Why you should let Siam shipping by Docshipper handle your shipment from china?
SIAM Shipping is an expert for importing goods from China to Thailand, mainly by sea freight. We do ship weekly consolidation and full container. We take in charge all kind of products, general cargo, dangerous and perishable.
Do you need to receive a small parcel from China? Are you going to import great quantities and in regular times of materials to Thailand? Or maybe you just need to do a one-shot transfer between the two countries?
Without regarding your situation, you will find valuable information on this article, that will help you to master what is required to import goods between the two countries. Legit English data about Import/Export is always hard to sort out on the web. Because we’re running in the Thai logistic field for more than a decade, and China is one of the most demanded country to import by our regular clients, we built this page to synthetize all the experience we accumulated for your own benefit.
Here you will find first the trade relations and processes that exists between China and Thailand. After, the different freight methods. We will also give you advises through this presentation, that you can use for your personal situation.
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Sea freight between Thailand and China
Overview – Ocean cargo from Thailand to China
As said before, China has one of the largest coastlines in the world. Combined with its massive population and strong economy, this makes its ports some of the busiest globally. The port authority recently reported a total traffic of 399.25 million tons, including 53.32 Mt of iron ore and 53.86 Mt of crude oil.
In 2014, Ningbo-Zhoushan port surpassed Busan to become the fifth-largest container port in the world, and by 2016, it became the largest cargo port (over 900 million tonnes). It’s known for specializing in furniture transport.
Shenzhen port, located in the south in Guangdong Province, is another major hub. It plays a crucial role in electronic commerce, primarily due to manufacturers like Apple, Dell, HP, and Foxconn.
Finally, the port of Guangzhou (Canton) is the largest multipurpose port in southern China, trading with over 300 ports worldwide and playing a critical role in the economy of Guangdong Province and the Pearl River Delta.
Here is a table showing the average transit times between major Thai and Chinese ports. Smaller ports may experience slightly longer durations due to lower traffic:
Hong Kong / Shenzhen / Guangzhou | Dalian | Tianjin | Qingdao | Ningbo | Shanghai | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bangkok | 12 days | 16 days | 16 days | 15 days | 14 days | 14 days |
Phuket | 13 days | 17 days | 17 days | 16 days | 15 days | 15 days |
Songkhla | 11 days | 15 days | 16 days | 15 days | 14 days | 14 days |
*Please note: These transit times are indicative and may vary.
Siam Shipping Info
To have precise rates and transit times for your Sea freight from Thailand to China, don’t hesitate to contact our SIAM Experts.
SIAM Shipping has collaborators positioned in every major port of Thailand. Thanks to them, we’re proud to deliver a complete range of sea freight services to India. We can plan LCL (less than a container) and FCL (Full container) for 20’, 40’, and 40’ HQ containers. For special goods, we’re also able to arrange reefer containers, bulk cargos, or RoRo.
Here is a table that defines average transit times between the largest Thai and Indian ports. Smaller ports may have slightly higher times due to lower traffic volumes:
Bangkok / Laem Chabang | Phuket | Songkhla | |
---|---|---|---|
Kandla | 14 days | 11 days | 13 days |
Paradip | 10 days | 7 days | 9 days |
JNPT | 17 days | 10 days | 12 days |
Mumbai | 17 days | 9 days | 11 days |
Visakhapatnam | 12 days | 6 days | 9 days |
Chennai | 10 days | 7 days | 9 days |
Kolkata | 15 days | 7 days | 9 days |
Krishnapatnam | 10 days | 7 days | 9 days |
Mangalore | 11 days | 8 days | 10 days |
Tuticorin | 10 days | 7 days | 9 days |
*Please note that these transit times are indicative for Thailand–India routes.
Siam Shipping Advice
To have precise rates and transit times for your Sea freight from Thailand to India, don’t hesitate to contact our SIAM Experts.
Air freight between Thailand et China
Air freight can be very attractive, because the two countries are well-equipped in International Airports. China and Thailand have always been deeply linked economically. There always have been small colonies of Chinese merchant in the major cities of the Kingdom through time. As a testimony, Bangkok has the oldest and one of the biggest Chinatowns in the world.
The links between the two countries are strong by air. There’s a lot of direct lines linking the biggest cities in Thailand to the major Chinese cities. Also, numerous Chinese Airlines have branches and daily flights departing from Thailand and going to China.
An air freight will take less than one day to join the two countries. In total a courier freight will ensure a 3-day freight performance (on average), when regular air freight will enable us to deliver your goods in less than 6 days (on average).
Our well negotiated partnership with the Airlines, enables us to provide a complete range of Air freight services. Courier services (Express), Regular Air freight, Delivery at the Airport terminal, Air freight coupled with trucking…



Road freight between Thailand and China
*You will prefer road freight if you want your goods to arrive in less than a week
As mentioned before, road freight between China and Thailand follows routes similar to those used by rail. While China, Thailand, and Laos have well-developed road networks, Myanmar and Vietnam are still improving theirs. If your cargo originates from central or western China, it will most likely transit via Vietnam and Laos, or through Myanmar.
Since road freight takes about half the time of rail, it can be a better option when time is critical. Based on your business needs, we’ll compare road and rail rates to help you save time—often for a similar price.
Here is a table detailing the average transit times between major Thai and Chinese cities by road:
Bangkok | Chiang Mai | Phuket | Udon Thani | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Shenzhen / Guangzhou | 3 days | 3 days | 4 days | 2 days |
Xi’an | 4 days | 3 days | 5 days | 3 days |
Qingdao | 5 days | 4 days | 6 days | 4 days |
Ningbo / Shanghai | 4 days | 4 days | 5 days | 4 days |
Beijing | 5 days | 4 days | 6 days | 4 days |
Chongqing | 3 days | 2 days | 4 days | 2 days |
Kunming | 2 days | 1 day | 3 days | 2 days |
Nanchang | 3 days | 3 days | 4 days | 3 days |
Harbin | 6 days | 6 days | 7 days | 6 days |
Changsha | 3 days | 3 days | 4 days | 2 days |
Moreover, it will almost always be more expensive than other freight solutions. Road freight is best used in combination with other methods—like sea + trucking or air + trucking—for optimal efficiency.
For example, if you need to send goods in provenance of Kunming to Udon Thani, your goods will transit through Laos by crossing the border between the cities of Boten (Laos), and Mohanzhen (China).
For your information, the Chinese-Vietnamese border is crossed only on one point to go to Thailand. It is called the “Friendship pass” between the cities of Pingxiang (China) and Đồng Đăng (Vietnam). Then your goods can join the territory of Laos on two principal border venue, between Dansavan (Laos) and Tt. Lao Bao (Vietnam), and at the Nam Phao International Checkpoint. Afterwards, they will enter to Thailand.
*If you’re sending goods from north-west China, your goods will flow through Myanmar first. The border between China and Myanmar will be crossed between the cities of Mongla (Myanmar) and Daluozhen (China). Then it will enter the Thai territory between Tachileik (Myanmar) and Wiang Phang Kham (Thailand).
Here is a table of the usual transit times between Chinese and Thai cities:
Bangkok | Chiang Mai | Udon Thani | Phuket | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Shenzhen / Guangzhou | 6 days | 6 days | 4 days | 8 days |
Xi’an | 8 days | 6 days | 7 days | 10 days |
Qingdao | 10 days | 9 days | 9 days | 12 days |
Ningbo / Shanghai | 9 days | 9 days | 8 days | 11 days |
Beijing | 10 days | 10 days | 9 days | 12 days |
Chongqing | 6 days | 5 days | 5 days | 8 days |
Kunming | 4 days | 3 days | 3 days | 6 days |
Nanchang | 7 days | 7 days | 6 days | 9 days |
Harbin | 12 days | 12 days | 11 days | 14 days |
Changsha | 6 days | 6 days | 5 days | 8 days |
*Please note that these transit times are indicative and may vary.
What duties and taxes will I pay for my goods ?
Import duties have been heavily reduced for a wide range of products and services, thanks to free trade agreements between Thailand and China.
The reduction of duties applies to various kinds of goods:
- Pharmaceutical products
- Dairy products
- Commercial trucks
- Aluminum structures
- Many other products
*Trade between both countries is thus facilitated and shall allow manufacturers in Thailand to import cheap raw materials to export afterwards at a competitive price.
How Can you get tax exemption for goods imported from China?
Your supplier must provide us with an E-form, in order to be checked and validated by our import service.
*Please note that E-Form exempts duties and taxes, but Thai VAT is still mandatory (7%).
Definition of CO
A Certificate of Origin (CO) is a document proving that the export goods have been produced in a particular country, ready to be shipped to another country. It must be provided by a notary public, government. The exporter of the goods can also issue it. It is usually divided into GSP certificate of origin (Form A), and various regional preferential certificates of origin, and non-preferential certificates of origin.
ASEAN-China Free Trade Certificate of Origin
The China – ASEAN Free Trade Certificate of Origin (FORM E) is now valid for exportations to the main following countries: Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Singapore, Brunei, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos. It has to comply with the relevant provisions of the product, as issued by the China – ASEAN free Trade Area of preferential origin confirmation letter (FORM E). The 10 countries mentioned before can benefit from preferential tariffs (up to a 5% lower tax rate).
The “Trade in Goods Agreement” defines the sample format of certificates of origin that must be respected. The “trade in goods agreement” Protocol II also requires a description of the contents that must be mentioned on the back page.
Reduced import duties thanks to FTAs between China and Thailand come with a probable future development of infrastructures, such as railways. This should generate a significant reduction of logistics costs, enhancing business and touristic flows in Thailand.
Thailand is trading 79% of its goods to/from another ASEAN member, at a very competitive price. This kind of business relationships between countries has been a real driver for the development of the ASEAN bloc. We can be sure that such an agreement between China and Thailand would be a key asset for both countries.
mport duties between Thailand and China
Tariffs and Taxes
China is aligned with the Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) for imported and exported goods coming from members states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Here is the composition of an HS Code, you can now see what an HS code is and what does it mean.
Import / Export Relations between China and Thailand
Important flows guided by a free trade agreement
Import / Export flows between China and Thailand are growing steadily from year to year. These two countries have good relations; culturally speaking, it is estimated that between one-third and one-half of Thai people would have Chinese origins. The ties between the two countries have tightened even more since the 2014 coup d’état, with Thailand diverting from the United States. China is the first economic partner of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).
A Framework Agreement between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the ASEAN Kingdom entered into force in 2003 to promote comprehensive economic cooperation. Indeed, it was decided that a free trade area would be established within 10 years.
The main points of this agreement are:
- The elimination of tariff and non-tariff barriers on international trade in products,
- The liberalization of international trade in services
- Foreign direct investment
- Simplification of customs procedures and
- Mutual recognition agreements.
The ASEAN-China Free Trade Area is the third largest free trade area in the world, and here are some important points:
- 1.9 billion people (30% of the world’s population)
- GDP: $ 2 billion
- International trade: $ 1.1 billion
- International trade will increase by 38.9%
- Imports and exports are expected to increase by 50%
- Five ASEAN countries are China’s largest trading partners
- China is the third largest source of imports from ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)
An agreement favoring the activity of Chinese seaports
China-ASEAN free trade agreement was signed in January 2007 and entered into force on 1 July 2007. In addition, the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ASEAN-China) is applying by the LAC countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam) since the 1st January 2015.
China relies on several major ports to keep this maritime activity in constant evolution. Indeed, China has more than 2,000 ports, 130 of which are open to foreign ships. China has 16 major seaports with a capacity of more than 50 million tons per year. Amongst these, the port of Ningbo-Zhoushan, located in the Zhejiang Province, on the East China Sea coast, south of Hangzhou Bay.
Guangzhou’s port is also tremendous for the Chinese Import/ Export activities, we will detail it lower. This important traffic is largely due to the Canton Fair, which takes place twice a year (spring and autumn). This huge fair is co-sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce and the People’s Government of Guangdong, while China’s Foreign Trade Center oversees the organization.
The customs services
Customs contact in China
Official name: General Administration of Customs of China
Official Website: Chinese Customs Website
Customs process
Prohibited & Restricted Items
Drugs
Explosives
Biohazard
Chemicals
Corrosive
Counterfeit
Ivory
Batteries
Flammable
Firearms
Drugs
Counterfeit
Poison
Pornography
Knife
Tobacco
Gambling
Hazardous
Additional logistics services
Venture beyond shipping and customs with SIAM Shipping! Explore our wide array of additional logistics services, ensuring your supply chain operation runs smoothly from start to finish. Let's take care of everything, together.
Warehousing and storage
Finding the right warehouse for your goods can feel like a treasure hunt—a steady temperature for your delicate items is a must. Storing chocolates? You wouldn’t want a meltdown! For a stress-free solution that considers all conditions, explore our warehousing services, designed to keep your goods in prime condition.
Packaging and repackaging
Inherent challenges in shipping from China to France make quality packaging vital. Having a reliable agent can help ensure your wine barrels or electronics are suitably packed and repacked, reducing the risk of damages. Whether it's ceramics securely cushioned or machinery components assembly-segregated, great packaging caters to every product. Find out more about securing your cargo on our dedicated page: Freight packaging.

Cargo insurance
Contrary to fire insurance limited to premises, transport insurance is your flotation device over rough trade seas. Imagine sending a pricey, custom-built machinery and it gets damaged in transit. Ouch! But, with cargo insurance, you're covered and can breeze through such setbacks. It's the booster dose of prevention to keep your trade immunity sky-high.

Personal effects shipping
Moving precious belongings from China to France? No worries, we manage fragile or bulky items with extra care, ensuring they reach your new French home intact. Like Aunt Mei's porcelain vase, we pack, transport, and deliver with professionalism. Save time and energy for croissants and vin rouge!
