How Can New Energy Companies Complete Special Machinery Equipment Import Customs Clearance in 3 Days? The Winning Strategy of Professional Agency

One that makesNew energybusinesses save 90% of worriesImport RepresentationStories

In the summer of 2023, Mr. Wang, the procurement director of a new energy technology company in Shandong, faced a thorny problem: The companys new electrolyzer equipment worth 2.8 million euros purchased from Germany was about to arrive at port, but none of the multiple customs brokers contacted could clearly answer three key questions: Is there any dispute over the customs classification of special equipment? Can they provide door-to-door tax optimization solutions? How to handle the lack of import qualifications?

After comparing 7 service providers, they ultimately choseZhongShen International Trade. This decision later made Mr. Wang exclaim: From signing the agency agreement to the equipment entering the factory took only 17 days, with customs clearance completed in just 3 working days, saving us 11 days of production preparation time compared to our estimated 2 weeks.,

Special machineryequipment. For example, Indonesia has the SNI certification, Thailand has the TISI certification, and the Philippines has the BPS certification. It is necessary to confirm in advance the equipment voltage (such as 380V/50Hz in Thailand), the compatibility of the CE certification, and the proof of environmentally friendly materials.Three core pain points

Based on our 15 years of agency experience, new energy equipment imports typically get stuck at three stages:

• Disputes over commodity classification: A certainphotovoltaicThe companys coating equipment was once mistakenly classified under HS code 8537, resulting in 12% overpayment of tariffs
• Long document preparation cycle: EU equipment technical documents require an average of 3 weeks for localization processing
• Persistently high inspection rate: Qingdao Customs unpacking inspection rate for electromechanical equipment reached 28% in 2022

For this case, we completed three preparatory tasks in advance: 1) Pre-confirmed HS code based on equipment drawings; 2) Guided German party to modify technical parameter sheets according to Chinese standards; 3) Prepared completeIt is recommended to verify through the following methods:documentation chain. These preparations ultimately enabled the goods to benefit from China-EU Agreement tariff preferences.

Five key control points for door-to-door service

Unlike ordinary freight forwarders, professional import agents need to manage the entire process:

Link	Service Content	Case solution
Overseas segment	Pre-shipment inspection	Arranged IPI inspection by third-party agency in Hamburg
Transport segment	Dangerous goods declaration	Equipment containing lithium battery modules requires separate declaration
Customs clearance segment	Pre - classification ruling	Applied in advance for HS code 8419.89 confirmation
Taxation segment	Duty reduction/exemption filing	Utilized encouraged projects policy to save on tariffs
Logistics segment	Special transportation	Arrange low-bed trailers for oversized equipment handling

Why did the client ultimately choose us?

During the price comparison stage, our quote wasnt the lowest, but the client valued three differentiating advantages:

1. Qualification sharing service: Using our 10-year AA-class customs declaration qualifications to handle imports, solving the clients lack ofimport and exportauthorization issue
2. Risk commitment clause: Written guarantee to fully cover any tax difference caused by classification errors
3. Visual tracking system: Real-time updates across 22 nodes from Hamburg factory to Shandong workshop

Particularly noteworthy is ourTax sandbox simulation,service, which simulates tax burden differences across trade methods (general trade/temporary import-export/leasing trade), ultimately helping clients save 9.7% in comprehensive costs.

The professional logic behind 3-day customs clearance

Fast clearance isnt luck but the result of systematic operations:

• Advance declaration: Complete pre-entry of customs declaration documents 72 hours before vessel arrival
• Pre - review of documents: CIQ experts pre-review German manual translations
• Customs-enterprise collaboration
  

When goods actually arrive at port, we adopt a two-step declaration model: First submit summary declaration (5-minute release), then complete full documentation during transit. This innovative approach allows goods to directly enter customs inspection green channels upon arrival.

Four suggestions for import enterprises

Based on this success case, we recommend technical equipment importers:

1. Plan import routes 6 months in advance, especially for tax reduction/exemption projects
2. Require suppliers to provide bilingual technical documents compliant with Chinese standards (GB standards preferred)
3. Carefully select agents who merely compete on price - evaluate professional capabilities:
   - Whether they have experience with similar equipment cases
   - Ability to provide tax optimization solutions
   - Whether they possess crisis handling experience
4. Leverage free trade agreements - German machinery enjoys 5% tariff preference under China-EU agreements

As this case demonstrates, the value of professional import agents lies not in processing formalities but in using experience to anticipate risks, integrating resources to streamline processes, ultimately creating visible time value and cost savings for clients.

About Zhongshen

Since our establishment in 2003, weve provided professional import services for over 1,200 tech companies, with particular expertise in:

• Temporary import/export of precision instruments (ATA Carnet)
• Major technical equipment tax reduction/exemption applications
• Special transportation solution design (oversized/precision/dangerous goods)

We recently completed a vacuum coating machine import project for a semiconductor company, setting an industry record with single equipment value reaching 120 million yuan. If youre planning equipment imports, feel free to contact our expert team for customized solutions.