China Import Guides by Buying Step | XILINK
Guides library

China import guides, sorted by the step you are on

Every guide we have written for buyers, filed under the question it answers. Pick the step you are stuck on; the guides are on the same page below.

  1. 01Is this supplier real?43 guides
  2. 02How do I pay safely?15 guides
  3. 03Will the goods match what I paid for?23 guides
  4. 04Will it clear customs at home?11 guides
  5. 05How does it get to me, and what will it cost landed?33 guides
  6. 06Where do I start?38 guides
Or by what you buyConstruction machinery and ATVsAgricultural machineryIndustrial equipmentMaterials and chemicalsSpare partsOther products
Asked by real buyers

Questions buyers sent us this year, and where the answer is

Most inquiries start with one of these. If yours is on the list, the answer is one click away. If it is not, get a free quote and ask us directly.

GeorgiaCan every batch be inspected before it ships?Step 03 · answered inQuality Control in China: How Inspections Prevent Costly MistakesUnited StatesCan someone who knows excavators check a used machine before I pay the balance?Step 03 · answered inProduct inspection in China: prices, used machines and reportsKyrgyzstanHow much do I pay up front, and how much when the goods are ready?Step 02 · answered inOur payment terms: the normal split and what is paid whenKazakhstanWhat will it cost to get to Almaty, and when does it arrive?Step 05 · answered inMachinery shipping from China: real freight costs, Almaty includedChileDo your factories hold the welding and quality certificates our mining clients require?Step 04 · answered inCertificates and compliance: what a factory can prove, level by levelKazakhstanCan we spend a week in China and see the fairs and the factories ourselves?Step 01 · answered inCanton Fair and factory visits: escorted trips, day by day

Paraphrased from inquiries received July to September 2026. Names, brands and models removed.

01

Is this supplier real?

Factory or trading company, a real address, a real licence, and who you are actually talking to.

How we audit a factory

Photo: A working factory floor. The machining area on the left matters more than the finished machines.

Start with these

39 more guides on this step
02

How do I pay safely?

How much up front, T/T or letter of credit, and what to check before the money leaves.

Our payment terms

Photo: The balance is paid once the goods are counted and wrapped, not before.

Start with these

11 more guides on this step

Stuck on this step? Get a free quote

03

Will the goods match what I paid for?

Pre-shipment inspection, used machine checks, and what an inspector actually looks at.

Inspection prices

Photo: A used dump truck we checked for a buyer in Kazakhstan before the balance was paid.

Start with these

19 more guides on this step
04

Will it clear customs at home?

CE, EAC and ISO paperwork, HS codes, and certificates that turn out to be fake.

Certificates and compliance

Start with these

7 more guides on this step
05

How does it get to me, and what will it cost landed?

Sea, rail or truck, container or consolidation, Incoterms, duty and VAT at your end.

Machinery shipping

Photo: Loading a 40-foot container at our partner warehouse in Jinan.

Start with these

29 more guides on this step

Stuck on this step? Get a free quote

06

Where do I start?

Planning the order, timing around Chinese holidays, minimum orders, and when an agent is worth it.

Our sourcing agent service

Start with these

34 more guides on this step
By what you buy

Guides written about one kind of product

Model comparisons, price ranges and buying notes for a single category. Each links to the page where we quote that category.

Construction machinery and ATVs

33 guides

What we source
Show the guides

Other products

19 guides

What we source
Show the guides

Every article by date is on the news page. Calculators for duty, landed cost and audit fees are on the tools page.

Done reading

Tell us what you are buying. We answer with a quote, not another article.

A product and a destination port is enough to start. You get a proforma invoice with the factory price and the freight, free, and it commits you to nothing.

Read by Matt and the sourcing team in Jinan, seven days a week.

Prefer to talk first? WhatsApp us.