 2022 amendment to the Foreign Trade Law and has not been required since 2022-12-30. The export goods declaration may be filed by the consignor directly or by an entrusted registered customs broker.
Most goods leave without export duty. Only the limited list set out in the Import and Export Tariff carries an export duty or a provisional export rate. For VAT purposes exports are zero-rated or exempt, and a qualifying exporter can claim the export VAT refund at the rate published for the commodity code.
Export controls rest on the Export Control Law and the regulation on the export control of dual-use items. Items on a control list need a dual-use item and technology export licence, and a catalogue of goods subject to export licensing is published each year. The regulatory conditions attached to the commodity code are the entry point for deciding whether a licence, inspection or quarantine applies.
Goods on the statutory inspection catalogue must undergo customs inspection and quarantine before export. Where the buyer wants a preferential rate at destination, customs or the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) issues the corresponding certificate of origin, for example under RCEP or the Korea-China FTA, or an ECFA certificate of origin for early harvest goods going to Taiwan.
United States import side
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) clears imports through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). Goods are classified under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) and duty is generally assessed on the transaction value, that is, the price actually paid or payable for the goods when sold for export to the United States.
Duty-free de minimis entry is no longer available. Executive Order 14324 ended duty-free de minimis treatment for all countries on 2025-08-29, and CBP interim final rules published on 2026-06-24 made that suspension indefinite: immediately for goods arriving by every mode other than the international postal network, and from 2026-07-24 for international mail. Shipments that would previously have been released from the manifest now require a formal entry or an informal entry (Entry Type 11), and the US$2,500 line between informal and formal entry still applies. Two narrow exemptions survive under 19 U.S.C. 1321(a)(2)(A) and (B): bona fide gifts of US$100 or less, and accompanied personal or household articles of US$200 or less.
There is no federal VAT or GST in the United States. State sales or use tax may become due on a later sale, but customs does not collect it at the border. Besides duty, CBP collects the merchandise processing fee and, on ocean cargo, the harbor maintenance fee.
Additional duties often sit on top of the ordinary HTSUS rate through Chapter 99 subheadings, such as Section 232 and Section 301 measures. The Supreme Court invalidated tariffs imposed under IEEPA on 2026-02-20 in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, and a surcharge under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 was imposed from 2026-02-24 subject to a 150-day statutory limit. Because this layer changes frequently, the rate that matters is the one in force on the entry date; the HTSUS Chapter 99 notes and CBP's CSMS messages are where it is published.
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Sources: Federal Register: Indefinite Suspension of the De Minimis Exemption for Merchandise Arriving Through All Modes Other Than the International Postal Network · Federal Register: Indefinite Suspension of the De Minimis Exemption for Mail Shipments and New Postal Informal Entry Process · Federal Register: Notice of Implementation of Executive Order 14324, Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries · CBP Form 7501, Entry Summary (revision 02/26) · CBP: Importer Security Filing (10+2) · Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States · Supreme Court of the United States: Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump (No. 24-1287) · FDA: Registration and Listing of Cosmetic Product Facilities and Products · China International Trade Single Window · GACC online service guide: enterprise registration and declaration · General Administration of Customs of China · Ministry of Commerce of China · State Taxation Administration: export VAT refund · China Council for the Promotion of International Trade