According to the Announcement of the State Taxation Administration on the Policies of Value - added Tax and Consumption Tax for Exported Goods and Labor Services in 2025, whether freight affects tax rebates depends on the trade terms:
Transaction at FOB price: International freight after leaving the port is not included in the tax - rebate base
Transaction at CIF price: The freight in the CIF price needs to be deducted from the tax - rebate base
Transaction at EXW price: Domestic transportation costs before factory delivery can be included in the tax - rebate calculation
An export case of a certain electromechanical enterprise in January, 2025: The total CIF price of $120,000 includes $15,000 in freight. The actual tax - rebate base is $105,000×tax - rebate rate of 13% = $13,650.
II. How does an agency company allocate freight costs?
Professional agency companies usually adoptThe principle of three - document matching:
The place of departure/destination of the transport document (BL/AWB) is consistent with that of the customs declaration form
The invoice amount is broken down into:
Goods value (tax - rebateable part)
Freight (distinguish between domestic and overseas sections)
The payment voucher corresponds to the contract terms
Pay special attention to what the General Administration of Customs promoted in 2025Intelligent Document Review System, requiring the freight split to be accurate to two decimal places.
III. What items are included in the agency service fee?
The charging structure of a regular agency company usually includes:
Basic service fee(Customs declaration document preparation, tax - rebate declaration)
The industry research in 2025 shows that the agency fee is usually 1.5% - 3% of the tax - rebate amount. Some enterprises offerTiered pricing: 1.8% in the first year, 1.2% for renewed customers.
IV. How to choose the optimal freight accounting plan?
It is recommended toThree - dimensional evaluation method:
Choice of trade method: For long - term orders, freight pre - approval can be applied for
Settlement currency combination: Settlement in US dollars + local currency can reduce exchange losses by 3% - 5%
Case of a textile export enterprise: Adopting the FOB + designated freight forwarder model, the annual tax rebate amount increased by 7.2%, and the transportation cost decreased by 4.5%.
V. Which freight disputes may trigger tax risks?
The key inspection points in 2025 include:
The domestic transportation invoice does not note the export contract number
The proportion of insurance premium and freight in the CIF price is unbalanced
Ocean freight surcharges (THC, BAF) are not listed separately
Prevention suggestions: EstablishFreight account management system13., check the differences in freight data of customs declarations, bills of lading, and invoices monthly, and keep the original price negotiation records for at least 5 years.
(Data sources of this article: Statistical Bulletin of the General Administration of Customs in 2025, Policy Interpretation Documents of the State Taxation Administration, Research Report of the China International Freight Forwarders Association)