3 ways to start importing from China to Argentina

Goods travel from China to Argentina in three ways. The difference between them is price and speed. And who answers to customs.

Courier

That means DHL, FedEx, UPS and similar services. A route for samples, small shipments, personal purchases and first tests.

The upsides are simple. Fast, straightforward, no broker needed for a small parcel.

There are downsides too. Value limits. Taxes and fees. Bans on some goods.

If you are ordering for the first time, ask the supplier for the term DAP Argentina via DHL. The supplier brings the goods to Argentina and you pay the import charges here.

Cargo

First, about the word. Russian speakers use “cargo” for the arrangement where a company receives the goods in China, ships them, deals with customs itself and hands you the freight inside the country.

In Latin America cargo simply means freight or shipping. Say “cargo” to a local logistics person and they will not know what you mean. In the rest of this article, cargo means an intermediary shipping from China to Argentina.

The arrangement usually goes like this:

• you buy the goods in China;
• you send it to the intermediary’s warehouse;
• the intermediary arranges the shipping;
• they also handle customs;
• you receive the goods in Argentina.

But cargo companies differ, and that is the main thing.

There are transparent companies. They import the goods under their own company, clear customs themselves, and then sell them to you inside the country and issue a factura. You are not the importer, for you it is an ordinary local purchase. For a monotributista that is clearer, with an official purchase document in hand.

And there are grey arrangements where the goods simply turned up and there is no purchase documentation.

So the key question for such a company is this. Do you issue a factura?

A factura is the official document for a purchase. With a factura the arrangement is transparent. Without one you have no proof of the goods’ origin, of your costs or of the purchase itself.

Do not choose a cargo company on price. Look at the paperwork and the reputation. And at who is responsible for clearing the goods.

Full import in your own name

The option for those who want to ship regularly and grow.

The route usually goes like this. First the Responsable Inscripto tax status, then registration in the Registro de Importadores, then working with a despachante de aduana, a customs broker. People do this both as individuals on the general regime and through a company: a SAS, SRL or SA.

You need this route if you intend to:

• ship commercial batches;
• work with sea freight;
• import regularly;
• sell officially and grow.

Where beginners lose money

The main mistake: looking only at the price on Alibaba or 1688. The item costs 5 dollars and the sum is already done in your head. Sell for 15, make ten.

And on top of the price come:

• delivery within China;
• international shipping;
• duties;
• IVA;
• courier, cargo or broker services;
• bank fees;
• the Mercado Libre commission;
• advertising;
• returns and defects.

Which is why a 5-dollar item almost never costs 5 dollars in Argentina.

Before your first order, check

• demand for the product in the country where you plan to sell;
• a clear selling price;
• how reliable the Alibaba supplier is;
• the MOQ, the minimum order quantity;
• the DAP via DHL term, if you are shipping by courier;
• who clears customs: the courier, the cargo company or your despachante de aduana;
• the calculation with the broker on duties, IVA, fees and their services, if this is a full import;
• the full landed cost;
• the goods are not branded and need no complicated permits.

The main rule. First work out the full landed cost, then send the supplier the money.

⭐ By the way: the full landed cost with clearance, air versus container, recoverable taxes and country of origin are worked out in our customs calculator 2.0 from the PRO pack. The same place has import guides for each of the six countries.