Bonded Warehousing

A bonded warehouse is a warehouse established with the approval of customs authorities, specifically designated for the storage of bonded goods or other goods that have not yet completed customs clearance procedures. The functions of a bonded warehouse are relatively limited; it can only store imported goods, and the storage period is restricted to one year. Any extension of this period must be approved by the competent customs authority, and the extended period shall not exceed one additional year. Currently, there are three types of bonded warehouses in China.

1. Special-purpose Bonded Warehouse

This type of bonded warehouse requires approval from customs authorities for its establishment. It is specifically designed to store goods with particular purposes or of special categories, including consignment and maintenance bonded warehouses, stockpiling bonded warehouses, and hazardous liquid bonded warehouses, among others.

2. Self-use Bonded Warehouse

The establishment of this type of bonded warehouse also requires customs approval. It is operated by an independent corporate entity within the territory of China and is used exclusively for storing the bonded goods of its own enterprise.

3. Public Bonded Warehouse

This type of bonded warehouse, which also necessitates customs approval for its establishment, is operated by an independent corporate entity within the territory of China that primarily engages in warehousing business. It specifically provides bonded warehousing services to the public.

Nowadays, a new type of bonded logistics business has emerged, which is primarily based on the General Administration of Customs' new management approach for efficient customs declaration and duty payment for the import and export of bonded goods. This business involves bonded warehousing operations that are independently managed by third-party logistics providers. Under this approach, customs authorities can delegate certain operational procedures, allowing third-party logistics enterprises to manage independently. Bonded warehouses can be established outside of bonded zones, and customs can monitor the inventory of these warehouses in real-time at any time.

Bonded warehouses can submit monthly import and export manifests to customs for verification against customs systems, enabling real-time tracking of bonded goods inventory. Duty can be paid in a lump sum, significantly simplifying the import and export clearance procedures and improving customs clearance efficiency.