Shipping new goods to China is routine. Shipping anything used is where people get hurt, and used equipment is a large part of what we move. China runs a three-tier system for used mechanical and electrical products: some are banned outright by catalogue, some need a full import licence applied for by the end user, and some need an automatic licence obtained before customs formalities begin. Getting that wrong does not mean a delay, it means the container goes back.
Used equipment: find your tier before you buy
First, the definition. Under the Measures for Administration of Import of Mechanical and Electrical Products, "used" covers more than you would guess: items that are used but still functional, items past their quality guarantee period, items stored long enough to show visible wear, items mixing new and old parts, and refurbished items. A rebuilt machine is a used machine.
Tier one: prohibited. Items on the Catalogue of Used Mechanical and Electrical Products Prohibited from Import may not be imported "by any means," and cannot enter bonded zones or bonded warehouses either. The current catalogue has 72 entries. Entry 63 is HS Chapter 87, vehicles, covering the whole chapter with no age carve-out and no sub-breakdown. Entries 19 and 20 cover spark-ignition and compression-ignition engines for Chapter 87 vehicles.
Tier two: key used products, licence required. Products defined as involving national security, public interest, human health or safety, animal or plant life or health, or environmental pollution require a full import licence. The application is made by the end user, not the trader, and goods for refurbishment or remanufacturing must be applied for by a qualified refurbisher. The application needs the intended use, a business licence, proof of manufacture date and an equipment condition statement. A decision takes 20 working days, or 35 if other bodies are consulted. The licence is valid one year and covers one batch, or up to 12 shipments.
Tier three: other used products, automatic licence. These need an automatic import licence, which must be obtained before customs formalities begin, plus an entry goods clearance notice marked for used mechanical and electrical product filing. The automatic licence is valid six months and only within the calendar year. Used products also need a pre-inspection report from an authorized inspection body.
Pre-shipment inspection. High-risk used mechanical and electrical products of significant value, involving personal and property safety, health or environmental protection, must have pre-shipment inspection carried out in the country of export. Skipping it means the goods are returned, and in serious cases a fine of up to RMB 1,000,000.
Used vehicles cannot be imported
Because we get asked constantly, we will state it directly. The prohibited catalogue entry for HS Chapter 87 covers vehicles as a whole chapter, with no age exception and no sub-breakdown, and the prohibition says such goods may not be imported by any means. A used car of any age falls inside Chapter 87 and inside the definition of "used." We found no official page establishing any exception.
There is a separate temporary admission regime for vehicles coming in for exhibitions, competitions, film and television production and testing, and then leaving again. That is a genuinely different transaction and we have written it up in full on its own page, because the detail matters and people confuse the two constantly.
Thinking about a car to China?
The temporary admission route is real but narrow, and the rules are not what most people have been told. We went through the regulations line by line.
Read: can you import a car into China?The manifest deadline, and why it is ours to get right
This one is on us rather than on you, but you should know it exists because it shapes your cut-off times.
Under the Customs measures on inbound and outbound conveyance manifests, the main manifest data for a container vessel must be transmitted 24 hours before loading, not 24 hours before arrival. For non-container vessels it is 24 hours before arrival at the first port of call in China. Remaining manifest data must be sent before the goods reach the destination port.
The regulation names the parties who carry the transmission duty, and NVOCCs are expressly among them, alongside carriers, freight forwarders, shipping agents, postal operators and express operators. The manifest must include both the master bill and the house bills issued under it.
The practical effect for you: your documentation has to be correct and final well before the ship sails, because the filing happens before loading rather than during the voyage. Late or amended details are a genuine problem on this lane in a way they are not on others. Get us the consignee details, the commodity description and the weights early.
Your Chinese buyer has to be set up first
A Chinese consignee cannot simply receive a container. Under the Customs provisions on filing of declaration entities, the consignee must be filed with Customs, and to be filed they need two things: market entity status, and a foreign trade operator filing.
The filing itself is quick, three working days, and is valid indefinitely once granted. Changes must be reported within 30 days, and the filing is cancelled if the foreign trade operator filing lapses. Failures draw fines up to RMB 10,000.
Worth knowing: permanent representative offices of foreign enterprises in China can get a temporary filing, but only for non-trade activities. A rep office cannot be used as a workaround to import commercially.
Ask your buyer to confirm their filing status before you book. "My customer in Shanghai will handle it" is not an answer if the customer has never imported before.
Inspection, wood packaging and the things that get containers turned around
Commodity inspection. Customs publishes and adjusts a catalogue of import and export commodities subject to mandatory inspection, with at least 30 days notice before changes take effect. Where your goods are on it, the consignee applies for inspection with the contract, invoice, packing list and bill of lading, must request inspection within 20 days after customs release, and may not sell or use the goods before inspection is done. Note that the governing regulation was revised on 8 August 2026, recently enough that older guidance may be out of date.
Wood packaging is not optional here. Unlike Hong Kong, mainland China requires it. Wood packaging on inbound goods must be treated under the supervision of the exporting country’s quarantine authority in accordance with the International Plant Protection Convention, and must carry the IPPC mark. Unmarked packaging is treated or destroyed under Customs supervision. Marked packaging found with live pests is treated at the consignee’s cost. Seriously non-compliant packaging can be returned together with the goods. Forging or misusing the IPPC mark draws fines up to RMB 30,000.
If your cargo is routing through Hong Kong, this still applies at the mainland border even though Hong Kong itself does not require ISPM 15 inbound. There are approved agents in Hong Kong who treat wood packaging in transhipped cargo bound for the mainland.
Solid waste is banned entirely. Since 1 January 2021 the import of solid waste by any means is prohibited, and dumping, stockpiling or disposing of foreign solid waste in China is prohibited. Licences for the former restricted category are gone. This catches people shipping scrap, mixed materials and some recovered goods, so check the classification of anything that could be characterised as waste.
Other prohibited imports include arms, ammunition and explosives, counterfeit currency and securities, printed matter and media deemed harmful to China’s political, economic, cultural and moral interests, lethal poisons, illicit drugs, disease-carrying animals and plants, goods from disease-stricken areas, and old and used garments.
Food and agricultural products: Customs requires the exporting facility or establishment to be registered before shipping. Some facilities are registered by their competent authority, others self-register, depending on the product.
CCC certification, in plain terms
China Compulsory Certification, usually written CCC or 3C, is a product certification requirement, not a customs procedure. Products on the CCC catalogue must be certified and must carry the mark before they can leave a factory, be sold, be imported or be used in other business activities. The catalogue currently runs to 16 categories and 96 products, and category 10 covers vehicles and safety accessories including cars, motorcycles, tyres, safety glass, seat belts, exterior lighting, seats and headrests.
Two exemption routes exist.
No application needed: self-use articles of foreign embassies, consulates and international organization offices and their diplomatic staff; self-use articles of Hong Kong and Macau SAR government offices on the mainland and their staff; self-use articles carried in personally by entering travellers; and articles donated or aided by foreign governments.
Exemption certificate required: products and samples for scientific research, testing and certification testing; parts needed directly for end-user repair; equipment parts supplied with a complete production line; products used solely for commercial display but not sold; parts imported for the purpose of being exported again as a complete machine; and other special-use cases. These are handled by local market regulators rather than Customs, with the certificate issued within five working days of acceptance. Display goods cannot be sold or given to consumers, and the applicant has to state the display period and what happens to the goods afterward.
Tariffs: a figure you must check before you rely on it
We will tell you what we know at the time you ask, but this is the one number on this page that could change between us writing it and you reading it. The Tariff Commission of the State Council publishes the announcements, and your Chinese customs broker will have the current position.
Separately, the 2026 Tariff Adjustment Plan took effect on 1 January 2026 and adjusted duty rates and tariff lines for some goods. Its announcement makes no mention of the United States or of additional tariffs.
Ports, and what we do
We ship to the main container ports: Shanghai, Ningbo, Qingdao, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Tianjin and Dalian. These are high-frequency lanes from both US coasts and space is rarely the constraint.
One honest gap. There is a formal list of state-designated automobile import ports, and a provincial commerce department states there are 29 of them nationwide covering both air and sea. We could not find the current official list of port names on any reachable government page, and we are not going to reproduce a list from a commercial website. If your shipment is a vehicle under one of the narrow permitted routes, your Chinese broker needs to confirm the port is designated before you book.
How we ship. Full containers only. The container is yours and you fill it with your own cargo. We do not place one customer’s goods in a container with another’s, and we do not take part loads, groupage, loose items or single boxes. Loading from New Jersey, Savannah, Houston and Baltimore, with pickup and towing from any US state.
Our responsibility runs to the port of discharge. Clearance, inspection, licensing and the consignee filing are all on the Chinese side. What we will do is tell you, before you commit, which tier your used equipment falls into as far as we can establish it, so that you are not finding out at Ningbo.
Mainland China questions, answered
Can I ship used machinery to China?
It depends which of three catalogues it sits on. Items on the Catalogue of Used Mechanical and Electrical Products Prohibited from Import cannot be imported by any means. Key used products, meaning those involving national security, public interest, human health or safety, animal or plant life, or environmental pollution, need a full import licence applied for by the end user. Other used products on the automatic licensing catalogue need an automatic import licence obtained before customs formalities begin. Establish the tier before you buy the machine.
What counts as "used"?
More than people expect. The definition covers items that are used but still functional, items past their quality guarantee period, items stored long enough to show visible wear, items mixing new and old parts, and refurbished items. A rebuilt or remanufactured machine is still a used machine for this purpose.
Can I import a used car into China?
No. The Catalogue of Used Mechanical and Electrical Products Prohibited from Import lists HS Chapter 87, which is vehicles, as a whole chapter with no age carve-out, and prohibited items may not be imported by any means. A used car of any age falls inside that chapter. There is a separate temporary admission route for vehicles coming in for exhibitions, competitions, film production or testing and then leaving, which we cover on a dedicated page.
Does my used equipment need pre-shipment inspection?
If it is high-value and involves personal or property safety, health or environmental protection, yes, and it must be carried out in the country of export before the goods ship. Skipping it means the goods are returned, and in serious cases a fine of up to RMB 1,000,000. Used products also need a pre-inspection report from an authorized inspection body as part of the automatic licence route.
Who applies for the import licence on used equipment?
The end user, not the trader or the shipper. Where the goods are for refurbishment or remanufacturing, the application must come from a qualified refurbisher. The application needs the intended use, a business licence, proof of manufacture date and an equipment condition statement. A decision takes 20 working days, or 35 where other bodies are consulted.
When is the manifest due?
For a container vessel, the main manifest data must be transmitted 24 hours before loading, not 24 hours before arrival. For non-container vessels it is 24 hours before arrival at the first Chinese port of call. The regulation names NVOCCs expressly among the parties carrying the transmission duty, and both the master bill and the house bills under it must be included. The practical effect is that your documentation must be final well before the vessel sails.
What does my Chinese buyer need in place?
Two things before the container moves. Market entity status, and a foreign trade operator filing. With those they can be filed with Customs as a consignee, which takes three working days and is valid indefinitely. A foreign company’s permanent representative office in China can only get a temporary filing for non-trade activities, so it cannot be used as a workaround.
Does my wood packaging need ISPM 15?
Yes. Mainland China requires wood packaging on inbound goods to be treated under the supervision of the exporting country’s quarantine authority in line with the International Plant Protection Convention, and to carry the IPPC mark. Unmarked packaging is treated or destroyed under Customs supervision, and seriously non-compliant packaging can be returned with the goods. Forging or misusing the mark draws fines up to RMB 30,000. This applies even if the cargo routes through Hong Kong, which does not itself require ISPM 15.
What happens with commodity inspection?
Where your goods are on the catalogue of commodities subject to mandatory inspection, the consignee applies for inspection with the contract, invoice, packing list and bill of lading, must request it within 20 days after customs release, and may not sell or use the goods before inspection is complete. The governing regulation was revised on 8 August 2026, so check that any guidance you are reading post-dates that.
Can I ship scrap or recovered materials to China?
Almost certainly not. Since 1 January 2021 the import of solid waste by any means is prohibited, and dumping, stockpiling or disposing of foreign solid waste in China is prohibited. The licences that used to exist for the restricted category are gone. Check the classification carefully for anything that could be characterised as waste.
What is CCC certification and does it apply to me?
China Compulsory Certification is a product requirement rather than a customs procedure. Products on the CCC catalogue must be certified and carry the mark before they can be imported, sold or used in business activities. The catalogue runs to 16 categories and 96 products, with category 10 covering vehicles and safety accessories. Exemptions exist for research and testing samples, parts for end-user repair, production line equipment parts, goods used solely for commercial display and not sold, and parts imported to be re-exported as a complete machine, most of which need an exemption certificate from the local market regulator.
What additional tariff applies to US goods right now?
From 13:01 on 10 November 2025 China suspended the 24% additional tariff on US-origin goods for one year and retained the 10% additional tariff. That one-year suspension runs to around 10 November 2026. This page was confirmed on 22 October 2026, so the position may have changed by the time you read it. Check with your Chinese customs broker before planning around any figure.
Which ports can I ship a vehicle to?
There is a formal list of state-designated automobile import ports, reported by a provincial commerce department as 29 nationwide covering air and sea. We could not find the current official list of port names on any reachable government page and we are not going to reproduce an unofficial one. If your shipment is a vehicle under one of the narrow permitted routes, have your Chinese broker confirm the port is designated before you book.
Do you ship single boxes or share a container?
No. We ship full containers only. The container is yours and you fill it with your own cargo. We do not place one customer’s goods in with another’s, and we do not take part loads, loose items or single boxes.
Will you tell me if my equipment cannot go?
Yes, as far as we can establish it before you commit. Tell us at the quote stage that the equipment is used and who the end user will be. The difference between a prohibited item, a licensable item and an automatic licence item is the difference between a shipment that works and a container that gets returned at your cost.
- MOFCOM / GACC – Measures for Administration of Import of Mechanical and Electrical Products (Order 2008 No. 7)
- MOFCOM / GACC Announcement 2018 No. 106 – Catalogue of Used Mechanical and Electrical Products Prohibited from Import
- MOFCOM – Measures for Administration of Import of Key Used Mechanical and Electrical Products
- MOFCOM / GACC Order 2008 No. 6 – Automatic import licensing for mechanical and electrical products
- GACC Order 172 – Administration of inbound and outbound conveyance manifests
- GACC Order 253 – Filing of customs declaration entities
- State Council Decree 447 – Implementing Regulations of the Import and Export Commodity Inspection Law (revised 8 August 2026)
- AQSIQ Order 84 / GACC Order 238 – Quarantine supervision of wood packaging on inbound goods
- MEE, MOFCOM, NDRC and GACC Announcement 2020 No. 53 – Prohibition on solid waste imports
- SAMR / CNCA – Provisions on Administration of Compulsory Product Certification
- SAMR Announcement 2023 No. 36 – CCC catalogue description and definition
- SAMR – CCC exemption certificate implementing notice
- State Council Tariff Commission Announcement 2025 No. 10 – Additional tariffs on US-origin goods
- GACC – Certificate of Import of Goods service guide
美国运货至中国内地：中文摘要
以下为上文英文内容的摘要。详细条文以上方英文版及政府官方资料来源为准。新货运往中国是常规业务；旧货才是风险所在。中国对旧机电产品实行三级管理：禁止进口、重点旧机电产品（须进口许可证）、以及自动进口许可。判断错误的后果不是延误，而是退运。
一、旧机电产品的三个层级
「旧机电产品」的定义：已经使用但仍具备基本功能的；未经使用但超过质量保证期的；未经使用但存放时间过长、部件产生明显有形损耗的；新旧部件混装的；以及经过翻新的产品。翻新机仍属旧机。
第一级：禁止进口。列入《禁止进口旧机电产品目录》的产品，国家禁止以任何方式进口，亦不得进入保税区或保税仓库。现行目录共72项，其中第63项为「第87章 车类」，涵盖整个HS第87章，无车龄例外、无细分；第19、20项为第87章车辆用的点燃式及压燃式发动机。
第二级：重点旧机电产品，须进口许可证。指涉及国家安全、社会公共利益、人的健康或者安全、动植物的生命或者健康、污染环境的旧机电产品。由最终用户提出申请（用于翻新或再制造的，须由具备资质的翻新企业申请），需提交用途说明、营业执照、制造日期证明及设备状况说明。20个工作日内作出决定，征询其他部门意见的为35个工作日。许可证有效期一年，一批一证或最多12批次。
第三级：其他旧机电产品，须自动进口许可证。必须在办理海关手续之前取得，并附注明「旧机电产品进口备案」的入境货物通关单。自动进口许可证在公历年内有效，有效期6个月。旧产品另需法定检验机构出具的检验报告。
装运前检验：价值较高、涉及人身财产安全、健康、环境保护项目的高风险进口旧机电产品，应在出口国实施装运前检验。未检验者货物退运，情节严重的处最高人民币100万元罚款。
二、旧汽车禁止进口
《禁止进口旧机电产品目录》第63项为HS第87章车类，涵盖整章且无车龄例外；而禁止进口类产品不得以任何方式进口。任何年份的二手车均落入该章及「旧机电产品」定义之内。我们未能找到任何官方规定设有例外。
另有一套适用于展览、比赛、影视制作及测试用途车辆的暂时进境制度，车辆须在期限内复运出境。这是完全不同的业务，我们另有专页详述，因为两者经常被混淆。
三、舱单申报期限
根据《海关进出境运输工具舱单管理办法》第九条，集装箱船舶应在装船24小时以前传输主要舱单数据（并非抵港前24小时）；非集装箱船舶为抵达境内第一目的港24小时以前。其余舱单数据应在货物抵达目的港前传输。
第四条明确将无船承运业务经营人（NVOCC）列为舱单电子数据传输义务人之一。舱单须同时包含主提单与其项下的分提单。
对您的实际影响：单证必须在开船前就确定无误，因为申报发生在装船之前而非航程之中。请尽早提供收货人资料、品名及重量。
四、收货人必须事先备案
根据海关总署第253号令《报关单位备案管理规定》，收货人须办理海关备案。备案前提是：具备市场主体资格，且已办理对外贸易经营者备案。
备案本身3个工作日内完成，长期有效；变更事项须在30日内报告；对外贸易经营者备案失效的，报关单位备案一并注销；违反规定可处最高人民币1万元罚款。
请注意：外国企业常驻代表机构虽可办理临时备案，但仅限非贸易活动，不能作为商业进口的变通途径。
五、检验、木质包装与禁止进口货物
商品检验：列入必须实施检验目录的进口商品，收货人应持合同、发票、装箱单、提单向报检地机构报检，并应在海关放行后20日内申请检验，检验前不得销售、使用。该条例已于2026年8月8日修订，请注意您参考的资料是否在此之后。
木质包装为强制要求（与香港不同）。进境货物使用木质包装的，应在输出国家或地区政府检疫主管部门监督下按IPPC要求进行除害处理，并加施IPPC专用标识。未加施标识的，在海关监督下除害处理或销毁；已加施标识但发现活虫的，由货主承担除害处理费用；情节严重的连同货物一并退运。伪造或冒用IPPC标识可处最高人民币3万元罚款。货物即使经香港中转亦适用此规定。
固体废物全面禁止进口。自2021年1月1日起，禁止以任何方式进口固体废物，禁止境外固体废物进境倾倒、堆放、处置。原限制类进口许可证已全部停止受理。任何可能被认定为废物的货物，请务必先确认归类。
其他禁止进口物品包括：武器弹药及爆炸物；伪造货币及证券；有碍中国政治、经济、文化、道德利益的印刷品及音像制品；剧毒品；毒品；带有危险性病菌或害虫的动植物；疫区食品药品；旧服装；人民币。
六、CCC强制性产品认证
CCC（3C）认证是产品认证要求，而非通关程序。列入目录的产品，须经认证并加施认证标志后，方可出厂、销售、进口或在其他经营活动中使用。现行目录共16大类96种产品，第10类为车辆及安全附件，涵盖汽车、摩托车、轮胎、安全玻璃、安全带、外部照明、座椅及头枕等。
无须申请即可免办：外国驻华使领馆及国际组织驻华机构及其人员自用物品；港澳特区政府驻内地机构及其人员自用物品；入境人员随身携带的自用物品；外国政府捐赠或援助物资。
须办理免办证明：为科研、测试和认证检测所需的产品和样品；直接为最终用户维修目的所需的零部件；成套生产线配套所需的设备零部件（不含办公用品）；仅用于商业展示但不销售的产品；以整机全数出口为目的进口的零部件；其他特殊用途情形。自2019年4月1日起由地方市场监管部门办理（非海关），受理后5个工作日内出具。
七、关税：请务必查证最新情况
这是本页上唯一可能在撰写与阅读之间发生变化的数字。公告由国务院关税税则委员会发布，您的中国报关行可提供最新情况。
八、口岸与我们的服务
我们承运至主要集装箱港口：上海、宁波、青岛、深圳、广州、天津、大连，美国东西两岸班次密集。
一处如实说明：中国设有国家指定的汽车进口口岸，某省级商务部门网页载明全国共29个（含空运及海运口岸），但我们未能在任何可访问的官方网页上找到现行口岸名单，也不会转引商业网站的名单。若您的货物是在少数允许途径下进口的车辆，请由中国报关行先行确认口岸是否为指定口岸。
我们的服务：仅承接整柜（FCL），不拼箱、不并货、不接受散件。装柜港口为新泽西、萨凡纳、休斯敦、巴尔的摩，全美各州可安排拖车提货。我们的责任至卸货港为止；清关、检验、许可证及收货人备案均在中国一侧办理。我们会在您作出决定之前，尽可能告知您的二手设备属于哪一层级，以免到了宁波才发现问题。
Import rules change. The customs information on this page comes from official government sources and was accurate when published, but duties, age limits and eligibility requirements are set by the destination country and can change without notice. Cassandra Logistics is a licensed ocean carrier, not a customs authority or a legal adviser. We are not responsible for changes to foreign import law, or for decisions made by customs at destination. Always confirm current requirements with a licensed customs agent in the destination country before you buy or sell a vehicle.