Industries

Textile and garment freight forwarding and customs clearance

Fabric, trims, and finished garments, with origin rules that survive an audit.

In garments the duty saving usually comes from origin, not freight. FTA preference rules for textiles are stricter than for most goods — often a yarn-forward or fabric-forward test — so where your fabric was made can matter more than where the garment was sewn. We check the origin rule against your bill of materials before the shipment moves, so the certificate you file is one that survives a verification request.

Pain points

Common challenges

  1. Rules of origin

    Preferential duty rests on origin documentation that has to survive an audit years after the goods have sold.

  2. Season deadlines

    A fashion season has a fixed on-shelf date. Freight that arrives late arrives at markdown prices.

  3. Split consignments

    One order ships from several mills and factories at once, and consolidating it without losing traceability is where most of the delay starts.

How we move Textiles & Fashion

  • Sea LCL for sample and small production runs
  • FCL for full-season shipments and bulk fabric rolls
  • Airfreight for replenishment and time-critical seasonal deadlines
  • Cross-border trucking for cut-make-trim flows within ASEAN

Common questions

Textiles & Fashion: common questions

Why is my garment shipment refused FTA preference when it was sewn in Thailand?

Because most textile FTA rules test more than the place of sewing. A yarn-forward rule requires the yarn itself to originate in the FTA area, so a garment cut and sewn in Thailand from third-country fabric can still fail. We assess the rule against your bill of materials first, so you know before shipping whether the preference is actually available.

Should fabric go by sea or air for a seasonal deadline?

Sea for anything with more than about four weeks of runway, air for replenishment and late fabric. The real decision is usually made earlier than people think: once the fabric is late, air is the only option and the cost is set by weight and volume, so it is worth telling us the drop-dead date at booking rather than at cut-off.

Can you handle imported fabric that leaves again as finished garments?

Yes, and this is where Section 29 matters. Duty paid on imported fabric can often be refunded when the finished garments are exported, provided the import and export entries are linked with production records. We set the entries up that way from the first import so the claim is straightforward later.

See all frequently asked questions

Let's move your cargo

Shipping Textiles & Fashion?

Tell us what you're moving and we'll come back with a routing, a clearance plan, and an itemised quote.

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