The HS code decides more than the duty
A tariff heading also determines which permits, licences and agency approvals the entry needs. Getting it right is a compliance question before it is a cost question.
Services
Customs clearance and licensed brokerage
Most delays at the border are paperwork, not logistics. Our own licensed brokers prepare and file your entries, then stay with them until the goods are released.
Overview
Customs Clearance
Customs clearance is where a shipment either moves or stops. A container can be at the port and still be days from delivery, because the entry names the wrong tariff heading, the invoice and the packing list disagree, or a permit that takes a week to obtain was applied for the day the vessel arrived.
We keep this in-house rather than subcontracting it. The team that books the freight and the team that files the declaration are the same team, which is the only arrangement in which the two documents are guaranteed to describe the same shipment.
- Import and export declarations — Prepared, checked against the commercial documents and filed on your behalf through the e-Customs system and the National Single Window.
- Tariff classification — The HS code sets both the duty rate and the permit conditions attached to it, so we settle it before the entry is filed rather than arguing about it afterwards.
- Duty and tax assessment — Landed cost worked out up front. Import duty is calculated on the CIF value and VAT at 7% applies to that value plus the duty — so the two are not simply added to the invoice.
- Free trade agreement preference — Where a valid certificate of origin lets your goods enter at a reduced rate, we check the origin criteria hold and claim it.
- Inspection and query handling — We attend physical examinations and answer Customs' questions directly, instead of passing them back to you with the clock running.
- Controlled goods coordination — The other agencies whose approval an entry depends on — FDA, agriculture, and the rest — engaged before the shipment reaches the border.
Good to know
Three things that decide the cost and the timing
VAT sits on top of the duty
Under Thai practice import duty is assessed on the CIF value, and VAT at 7% is charged on the CIF value plus that duty. Budgeting for them separately understates the landed cost.
Preference has to be earned
A certificate of origin is not a formality — the goods have to meet the agreement's origin rules. We check that before claiming, because a claim that fails on audit is more expensive than never having made it.
Common questions
Customs Clearance: common questions
Do you handle customs clearance without the freight?
Yes. Clearance is available as a standalone service for shipments another forwarder is carrying, and it is a common arrangement where a buyer wants the freight bought overseas but the Thai formalities handled locally. We will need the full document set — invoice, packing list, transport document and any permits — as we would for a shipment we booked ourselves.
What happens if Customs queries my declaration?
We answer it. Our brokers attend physical examinations and respond to queries directly rather than forwarding them to you, which is the difference between a query resolved the same day and one that sits in an inbox while storage accrues. You are told what was asked and what we answered.
Our other services
Sea Freight
FCL and LCL on the major lanes, with the chargeable basis and the port pair settled before you book.
Air Freight
Urgent, high-value and perishable cargo, priced on chargeable weight and moved on the first available uplift.
Land Freight
Port haulage, domestic distribution and cross-border road freight with the border formalities arranged in advance.
Documentation & Compliance
COO, phytosanitary, CITES, LPI, Thai FDA support and Section 29 duty refunds, applied for alongside the booking.