Importing from China to the US: the steps for a small brand

Steps 1 and 4 come before you place the order, not after. The duty and the agency rules change what the product costs and sometimes whether it is worth making.

Before you pay a deposit, find out which agencies regulate your product in the US. The common ones for a consumer brand:

• CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission): many consumer products, and all children's products. Importers must certify that products meet the applicable CPSC rules: a General Certificate of Conformity for general-use products, or a Children's Product Certificate for children's products, which must be based on testing by a CPSC-accepted third-party lab. Since July 8, 2026, the certificate data must be filed electronically with CBP when the entry is filed (CPSC final rule, January 8, 2025; goods entered from a foreign trade zone follow on January 8, 2027).
• FDA: food, food-contact items, cosmetics, drugs and medical devices, among others. CBP sends the entry data for FDA-regulated products to FDA for review before they are released into commerce.
• Forced labor: under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, goods made wholly or in part in the Xinjiang region of China, or by an entity on the UFLPA Entity List, are presumed to be made with forced labor and barred from entry unless the importer proves otherwise with clear and convincing evidence. For cotton apparel, ask the factory where the fiber and fabric come from and keep the paperwork.
• Country of origin marking: foreign-made articles (or their containers) must be marked with the English name of the country of origin, legibly and permanently, for the end buyer (19 CFR 134.11). Tell the factory where "Made in China" goes before production.

Textiles, jewelry and other categories have their own labeling and claims rules on top. Your broker will know which apply to your HTS code.

Finding and qualifying a supplier is its own job; our guide to finding a manufacturer and our Alibaba guide cover it. For the import side, two things to settle before you pay a deposit:

• The shipping term, with a named place. FOB a named port is common on quotes from China, but EXW, FCA and DDP all turn up, and each moves a different share of the freight, export and import work onto you. Read what FOB means before you compare quotes on different terms.
• A written purchase order. The shipping term covers cost and risk, not quality, payment or remedies. The PO is where the approved sample, the inspection before the balance and the fix for a failed shipment get written down.

The Product Sourcing Secrets course covers how to qualify factories and what the PO must state, and The Vault lists factories in China by category with their contacts. The manufacturer directory shows the public side of it.

Every import is classified under a number in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), published by the US International Trade Commission. The first six digits follow the international Harmonized System; the US adds digits for its own rates and statistics. The code sets the duty, and it is also what the ISF and the entry declare.

How to find the code and the duty:

1. 01Search the HTS at hts.usitc.gov by product and material. A cotton knit hoodie and a polyester one can sit under different codes with different rates.
2. 02Read the duty columns. The "General" column is the normal rate for most countries, including China. "Special" is for trade-agreement countries.
3. 03Check Chapter 99 for additional duties. Goods from China can owe additional duties on top of the General rate, listed in HTS Chapter 99. The Section 301 duties on Chinese goods sit mainly at headings 9903.88 and 9903.91, and other tariff actions sit elsewhere in Chapter 99. The HTS publishes a "China Tariffs" reference document on its home page.
4. 04Ask your supplier what code they export under, and treat it as a starting point. The code on the export paperwork isn't always the right one for your US entry.
5. 05Confirm with a customs broker. For a product that could fit more than one code, you can ask CBP for a binding ruling (19 CFR part 177), and search past rulings for similar products in CBP's CROSS database.

Duty is charged on the customs value. The main basis is transaction value: the price you paid the seller, excluding international freight and insurance (19 CFR 152.102(f)), plus additions such as packing costs you paid (19 CFR 152.103(b)). US government fees come on top: a merchandise processing fee (a percentage of value with a minimum and maximum on formal entries, a small set fee on informal ones), with the amounts adjusted every fiscal year (19 CFR 24.23), and, for ocean cargo, a harbor maintenance fee of 0.125% of the cargo's value (19 CFR 24.24).

Importer number. CBP identifies the importer of record by its IRS business number (your EIN), or a Social Security number if you have no registered business, or a CBP-assigned number requested on CBP Form 5106. CBP does not require an import license; other agencies may for some products.

Customs broker. Brokers are licensed by CBP (19 CFR part 111) but are not CBP employees. You can file your own entries, but CBP notes that many first-time importers hire a broker. CBP keeps a directory of permitted brokers by port. Even with a broker, CBP says the importer of record remains responsible for the correctness of the entry.

Customs bond. A formal entry can't be released until a bond is on file: a single-entry bond for one shipment or a continuous bond for all of them, on CBP Form 301, from a CBP-approved surety or secured by cash (19 CFR 142.4). The bond guarantees duties, fees and compliance, including the ISF. Your broker can arrange either; CBP publishes how it sets bond amounts.

Formal or informal entry. Commercial shipments valued at $2,500 or less can generally use informal entry, a simpler process than formal entry. The exception matters for China: articles valued over $250 that are classified in HTS Chapter 99, Subchapters III and IV, can't use informal entry (19 CFR 143.21). Section 301 duties on Chinese goods are in Subchapter III, so a small shipment that owes them may still need a formal entry and a bond.

De minimis. As of the regulation in force on October 22, 2026, the $800 duty-free de minimis exemption is suspended for shipments arriving by any route other than the international postal network (19 CFR 10.151(b), CBP Dec. 26-12, June 24, 2026). Postal shipments follow separate rules. Don't plan a business on splitting orders under $800; check the current status with your broker.

A freight forwarder books the transport for you: air or ocean, a full container or space in a shared one (LCL), plus pickup in China and delivery in the US. Some forwarders also offer customs brokerage, or work with a broker they can introduce. Get the factory's packed carton sizes and weights first; freight is priced on weight or volume.

For ocean cargo, an Importer Security Filing (ISF, "10+2") is required. The ISF importer, or an agent such as your broker or forwarder, files it electronically (19 CFR part 149):

• At least 24 hours before the cargo is loaded on the ship in China: the seller, the buyer, the importer of record number, the consignee number, the manufacturer or supplier, the ship-to party, the country of origin and the HTS number (to six digits).
• As early as possible, and no later than 24 hours before arrival in the US: the container stuffing location and the consolidator.

A late, missing or wrong ISF can cost liquidated damages of $5,000 for each violation under the customs bond (19 CFR 113.62(j)), plus holds and inspections. Give your forwarder the factory's full legal name and address as soon as you place the order, so the ISF isn't waiting on you.

ISF applies to cargo arriving by vessel. Air shipments don't need one, but still need entry.

When the goods arrive, your broker files entry: the documents CBP needs to decide whether to release the goods. Entry is due within 15 calendar days of the goods landing (19 CFR 142.2), and the broker can file before arrival. The entry summary, with the estimated duties deposited, follows at the time of entry or within 10 working days after it (19 CFR 142.12).

Have these ready for your broker:

• Commercial invoice from the factory, showing the price, terms, currency and country of origin
• Packing list (cartons, units per carton, weights)
• Bill of lading (ocean) or air waybill (air), from your forwarder
• HTS code you and the broker agreed
• Your importer number and bond details
• CPSC certificate data (GCC or CPC) if your product needs one
• Any agency information for FDA-regulated goods
• Proof of where materials came from, if the product could raise a forced-labor question

CBP may examine the shipment, and a partner agency such as FDA can hold it until it decides the product is admissible. Build a few days of slack into your launch date for this.

Keep your records. Import records generally have to be kept for 5 years from the date of entry (19 CFR 163.4).

When the cartons reach your warehouse or 3PL, count them against the packing list, spot-check units against the approved sample, and log damage before you sign anything you can't take back. The quality control inspection guide covers checking the goods at the factory, before the balance is paid, which is far cheaper than finding problems here.

Then record what the shipment really cost: product, freight, duty, fees, broker and receiving, divided by the units you can sell. That figure, not the factory's unit price, is your cost. Our landed cost guide has the formula and a worked example, and the free landed cost calculator runs it on your own numbers.