10 Ways to Lower Your Transport Costs from China to the Netherlands

How do you lower your transport costs?

Importing products from China to the Netherlands, Belgium or Germany can be challenging, especially when it comes to transport and customs costs. These costs can be significantly high and therefore affect the profitability of your company. Read on to find out how you can reduce transport and customs costs.

1. Choose the right incoterms

By choosing the right Incoterms, you can prevent misunderstandings and unforeseen costs. This can also help clarify the responsibility for the goods and thus prevent conflicts with your supplier or Forwarder. Incoterms are therefore nothing more than international standards for the distribution of responsibility (between buyer and seller) for shipping the goods.

By making unclear agreements, unnecessarily high costs can be paid. For example, if you make a relatively small LCL shipment with sea freight, it is unnecessary to deliver your shipment directly to the port (based on FOB). This is because you often have high fixed costs with the incoterm FOB.

For a relatively small LCL shipment, it is best to deliver FCA to your Forwarder's department store. Please note that your Forwarder is a party that can consolidate (= merge) multiple shipments, so that the high fixed costs are spread over more shipments, and you therefore have fewer costs.

EXW (Ex Works)

An incoterm that makes the seller responsible for producing the goods alone. The seller ensures that the goods are available for collection at the factory or department store. The buyer is responsible for all transport here. To do this, a buyer (e-commerce company) uses a Forwarder (or customs broker), because a customs broker has the right knowledge to successfully transport your shipment.

FCA (Free Carrier)

An incoterm that makes the seller responsible for delivering the goods to a location approved by the seller. This may be a Forwarder's department store that you use.

FOB (Free on Board)

FOB (Free On Board) is an Incoterm that means that the seller is responsible for loading the goods onto the boat and providing the necessary documents. At FOB, the transport costs and risks up to the port of departure are borne by the seller. Thereafter, the transport costs and risks are borne by the buyer.

Using EXW or FCA as an incoterm is particularly attractive when shipping less than a full container (20ft/40ft). When shipping a full container, EXW or FOB is the cheapest and fastest. This is because at FCA, you still have an intermediate station in the country of your factory.

In air freight, EXW or FCA is usually used. FOB is also a common incoterm when it comes to sea freight.

2. Choose the right carrier

Choose the right carrier: When you import your products from China to the Netherlands, you have the choice between air freight, sea freight, or a combination of both. It's important to choose the carrier that best suits your needs and budget. It can also help to compare quotes from different carriers to get the best value for money.

Boloo Forwarding is an expert in air freight, sea freight (LCL and FCL) and warehousing. Every year, with all Boloo Forwarding members, we ship more than 6,000+ shipments from China.

3. Work with a customs broker

Work with a customs broker: handling customs procedures (customs clearances) can be complicated and incur additional costs. By working with a customs broker, you can reduce these costs and ensure that your goods are handled quickly and efficiently, so that the logistical process does not delay because the customs process takes too long.


In addition, you will receive an invoice from a customs broker (or Forwarder) with a payment term. This means that you do not have to pay in advance for your shipment, but only have to pay when your products are (almost) delivered. With Boloo Forwarding, you get a payment period of 30 days on transport invoices and 14 days on customs invoices.

4. Calculate VAT and duties in advance

Via the calculator in your personal Boloo Forwarding dashboard you can easily calculate your transport and customs costs. All you need to know is the HS code (s) you want to import.


The VAT is always 21%. The 21% is taken over the following costs: purchase costs, transport costs to the country of import and import duties.


The import duties are a percentage that depends on the HS code you want to import. In step 2 of the calculator you can enter your HS code to find out how high the percentage is. The percentage of import duties is taken over the following costs: purchasing costs and transport costs to the country of import.


Note: many customs brokers also charge a fee on the amount of VAT and import duties they must advance for you at customs. This is often a fixed amount or a percentage (often between 1-2%) on VAT and import duties.

5. Ship in bulk

Ship your products in bulk to reduce unit transport costs. This can also help maintain your inventory levels. Of course, shipping bulk requires capital. Sea freight costs and air freight costs can fall by up to 50% per kilogram or cubic meter when you ship in bulk


To do this, you can make price agreements with your supplier, or use a Forwarder. With Boloo Forwarding, you get a payment period of 30 days on transport invoices and 14 days on customs invoices.


Do you want to ship in bulk but don't have enough storage capacity? Then make use of the Warehousing solutions that Boloo Forwarding offers. This allows you to store goods cheaply in the Netherlands, after which you can easily distribute them to a Fulfillment or a B2B customer. In addition, we can prepare goods for shipment for LvB or FBA.

6. Bundle different shipments together

By combining multiple shipments (from different suppliers in the same country), you can save on freight and customs costs. Plus, combining shipments can cause your goods to arrive earlier than if you were to ship them separately. This is because merging shipments can increase the efficiency of the logistics process and reduce transit time.


If you can ship a full container (20- or 40ft) with different shipments, you can get a better rate than having multiple partial shipments shipped in different containers. The rule is that the more and larger you ship, the better the price you can get.


A full 20- or 40ft container can also be delivered directly to an address specified by you. When you fill part of a container, the container must first be split in a department store in the destination country, so that each batch from the container gets its own shipment (s).

The only thing you need here is a Forwarder who can have a department store where shipments can be bundled (= consolidated).

7. Redirect VAT on imports

This does not reduce costs, but it does improve your cash flow. When importing goods from a non-EU country, you must pay 21% VAT on the transport costs + the value of the goods + the import duties when importing the shipment. You can deduct this VAT again as input tax at the tax authorities.

Article 23 is a permit that you can apply for from the tax authorities. With Article 23, the VAT is reversed and you do not have to pay it to customs immediately. Article 23 can be applied to all types of transport.

NOTE: Article 23 only applies to the import VAT that you have to pay with your second Boloo Forwarding invoice, the customs invoice.

The conditions for an Article 23 permit are:

• As an entrepreneur, you live in or are based in the Netherlands.
• You regularly import goods from non-EU countries.
• You keep separate records that easily show how much VAT you have to pay when importing.

See us here template so that you can easily apply for the Article 23 permit. Watch here the nearest tax office.

8. Look at the dimensions and weight

With air freight, you pay for the volume weight or gross weight of your shipment. Simply, a comparison is made between the two. The higher of the two is ultimately called the “loadable weight”. You will therefore be invoiced for this.


With sea freight, you only pay for the space (CBM) that your goods occupy in the container. The formula for calculating CBM: Length (cm) x Width (cm) x Height (cm)/1,000,000 = CBM


If you have small and light products, the difference between air and sea freight in terms of costs will not be big. If you transport large and heavy products, the difference between air and sea freight can be up to 15 times greater.

9. Ship during the low season

Ship during the off-season: By shipping your products during the off-season, you can reduce transport costs. This is because there is then less demand for transport services, which means that prices fall. The low season is mainly in the months of March to September. Due to corona, prices are a lot higher. However, prices are currently falling back to pre-corona levels.

10. Negotiate prices and payment terms

Finally, you can always try to negotiate the prices of your shipments and products. By negotiating with carriers and customs brokers, you may be able to avoid additional costs and increase your profits. It is important here that you build a relationship of trust with your supplier, carrier or customs broker and make regular use of its services.

Conclusion

Reducing transport and customs costs when importing products from China to the Netherlands, Belgium or Germany can be challenging, but it is possible. By choosing the right Incoterms, choosing the right carrier, and working with a customs broker, you can reduce costs and make your business more profitable.


It's important to take the time to consider the different options and choose the best solution that suits your business and your needs (price vs. speed). It can also help to work with other companies that have experience importing goods from China so that you can benefit from their knowledge and expertise. Try to transport as much as possible at once, possibly by bundling different shipments together.


With the right preparation and cooperation, you can reduce transport and customs costs and make your business more profitable. It's a challenge, but it can certainly be worthwhile.


Would you rather watch a video about how to reduce your e-commerce company's transport costs? Then watch this video for 5 tips: