Shanghai Customs has rolled out five key measures to streamline cross-border trade and improve the business environment, supporting Shanghai's development as a leading international shipping and trade center.

Digital empowerment to improve efficiency

• Establish a new digital ecosystem for shipping and trade by promoting the connection of trusted data service center scenarios, facilitating the secure exchange and integration of data across wider scopes and more scenarios. Improve the operational efficiency of ports and the resilience of the supply chain.
• Further the application of "Digital Customs Declaration Hall" by constructing a digital functional matrix. Offer businesses a new, streamlined customs clearance experience with one-stop service, one-click access, end-to-end connection, and automatic access to eligible benefits.
• Support the operation of the smart cargo station in the west cargo area of Shanghai Pudong International Airport and the smart port inspection center to improve the intelligence level of air cargo supervision.
• Construct a smart inspection platform for sea freight. Adopt intelligent technologies such as AI assistance and machines replacing manual labor to significantly enhance inspection efficiency.
• ▪Make more testing and inspection business data available online throughout the entire process to make processing times predictable.

Targeted empowerment for reform breakthroughs

• Pioneer a pilot program for intelligent digital supervision of cross-border e-commerce. Provide inspection and clearance facilitation to participating companies, promoting "seamless customs clearance" for cross-border e-commerce parcels through embedded, non-intrusive supervision.
• Promote the expansion and quality improvement of aviation pre-sorting stations. Support the construction of sea freight pre-sorting warehouses to further optimize the functional layout of cross-border e-commerce business formats.
• Expand the coverage of intelligent assistance in the approval of low-risk special items to accelerate the research and development process in the biopharmaceutical industry.
• Develop differentiated inspection measures under the "enterprise plus product" model for imported medical device production materials urgently needed by the industry. Promote the development of Shanghai's high-end medical device industry chain.
• Establish a "one-on-one" port coordinator mechanism for key intermediate product enterprises. Open a "green channel" for customs clearance to further expand export scale.
• Promote classified and categorized management of imported fruits based on "one country, one product, one policy" to optimize inspection ratios for imported fruits with lower risk levels.
• Optimize the application process for the "whitelist" of first-imported consumer goods and increase the frequency of certification to benefit headquarters enterprises in Shanghai, ensuring that high-quality goods from around the world can be imported and supplied.

Integrated empowerment for system restructuring

• Support the introduction of qualified seeds and seedlings to serve the development of specialized businesses in the Hainan Free Trade Port.
• Support customs clearance facilitation for bulk mineral products under controllable risks.
• Utilize inspection modes for high-tech goods using vacuum packaging and other technologies, allowing more high-tech enterprises to benefit from the policy.
• Promote the application of multi-modal transport supervision models, such as rail-road, rail-sea, and water-water transfer in Shanghai. Achieve "end-to-end" customs supervision for multi-modal transport.
• Pilot the "early entry" model for export goods in the Yangshan Port consolidation warehouse to help enterprises arrange warehousing more flexibly.
• Connect efficiently with "district-port direct" dedicated channels based on enterprise needs to support bonded e-commerce goods arriving quickly for loading and export.
• Encourage the application of transit methods for the export of small commodities purchased on the market to further broaden export channels.

Collaborative empowerment for co-governance and greater efficiency

• Formulate Shanghai-specific access standards for international through-flight services to support airlines and airports in adding cross-terminal and cross-airline through flights. Promote the convenience and standardization of passenger transit services.
• Further apply the outcomes of the "smart passenger inspection" initiative to continue to improve the service efficiency of "one-stop" tax refunds for departing passengers.
• Coordinate with relevant departments to promote enterprises in comprehensive bonded zones to carry out multi-category bonded maintenance business in accordance with the four batches of comprehensive bonded zone maintenance product catalogs.
• Optimize declaration and verification procedures to support the construction of large cruise ships in Shanghai under the processing trade model.
• Ensure the normalized development of bonded methanol and other green marine fuel bunkering businesses to help promote the low-carbon transformation of the shipping industry.
• Promote bilateral mutual recognition of fruit temperature probe data for fruits exported to China, significantly shortening inspection times.

Ecosystem empowerment to optimize the business environment

• Organize statistical surveys on the impact of foreign technical trade measures.
• Deepen the construction of the chemical and biomedical technical trade measures review base to improve the proactive response capabilities of export enterprises.
• Deepen the construction of the "Foreign Trade Meteorological Station" and increase the supply of analytical and research services.
• Continue to release the policy dividends of companies proactively disclosing violations. Strengthen policy promotion and "case-based explanations" focusing on areas and matters where violations are prone to occur. Guide companies that have completed proactive disclosure to establish compliance and internal control management mechanisms to avoid the recurrence of similar violations.
• Create service "policy packages" around the development needs of key industries in various districts. Collect and address enterprise concerns through mechanisms such as "customs director delivering policies to the door" and round-table meetings between customs and enterprises.
• Leverage the advisory role of customs policy "experience officers" to establish an efficient feedback mechanism for policy optimization.

In addition, Shanghai Customs will continue to optimize the comprehensive supervision of overseas warehouses, improve the efficiency of small parcel exports, support the export of "new three items" and innovative growth products, carry out international distribution, improve the service level of international exhibitions and competitions, improve the customs clearance efficiency of air imports, optimize Authorized Economic Operator cultivation and certification, and promote enterprises' compliance with laws and regulations to provide practical convenience for market players.

Source: Shanghai Customs