How to Ship Furniture from China to the Philippines

If you are about to ship furniture from China to the Philippines, you need to know four key things.

One, where you’ll find the best quality furniture in China.

Two, furniture shipping options available from China to the Philippines

Three, how much the shipping might cost you.

And, lastly, the custom rules and regulations for importing furniture into the Philippines.

In this article luckily, we are going to cover all this.

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So let’s dive right in.

How Long will it Take to Ship furniture from China to the Philippines?

When shipping furniture from China, you should consider both the time it takes to prepare the cargo and the transit time.
Transit times, in this case, vary depending on final destination.
Shipping from China requires between 3-7days.
Here, you’ll have to factor in possible delays due to unforeseen circumstances as well as the time taken to clear goods at customs.
Due to this, it is best that you allow at least 10 days to receive your furniture from China.
Wait a minute, here is a bonus for you: 7 Must Read Tips before Shipping Container to Philippines from China.

Where you can Find the Right Manufacturer to Buy the Furniture in China?

To find the right furniture supplier/manufacturer in China, you can explore the following options:

· Alibaba
· Shunde City
· Trade Fairs

What about Insurance when Shipping Furniture from China to Philippines?

Well, I’ve already told you that furniture is quite delicate.
And while ocean shipping is the most reliable way to ship this kind of cargo, it does not guarantee the total safety of items.

Anything could happen as risks are sometimes inevitable.

So it is a must-have when importing from China.

The furniture could get damaged, lost, or even stolen during shipping.

Whatever the case, insurance is essential if the shipment is highly valuable.

What Paperwork needed to Ship Furniture from China to the Philippines?

. Packing list
. Commercial invoice
. Bill of lading document
. An import authority permit for certain kinds of furniture
. Certificate of origin

• Why Should you Buy Furniture fromChina?

Why Should you Buy Furniture fromChina?

No doubt, Chinese furniture is known for its uniqueness and exquisite quality.

So while there may be plenty of furniture options in the Philippines, you may not find exactly what suits your needs.

This is especially if you are in need of something more unique or of better quality.

Well with China, finding the kind of furniture pieces that you want is a simple task.

There are plenty of furniture manufacturers and suppliers in China selling a wide variety of furniture at wholesale prices.

Besides, there is a whole city dedicated to manufacturing and selling good quality furniture pieces – the city of Shunde.

You can choose from the vast array of designs available or have your pieces custom made in China.

You just need to know your options.

Then, identify a supplier/manufacturer that carries the style you are looking for.

With this, you can go ahead and plan your budget to include the cost of shipping the furniture.

This way, you can guarantee that you’ll get the best high-quality pieces available for your home, office or business.

By the way, if you want to buy hotel motel furniture, you can check this supplier.

Where to Buy the Furniture in China (Finding the Right Supplier/Manufacturer)

To find the right furniture supplier/manufacturer in China, you can explore the following options:

· Alibaba

If you are stranded on where to source furniture products or find a supplier for the same, try Alibaba.

Alibaba is the world’s largest online marketplace that links buyers to a variety of suppliers/manufacturers.

You can start by doing a random search:

Here, you will get access to a plethora of furniture products at wholesale prices.

Even if you need your furniture custom made, you can locate a trustworthy manufacturer on Alibaba and have them do this for you.

Alternatively, you can follow this simple procedure:

 i. Visit Alibaba official website

ii. Go to categories on the far left corner (just below Alibaba.com logo)

      iii. Then move to the 5^th category where you will see furniture. In fact, you will get many options, from home, commercial, baby to outdoor furniture. Even when you’re looking for furniture parts, you’ll find them on Alibaba.

For more information on this, read this article on how to ship from Alibaba to the Philippines.

· Shunde City

Remember Shunde?

Well, this is a city in China that is wholly dedicated to furniture production and wholesale.

The city is located in the Guangdong province of China, about 40 km south of Guangzhou.

It is home to a vast number of furniture malls including Louvre, Ajman, Sun-link and Tuanyi furniture malls.

Besides, the city has close connections to Hong Kong which makes shipping furniture from China even easier.

PS: If you need to a furniture sourcing agent, you can contact Foshan Sourcing.

· Trade Fairs

If you choose to explore the customization option, visiting furniture trade fairs in China can be a great way of finding manufacturers.

There is the canton fair, the largest trade show in China that is held every twice a year.

There is also the international furniture trade fair held every March and September in China.

Visiting either of the two will give you the opportunity to meet suppliers and talk business directly with them.

Here, you can do a random search using key words such as this “furniture trade fair china.”

Then go ahead to scrutinize what you find.

Also, you get to see firsthand the options that you have regarding material and design.

So in essence, you have lots of options to consider when sourcing furniture items from China.

As you hunt for suppliers/manufacturers, however, try to do due diligence to ensure that find a trustworthy and reliable one.

Furniture Shipping Options from China to the Philippines

More often than not, furniture from Chinais shipped by sea.

Why so?

Well, because furniture is inarguably bulky and quite delicate.

It thus requires a shipping method that can accommodate its large volume, weight and delicate nature.

Now, while ocean shipping from China to the Philippines is safe and reliable, it is way too slow.

Furniture delivery from China to the Philippines by sea can take five times longer the time taken by air freight.

This may be a long wait for someone is working on a fixed schedule.

If this is so, you may want to consider air freight which is fast.

In fact, it is about ten times faster than ocean shipping, although costlier.

For bulky items like furniture, it can cost you five times to ship the same amount of furniture by air than by sea.

So in this case, ocean shipping is more viable.

Note that there are two options that you can explore when shipping furniture items by sea.

One is to ship FCL, that’s if your cargo is large enough to fill up a standard shipping container.

If not, you can ship LCL where you’ll need to consolidate your cargo with that of other shippers to the Philippines.

You can also consolidate your furniture shipment with your other dry cargoes to ensure that all your stuff is shipped in one container.

As you do this, you might want to be keen on the packaging of the furniture items.

In this case, I would recommend that cartons be used for outer packaging and then sealed with a plastic wrap.

This will help keep the furniture safe during transit and also prevent molds.

Also, transport the packages using pallets as this provides for easy unloading when you get to the destination.

Remember, you want the furniture pieces to get to the Philippines in their best form.

That is, without any breakages, scratches or whatever damages.

If you are not sure that this is possible, you better get cargo insurance.

Please note:

Shipping companies often have a limited liability of only $500 for cargo damage per container.

This is not enough insurance for cargo whose value is beyond this amount.

The best things, therefore, is to get insurance from a reputable insurance company for your shipment to avoid any regrets later.

That said.

What is the Best way to Handle Furniture Shipment from China to the Philippines?

There are three ways to do this:

1. Let your supplier handle the shipping
2. Let a shipping agent handle it
3. Or, handle it yourself

The first option is quite common among first-time importers as it is simple.

And, presumably, saves them logistical headaches.

Well yes, your supplier handling the shipping part can help save you a lot of headaches.

But in the end, it will cost you more.

Plus, you need to wrap your head around the process of shipping items from China.

Letting other people do it for you won’t help in this case.

Unless of course if it’s your first and last time importing from China.

If it’s not, you can hire a professional freight forwarding and logistics company to take care of the shipping for you.

Here, you need to identify the right company, tell them your needs, pay up and let them do what they do best.

So what the difference?

Well, a freight forwarder will work with you to ensure the safe delivery of the furniture from China to Philippines.

Forwarders, you should know, is more of partners in the supply chain process.

They use their expertise and experience to guide and help you ship your items in the best possible manner.

Thismeans that working with a freight forwarder to ship items from China will keep you on top of things.

If however, you feel confident enough to handle the shipping yourself then okay, go ahead.

Just be sure that you can book the shipping space on time, oversee the shipping and handle customs processes without any challenges.

So how much will shipping furniture from China to the Philippines cost you?

Let’s find out.

Cost of Shipping Furniture from China to the Philippines

The aspect of cost is one that you have to consider when shipping stuff internationally.

In this regard, you’ll have to work out the cost of shipping the furniture from China to your final destination in the Philippines.

About this, we will break it down into two parts:

a) Shipping Cost from China to the Philippines

The cost of shipping furniture from China to the Philippines is quite reasonable.

Figure 8 How much does it cost to ship furniture? – Photo courtesy: PODS

The ballpark figure is about USD2500-USD4000.

This could be higher or lower depending on your shipping requirements.

To get an estimated cost, use an international freight cost calculator.

This will give you a free quotation on the possible cost of shipping your furniture from China to the Philippines.

b) Import Duties and Taxes on Furniture Shipping to the Philippines

The limitation to shipping furniture from China to the Philippines is the import taxes and duties you will incur.

It doesn’t matter if the furniture you are shipping is for personal use, or for commercial purposes.

The furniture will be subject to an average of 6.7% customs duty rate and a 12% sales tax.

Note that this tariff will also be based upon the value of the shipment which must be above USD 200.

Imports whose worth is below USD 200 are not dutiable in the Philippines.

Also, used furniture could be exempted from tax, but only if you have a foreign passport or a special resident retiree visa.

Before doing anything else;

I advise you to contact either a professional customs broker or seek help from the Philippines customs authority.

Either of these will assist you in determining how much you’ll need to pay for importing furniture to the Philippines.

The total cost of importation, note, will include other charges, i.e., local port fees, trucking costs, documentation among other expenses.

Paperwork needed to Ship Furniture from China to the Philippines

To successfully send furniture from China to the Philippines, you will need to get the following documents ready:

• Packing list
• Commercial invoice
• Bill of lading document
• An import authority permit for certain kinds of furniture
• Certificate of origin

Please note:

If you are not that familiar with the customs rules and regulations, hire a professional customs broker.

He/she will be the one to handle the entry of your shipment to the Philippines.

In this case, you will need to supply all relevant information for the customs broker to file the pertinent documentation.

Also note, that a customs broker offers lots of advantages.

Besides handling the customs clearance and documentation processes, they’ll also;

• Help you weigh and find out any import duties and other details on your shipment
• He’ll specify to your supplier the requirements he must prepare before your shipment
• He can inspect your cargo before it is shipped to your final destination

Conclusion

When you are buying new furniture, there is a lot to think about.

The above are just but a few of the things that you have to take into account when shipping furniture from China.

I must say, the process is not complicated at all.

It is even easier when you decide to work with a professional shipping agent like Tj chinafreight.

This, shipping agent, will help you ship only the top-quality furniture from China to the Philippines.

They’ll guide and advise you through the entire process of shipping.

In the long run, you’ll save yourself from unnecessary headaches as well as save on time and money.

Related Articles:

China Furniture Market – The Complete Guide