Export agent
Most factories cannot ship abroad themselves.
Export from China requires a customs registration many manufacturers simply do not hold — especially the small, specialised ones worth buying from. They sell domestically and hand the paperwork to an agent. We are that agent, based in Shanghai, and we do it in your name rather than resell you the goods.
Per shipment
quoted on the order value and destination
What an export agent actually does
A Chinese factory without export registration cannot issue the documents your customs authority needs, cannot claim VAT refund, and cannot receive foreign currency directly. An agent stands between: buying domestically from the factory, exporting under its own licence, and issuing you the commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading in a form your side accepts.
Done badly, this is where buyers lose money — the agent adds an undisclosed margin on the goods, and you never see the factory price you negotiated. We charge for the service, not on the goods, so the factory invoice stays yours to see.
How a shipment runs
- 1
Contract and terms
We paper the purchase with the factory on your terms, including specification, inspection standard and what happens if the goods fail it. Vague contracts are why disputes are unwinnable.
- 2
Deposit and production
Payment to the factory in RMB, on the schedule agreed. We follow production and tell you when it slips, which it will.
- 3
Inspection before shipment
Goods checked against the agreed standard while they are still in the factory and still the factory’s problem. After loading, your leverage is gone.
- 4
Consolidation and export clearance
Multiple suppliers into one container where it makes sense. Customs declaration, HS classification and VAT refund handled under our registration.
- 5
Documents and shipping
Commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, certificate of origin and whatever your destination requires. Sea or air from Shanghai and the surrounding ports.
Scope
What you get
- Exporter of record under our customs registration
- Purchase contract with the factory on your specification
- Pre-shipment inspection against an agreed standard
- Consolidation of several suppliers into one shipment
- Customs declaration, VAT refund handling, export documents
- Sea and air freight booking from Shanghai
What this is not
- Import clearance in your country — that is your broker
- Duties and taxes at destination
- Product certification or lab testing, unless quoted separately
- A markup on the goods: you see the factory price
Who you are dealing with
We are an export agency based in Shanghai. This directory is ours — we built it because we needed it, and it is free because our income comes from work like this rather than from listings.
If you want the registration details of the entity that would act as your exporter, ask and we will send them before you commit to anything. That is a reasonable thing to want, and any agent unwilling to provide it is telling you something.
If you have not found the factory yet
Start with the directory, or with the sourcing service if the emailing is the part you would rather not do. Export handling is the last step, not the first.
Have an order that needs exporting?
Tell us the product, the supplier and the destination. We will tell you whether the factory can export on its own — often the answer is yes and you do not need us.