Six customs clearance pitfalls that PV companies must know when importing monocrystalline furnaces

New energyRevolutionary changes in equipment procurement

In 2025, the globalphotovoltaicWith installed capacity expected to exceed 550GW, the demand for monocrystalline furnaces - core equipment for silicon wafer manufacturing - continues to rise. However, the latest statistics from the General Administration of Customs show that the error rate in monocrystalline furnace import declarations has reached 37% over the past three years, mainly involving technical parameter misreporting,It is recommended to verify through the following methods:missing documentation and other professional issues.

Typical challenges faced in independent procurement

A real case from a new energy enterprise in March 2025: Due to incorrect reporting of equipment chamber dimensions, a ¥20 million imported monocrystalline furnace was detained at Tianjin Port for 28 days, incurring additional storage fees of ¥470,000. This exposes three major pain points in self-managed imports:

• Difficulty in overcoming technical barriers: Professional conversion required for over 20 key parameters including vacuum level and thermal field size
• Blind spots in supplier management: EU equipment manufacturers often have CE certification scope discrepancies
• Policy application deviations: The 2025 revised Catalogue of Encouraged Imports adjusted the duty-free scope for semiconductor equipment

Core value matrix of professional agents

• Risk pre-control system
  • Triple verification of supplier qualifications (production license, technical agreement, performance capability)
  • Preparation of bilingual equipment parameter comparison tables
• Customized customs clearance strategies
  • Precise HS code classification (avoiding 8486 vs 8417 disputes)
  • Verification of certificate of origin validity
• Tax optimization portfolio
  • Staged planning of import tariffs and VAT
  • Application of import tax policies for major technical equipment

End-to-end operation guide (2025 edition)

1. Needs Assessment Phase: Create equipment parameter templates containing 18 technical indicators including heating power and crystal growth rate
2. Contract negotiation stage: Embed Incoterms®2025 trade terms to clarify key responsibility divisions such as DPU Rotterdam
3. Logistics execution stage: Adopt modular packaging solutions to reduce transportation damage rates, with precision components declared separately
4. Customs declaration phase: Apply for advance commodity classification rulings to reduce customs clearance time by an average of 15 working days

Practical Case: 48-Hour Emergency Customs Clearance Solution

A TOP10 photovoltaic companys Q1 2025 import of German monocrystalline furnaces triggered customs inspection due to control system version issues. Our measures:

• Retrieved bilingual Chinese-English technical documentation within 2 hours
• Coordinated with third-party testing agencies to issue functional discrepancy statements
• Activated AEO-certified enterprise fast clearance channel

Ultimately achieved equipment release within 12 hours after inspection, avoiding production line shutdown risks, with estimated loss recovery exceeding 3 million yuan