North Europe is served from China by a small number of deep-sea loops that call Rotterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp-Bruges and Felixstowe either directly or through a feeder connection. Which of the four your container discharges at changes the ocean leg by only a few days, but it changes the customs regime materially: the first three are EU ports, while Felixstowe is in Great Britain and clears under UK rules.
ChinaShippingZ moves cargo for importers in 80+ countries across 100+ destination ports, working with partner agents in 30+ countries (as of October 2026). We book Europe cargo out of Shenzhen (Yantian), Ningbo and Shanghai, and customs documentation on the destination side is handled by our brokerage partners.
Major Port Pairs: China → Rotterdam / Hamburg / Antwerp / Felixstowe
| Origin port | Destination port | Direct / transshipment | Transit (days) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shenzhen (Yantian) | Rotterdam | Direct | 28–32 | Benchmark North Europe call. Largest hinterland connectivity by barge, rail and truck. |
| Shenzhen (Yantian) | Antwerp-Bruges | Direct | 29–33 | Strong for chemicals, project cargo and out-of-gauge; deep inland barge network. |
| Shenzhen (Yantian) | Hamburg | Direct on some services, otherwise one transshipment | 30–34 | Elbe pilotage and tidal windows add schedule sensitivity; best rail links to Central and Eastern Europe. |
| Shenzhen (Yantian) | Felixstowe | Feeder via Rotterdam or Antwerp on most services | 30–35 | Great Britain port — UK customs and UKCA product marking apply, not EU rules. |
| Ningbo | Rotterdam | Direct | 30–36 | Shenzhen baseline plus 2–4 days for the longer run to the Malacca Strait. |
| Ningbo | Antwerp-Bruges | Direct | 31–37 | Shenzhen baseline plus 2–4 days. |
| Ningbo | Hamburg | One transshipment | 32–38 | Shenzhen baseline plus 2–4 days. |
| Shanghai | Rotterdam | Direct | 30–36 | Shenzhen baseline plus 2–4 days. |
| Shanghai | Hamburg | One transshipment | 32–38 | Shenzhen baseline plus 2–4 days. |
| Shanghai | Felixstowe | Feeder | 32–39 | Shenzhen baseline plus 2–4 days. |
Port-to-port sailing estimates as of . Exclude China export clearance, destination discharge and customs clearance. Rail freight China–Europe and air freight are quoted separately.
EU Import Compliance: The Fields That Decide Whether Your Container Loads
EORI
An EORI number is required where the consignee is a business established in the EU; a private address does not need one for personal imports. The number is issued by the customs authority of the member state where the business is established, and it appears both on the import declaration and on the ICS2 entry summary declaration.
ICS2 / ENS filing deadlines
| Transport mode | ENS (entry summary declaration) deadline |
|---|---|
| Deep-sea containerised cargo (not short sea) | At the latest 24 hours before the goods are loaded onto the vessel at the port of departure |
| Bulk / break-bulk cargo | 4 hours before the vessel arrives at the first EU port |
| Short sea (voyage under 24 hours) | 2 hours before arrival at the first EU port |
| Air, long-haul (flight of 4 hours or more) | 4 hours before arrival at the first EU airport |
| Air, short-haul (under 4 hours) | At take-off |
| Rail | 2 hours (1 hour where the journey is under 2 hours) |
| Road | 1 hour |
| Inland waterway | 2 hours |
- Data content: a 6-digit HS code is mandatory in the ENS, and the goods description, HS code and consignee EORI profile must be consistent with each other.
- Filing layers: the carrier files at master level; the forwarder or importer files at house level.
- Who is responsible: under the Union Customs Code the carrier normally lodges the declaration; where the carrier does not hold all the data, the party holding that data must supply it.
- Consequence of a failed filing: penalties are set by each member state. The practical outcome shippers see is a do not load instruction at origin and a hold at the first EU port of entry.
Low-value imports: EUR 3 flat duty from 1 July 2026
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Effective from | |
| Measure | The customs duty relief for consignments valued at EUR 150 or less is removed and replaced with a flat duty of EUR 3 per item |
| Legal basis | Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 |
| How it is charged | Per HS subheading, not per parcel. The Commission’s own example: one women’s silk blouse plus two men’s wool shirts fall under two different subheadings, so the duty is EUR 6, not EUR 3. |
| Scope | Distance sales (business-to-consumer e-commerce) imports valued at EUR 150 or less; goods covered by preferential trade agreements are excluded. |
| Valid until | |
| After 1 July 2028 | Duty is charged under five bands: 0% / 5% / 8% / 12% / 17% |
| Product identifier (PID) | Voluntary from ; mandatory from |
| Union handling fee | A separate fee, not a customs duty. The amount is still to be set and is to be introduced no later than . {{待核：金额}} |
VAT and IOSS
Import VAT is charged at the rate of the member state of import, on the customs value plus duty. Rates differ by member state and are revised over time, so check the current rate for the country you are clearing in rather than reusing a figure from an earlier shipment. {{待核：具体成员国税率}}
IOSS (Import One-Stop Shop) is the scheme for declaring VAT on business-to-consumer distance sales of goods valued at EUR 150 or less, allowing the VAT to be collected at the point of sale and declared through a single return instead of at import.
Product compliance
| Marking / regime | Market | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| CE marking | European Union | Conformity with the applicable EU harmonised product legislation; the declaration of conformity must name the responsible economic operator. |
| UKCA marking | Great Britain | The UK equivalent used after Brexit for goods placed on the Great Britain market, including cargo discharging at Felixstowe. |
| REACH | European Union | Registration, evaluation and restriction of chemical substances in articles and mixtures. |
| RoHS | European Union | Restriction of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment. |
| ISPM 15 | Global measure | Heat treatment or fumigation and the IPPC stamp on wooden pallets, crates and dunnage. |
Documents for EU Clearance
| Document | Issued by | When it is needed |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial invoice — HS codes, incoterm, declared value, origin | Exporter / supplier | Every shipment |
| Packing list — carton count, weights, dimensions | Exporter / supplier | Every shipment |
| Bill of lading or sea waybill | Carrier / forwarder | Every shipment |
| ENS / ICS2 filing data (6-digit HS, consignee EORI, goods description) | Carrier, forwarder and importer | Every shipment — 24 hours before loading for deep-sea containers |
| Certificate of origin | CCPIT or local chamber of commerce | Where origin is claimed; no preferential duty is available to China-origin goods under an EU–China free trade agreement |
| Declaration of conformity and technical file | Manufacturer / EU responsible person | Products inside the scope of EU harmonised legislation |
| ISPM 15 treatment evidence | Treatment provider | Wooden pallets, crates and dunnage |
| Dangerous goods declaration | Shipper | Any DG consignment — lithium batteries, chemicals, aerosols, paints |
Customs documentation on the destination side is handled by our brokerage partners. We check the invoice, packing list and ENS data against each other before the cut-off, because a mismatch between the goods description, the HS code and the consignee EORI profile is what triggers manual review.
Freight Rates for Rotterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp and Felixstowe
Contact us for current rates. {{待客户提供：欧洲线整柜价格}} We do not publish fixed rates for the Europe lanes: Suez-versus-Cape routing, war-risk and emergency surcharges, bunker costs and space availability all move week by week, and a rate quoted without a confirmed routing is not a rate you can plan against. Send us the commodity, HS code, container type, origin port and cargo-ready date and we will return an all-in figure with the routing and transit estimate stated in writing.
Shipping to Rotterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp or Felixstowe?
Tell us the commodity, HS code, container type, origin port and cargo-ready date. We will confirm routing, transit estimate, ENS cut-off and surcharge stack in writing before you commit space.
WeChat ID: kenvincheung · Telephone: +86 189 2415 5660 · Monday–Sunday 09:00–19:00 (UTC+8)
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does sea freight from China to Rotterdam take in 2026?
Shenzhen (Yantian) to Rotterdam is currently 28–32 days port-to-port on a direct trans-Suez service, rising to 38–46 days when the carrier routes the vessel around the Cape of Good Hope, so confirm routing in writing before booking, because the same service can switch back between sailings. Hamburg runs 30–34 days from Shenzhen, Antwerp-Bruges 29–33 days and Felixstowe 30–35 days on the same basis.
Do I need an EORI number to import into the EU from China?
You need an EORI number if the consignee is a business established in the EU, because the number identifies that business in the customs declaration and in the ICS2 entry summary declaration; private addresses do not need one for personal imports. EORI numbers are issued by the customs authority of the member state where the business is established.
How far in advance must the EU entry summary declaration (ENS) be filed?
For deep-sea containerised cargo the ENS must be lodged at the latest 24 hours before the goods are loaded onto the vessel at the port of departure — not 48 hours, which is a widely repeated error; other modes have shorter deadlines. Bulk and break-bulk cargo has 4 hours before arrival at the first EU port, short-sea voyages under 24 hours have 2 hours, long-haul air has 4 hours and road has 1 hour.
What changed for low-value parcels imported into the EU from 1 July 2026?
From 1 July 2026 the EU removed the customs duty relief for consignments valued at EUR 150 or less and replaced it with a flat duty of EUR 3 per item, charged per HS subheading rather than per parcel, under Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382. The measure is temporary and runs to 1 July 2028; after that date duty is charged in five bands of 0%, 5%, 8%, 12% and 17%.
Is the EUR 3 low-value duty charged per parcel or per product?
It is charged per HS subheading, not per parcel: the European Commission’s own example is one women’s silk blouse plus two men’s wool shirts, which fall under two different subheadings and therefore attract EUR 6 rather than EUR 3, even though they travel in the same parcel. Consolidating different product types into one parcel therefore does not reduce the duty.
When does the product identifier (PID) become mandatory for EU low-value imports?
The product identifier is voluntary from 1 July 2026 and becomes mandatory from 1 November 2026, and the EU plans to introduce a separate Union handling fee — which is not a customs duty — no later than 1 November 2026. The flat duty of EUR 3 per HS subheading remains in place until 1 July 2028.
Do CE, UKCA, REACH or RoHS apply to my shipment from China?
CE marking applies to products placed on the EU market inside the scope of the relevant EU harmonisation legislation, REACH and RoHS add chemical and hazardous-substance restrictions, and UKCA applies in Great Britain rather than the EU, including cargo that discharges at Felixstowe. Each of them is product-specific, so check the commodity against the applicable legislation before shipment.
Do you publish fixed rates for Rotterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp or Felixstowe?
Published fixed rates are not available for these lanes; routing, surcharges and space move week by week, so rates are confirmed per shipment — contact us with commodity, HS code, container type, origin port and cargo-ready date, and we will confirm the routing in writing. Contact us for current Rotterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp and Felixstowe rates.
About this page. Transit times on this page are planning references compiled from public carrier schedules, not a guaranteed sailing schedule. Regulatory steps were checked against the European Commission, German Customs (zoll.de) and Your Europe, current as of . Verify current requirements against the sources above before shipping. Rates, transit times and regulatory requirements vary by cargo and route and are confirmed per shipment — request a fixed quote before booking.
References
- European Commission — Taxation and Customs Union
- European Commission — Customs Security (ICS2)
- European Commission — Guidance and legal text: temporary flat fee for low-value imports until 1 July 2028
- European Commission — Press release IP/26/1491
- German Customs (zoll.de) — Deadlines for lodging the entry summary declaration
- Your Europe — Customs (EORI and import procedures)
- Port of Rotterdam — English home page
- Port of Hamburg — English home page
- Port of Antwerp-Bruges — English home page
- HM Revenue & Customs — GOV.UK organisation page
- International Trade Administration — Know Your Incoterms
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