China is one of the best places to source furniture, home decor and other such accessories. The country has entire cities devoted to the manufacturing and sale of high-quality furniture. Finding furniture is not such a big issue. The trouble lies more with transporting the purchases from China to your site. To be profitable, you need the cheapest shipping from China to India.
In most cases, to be most cost-effective you must ship an entire container at a time. The fees for international shipping from China are wide ranging. There are a number of factors to be considered—basic freight charges from China to India, port and customs charges, import tax from China to India, cargo insurance, etc.
What is shipping and container shipping?
Container shipping has been around for decades but has been standardized only since the last few years. Containers can be shipped by road, rail or sea. There are many different types of shipping containers used by China freight forwarders. This includes:
- Dry storage containers
Dry storage containers are primarily used for transporting dry ingredients and are available in standard lengths of 10, 20, or 40 feet. These containers are the most standardized type of shipping containers. To estimate how much volume could be added to these containers, you can find the volume in cubic feet using a suitable cubic feet calculator.
- Flat rack containers
When it comes to shipping large units such as cars, boats and other types of mechanical equipment, a flat rack container is often the best suited. These containers have collapsible sides that can be kept up or brought down depending on the dimensions of the product being shipped.
- Open side containers
Containers typically open at one end of their length. However, this can be inconvenient when being used to ship a large number of small packages. Open side containers open from their side instead of the end. This makes them easier to load and unload.
- Open top containers
As the name suggests, open top containers refer to those containers that have no roof. This makes it easier to load with machinery, packages of differing heights, etc.
Apart from this, there are many other types of shipping containers as well. For example, tankers may be used to transport liquids while refrigerated containers can be used to ship fresh produce.
Purpose of Container Shipping Services
Not everyone purchases and needs to ship enough to fill a full container. Container shipping services offer two types of container packing: break bulk shipments or less than container loads (LCL) and full container loads. The former allows buyers to share containers with other buyers who are shipping products from China to India at good rates.
Charges associated with International Shipping
The costs of international shipping can be categorized under many heads. These include:
-
Freight associated charges
-
Maritime freight charge
This refers to the price of transporting freight from one port to another and is determined by the shipping company’s rates and the chosen route.
-
Consolidation fee
This is charged in cases of LCL shipments and is dependent on the cost of consolidating different LCL loads into a single container.
-
-
Carrier-related fees
These are surcharges based on demand and supply, fuel costs, etc. They are not always charged and may be avoided by smart planning. The most common amongst these fees are:
-
BAF (Bunker Adjustment Factor)
This is applied to cover fluctuations in fuel costs. It is calculated on the basis of TEUs shipped and the route.
-
EBS (Emergency Bunker Surcharge)
EBS also covers fuel price fluctuations and can vary according to shipping route and container type.
-
CAF (Currency Adjustment Factor)
This fee is added on to cover the difference in currency exchange.
-
PSS (Peak Season Surcharge)
This fee is added to cover the operational costs during peak season.
-
Other carrier-related fees that may be applicable in special circumstances include:
- EIS
- Container cleaning fee
- Container seal
- SEC
- ISPS
- HEA
- SES
- OWS
- War risk
- OOG
- ERR
- Container management fee
- Equipment reposition surcharge
- Container seal change fee
- Congestion surcharge
-
Port charges
Port charges vary from port to port. The different port charges that may apply while calculating container shipping cost from China to India are:
-
T3
This is a tax charged for the use of facilities at the port.
-
Terminal handling charges (THC)
This fee is charged at the origin and destination port to cover the cost of handling the container and transporting the container to and from the vessel.
-
-
Documentation fees
Shipping a container by sea involves plenty of paperwork. All of this documentation has costs associated with it. Some of the typical fees you may incur include:
- Bill of Lading issuance fee
- Bill of Lading correction fee
- Switch Bill of Lading issuance
- SOLAS VGM submission fee
- Transit accompanying document (T1, IT transit document, PTT, etc.)
- Certificate of origin fee
- Export certificate issuance
- Validation of titles fee
- Packing list completion fee
- Product-related certificates
-
Cargo insurance
The cost of insuring a container depends on many factors including the type of material being transported, value of products, route being taken, etc.
-
Additional charges
In addition to the above, there may also be a number of other charges added on to your shipping fee. This includes:
- Packing charges
- Pick up and delivery charges
- Container loading charges
- Palletizing fee
- Chassis usage fee
- Handling fee
- Warehousing
Taxes and duties
When you import anything into India, you must pay import duty as well as GST. The import duty on machinery from China to India and the import duty on home goods is not the same. These rates for custom duty for import from China to India are subject to change from time to time and vary from 0% to 150%.
The different types of duties payable include:
- Basic Customs Duty — this is payable for all goods that fall under section 12 of the Customs Act.
- Education Cess — this is a 2% fee chargeable on all goods.
- Anti-Dumping Policy — This is payable if the value of goods being imported is less than its market price.
The total amount of tax payable on imported goods can be calculated as:
Actual value of goods + Basic Customs Duty = Value after customs duty Value after customs duty × IGST Rate = Value after IGST Total value of duties payable on imports = Customs Duty + IGST + GST Cess
How much does container shipping cost from China to India?
The cost of sending a container from India to China is typically higher than the cost of transporting a container from China to India. According to ASSOCHAM, a container coming from China to India can cost a fee of around $600. On the return route, the fee may be nearly $1,200.
Finding the Perfect Shipping Partner
When it comes to shipping products from China to India, you should ideally partner with China to India shipping agents. OyeExpress is the ideal logistics partner for your needs. OyeExpress offers help with every stage of transporting a shipment from China to India. We take care of all the logistics, offer the most competitive costs and transport your goods right to your doorstep. Whether you need a piece of jewellery or furniture for a hotel, we can help with all your shipment requirements.
