Customs detention refers to the detention of goods by the customs of the importing and exporting countries due to reasons related to customs requirements, resulting in the customer being unable to receive the goods normally. For cross-border e-commerce, customs detention is a common problem. Once this problem occurs, whether it is due to the seller’s own reasons or the logistics service provider’s reasons, it will have a serious impact on the seller’s interests, so it must be avoided as much as possible. Generally speaking, the reasons involved in customs requirements include but are not limited to the following points.
(1) The importing and exporting countries restrict the import and export of goods.
(2) The tariff is too high and the logistics service provider is unwilling to clear customs.
(3) The goods are counterfeit, inferior or prohibited and are directly destroyed by the customs of the importing and exporting countries.
(4) The declared value of the goods does not match the actual value, resulting in the logistics service provider having to pay a fine in the importing and exporting countries.
(5) The seller is unable to produce the documents required by the importing and exporting countries.
(6) The logistics service provider is unable to produce the documents required by the importing and exporting countries.
Generally speaking, when goods are detained by the customs of the importing and exporting countries, how should the seller, as the trading subject, deal with the detention?
1. Confirm the recipient’s name
The first step for the seller is to confirm the recipient’s name to see if it is a full name. Taking Russia as an example, the full name should include the surname, first name, and father’s surname. If the customer did not leave a full name at the beginning, the seller should contact the customer as quickly as possible and ask him to provide a real full name.
Of course, the seller should also inform the customer that the logistics service provider will contact him later and ask him to provide a real full name again. The purpose of this is to ensure smooth customs clearance. Because the logistics service provider will contact the customer in advance to confirm relevant information after the order is created.
2. Confirm the customs declaration
If there is no problem with the recipient’s name, then the seller must confirm the customs declaration. Generally speaking, the customs declaration must meet the requirements. Although there are many templates on the Internet, they still need to be formulated and filled out according to the requirements of different countries.
The following is a detailed explanation of the requirements for the customs declaration form of AliExpress EMS as an example. The requirements for the AliExpress EMS customs declaration form include the following:
(1) For commodity EMS mail, the information related to the goods should be clearly and in detail filled in the CN22 column of the details form and the relevant columns of the CN23 customs declaration form (for example, “three pairs of sports shoes”, “two woolen coats”, “five pairs of denim shorts”, etc.).
(2) Make a customs declaration value for AliExpress EMS and fill it in clearly and in detail on the five-part mail form, the customs declaration form, and the commercial invoice, and the declared value must be consistent.
(3) Non-personal mailing goods, samples, advertising materials, and gifts require a pro forma invoice. The content of the pro forma invoice should include the name and phone number of the recipient, the name and phone number of the sender, the shipping address, the receiving address, and the relevant information of the goods (name, quantity, value, origin, etc.).
3. Pay attention to the logistics situation in a timely manner
After the goods are shipped, the seller must always pay attention to the logistics situation and contact the customer and the logistics service provider as soon as possible if any abnormality occurs. In this way, the seller can understand the reason for the customs detention at the first time, and then provide relevant documents and evidence in a targeted manner.
4. Choose a reliable logistics method and logistics service provider
This is also the most important thing. Sellers must choose a reliable logistics method and logistics service provider, and must not waste their own money. Although some logistics service providers charge more, they have very strong customs clearance capabilities and can provide strong protection for sellers.