Does your business ship products to or from China? If so, it’s likely that you’ve been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in a commercial manner. Whether this is a lack of available stock or issues around custom clearance, international shipping is a challenge faced by many businesses right now. So, what are the current regulations for exporting from overseas and how can these help you to shape your business? For the purpose of this blog, we will focus on essential shipments including PPE.
What issues are businesses facing?
The spread of coronavirus forced many countries to lock down their borders, preventing goods from being shipped in or out in an attempt to prevent contamination. For China, in particular, this had a significant impact on its economy with the ‘Made In China’ brand being the first to falter. And this has had a knock-on effect on many other countries, including us here in the UK. When it comes to PPE supply, the lines that were getting through initially were littered with sub-par quality products that offered little to no protection against the virus.
How have the policies changed?
To prevent products of this poor quality from leaving the country and continue to support it’s failing international shipment industry, the Chinese government introduced new and stricter policies for shipments that contained medical and non-medical essential items. If products were able to reach their final destination, they needed to be of a high enough quality to ensure future orders and continued business.
While supporting the export of quality goods, this has also caused a large number of shipments to be refused or seized if the newly implemented specifications aren’t met. Now, suppliers of medical PPE are required to re-apply for approval to export while all PPE shipments are subject to physical documentation checks. Suppliers that aren’t meeting the new requirements face being blacklisted in China with reports showing that more than 1500 have already faced this threat.
What documents are now required?
For medical PPE, including medical-grade masks and gloves, your supplier should be able to supply:
- Manufacturers Business License
- Medical Device Registration License
- Medical Device Manufacturing License
- Purchase Contract
- Test Report
- Quality Certificate
The team here at Radius Warehouse and Logistic Services have a wealth of knowledge dealing with the ever-changing and evolving customs process. We are up to date with all current legislation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and are here to help. Contact us today and let us take care of your international freight movements today.
