China Sourcing Process Step by Step

Most buyers learn the sourcing process backwards. They learn it from the one shipment that went wrong, and only then do they work out which stage the problem actually belonged to. The stages themselves are stable, and so are the points where responsibility changes hands.

This article walks the whole chain in order, from the first message to a supplier to the last carton counted into your own warehouse. Our how it works page shows how we run that chain as a service, and the sourcing and purchasing service covers the early stages in more depth.

If you are still choosing between suppliers, the shipping from China guide is the better starting point. This article assumes a supplier has been chosen and follows what happens next.

Before the Inquiry: Turning a Requirement into Something Quotable

· The specification: what the product is, what it must do, and the tolerances that actually matter to the end user
· The commercial frame: target quantity, target landed cost, and the date the goods have to be available rather than shipped
· The market frame: where the goods will be sold, because that decides labelling, certification and plug or voltage requirements
· The packaging requirement: retail packaging is a separate production item with its own lead time and its own sample
· Why it matters: a supplier quoting against a vague requirement is guessing, and a guess cannot be held to anything later

What a Quotable Inquiry Contains

· The product description written so that a factory engineer, not a salesperson, can cost it
· The quantity broken into a first order and an expected repeat, because the second number changes the unit price
· The destination country and the sales channel, since both change what has to appear on the product and the box
· The date needed in hand, not the date needed to leave the factory
· The question of what you are flexible on, because a supplier who knows where you can move will tell you where the cost is

Stage One: Quotation, Sampling and Approval

· The quotation, which is an offer and not a commitment, and which expires unless it is written into an order
· The sample, which is the physical version of the specification and the only artefact both sides can point to
· The approval sample, signed and dated and kept by both parties, because it becomes the reference for the run
· The gap between sample and production, which is the most common place for a good sample to become a disappointing order
· The rule: nothing is agreed until the approved sample says so

The Terms to Pin Down on a Quote

· The unit price and the quantity band it applies to, because a price without a quantity is a placeholder
· The trade term named in full, since the same price means different things under different Incoterms
· The lead time counted from what, because production time and total time from deposit are different numbers
· The payment schedule, split into deposit, balance and any inspection-linked tranche
· What the price excludes, because tooling, moulds, certification and retail packaging are often quoted separately

Why the Approved Sample Is the Dividing Line

· Before approval, the supplier is still deciding how to make the product
· After approval, the supplier is reproducing something that has already been accepted
· The sample should be photographed, measured and stored, because the production run will be compared against it
· If the sample is the good one, the agreement has to say that production matches the sample rather than the drawing
· The limit: a sample proves what one unit can be, not what a run of ten thousand will average

Stage Two: Deposit, Order and Scheduling

· The order confirmation, which converts a quotation into an obligation with a quantity, a price and a date
· The deposit, which pays for materials and which starts the lead time clock
· The production schedule, which names the date raw materials are ordered and the date production begins
· The pre-production sample, where a run warrants one, taken from the actual production line rather than the sample room
· The milestone list, agreed before the deposit is paid rather than requested after the first delay

Payment Rhythm and Where Risk Sits

· The general shape: deposit on order, balance against documents or against inspection, and nothing without a record
· The asymmetry: the buyer risks the deposit, the supplier risks the finished goods, and neither risk disappears
· The lever you hold: a payment stage tied to a documented milestone is worth more than a lower price
· The trade-off: a heavier deposit usually buys a better price, and it also buys more exposure
· Where the detail sits: our payment information page sets the methods out side by side

Stage Three: Production, Inspection and Shipping Out

· The production start notification, which is the first signal that the schedule is being met or is slipping
· The mid-production check, useful for long runs because it catches a systematic fault before the whole run is made
· The pre-shipment inspection, which is the last point at which a fault can still be reworked rather than landed
· The carton and packing verification, because packing errors are found at the warehouse and cost more to fix there
· The release decision, which is a business decision rather than a quality one, and which should be recorded as such

Pre-Shipment Inspection and the Document Set

· The scope: a stated sample size and a stated defect threshold, because an inspection without a standard is an opinion
· The timing: before loading, while the goods are still in the factory and still repairable
· The evidence: photographs, a written report and retained samples kept with the shipment record
· The document set that has to be complete before the container is sealed, including invoices, packing lists and any certificate the destination requires
· The standard behind the check is set out in our quality inspection guide

Stage Four: Booking, Export Declaration and Transit

· The booking, made against the production completion date and not against the date the sales team promised
· The trade term that decides who books the freight, because that is a contract question before it is a logistics one
· The export declaration on the Chinese side, which is a domestic matter for the supplier or their agent
· The customs classification, which is decided per product and which travels with the goods into every later stage
· The transit itself, where the remaining levers are the destination side and the paperwork

Stage Five: Arrival, Customs Clearance and Duty

· The arrival notice, which starts the free-time count at the destination terminal
· The entry process, where the importer of record is named and becomes responsible for the declaration
· The duty and tax assessment, calculated on the declared value and the classification
· The release, after which the goods can move and the storage clock changes from terminal to inland
· The point to internalise: on the destination side the importer, not the supplier, answers for the declaration

The Timing Rules at US Entry

· The Cargo Release must be filed within 15 calendar days of the goods arriving, and the Entry Summary with estimated duties follows within 10 days of release and within 10 working days of entry
· The Importer Security Filing is the 10+2 filing, which has to reach CBP no later than 24 hours before the vessel loads, and an inaccurate, incomplete or late filing can attract a claim of 5,000 US dollars per violation
· The eight importer data elements plus the two carrier elements, with a shorter five-element version for cargo merely transiting the country
· The filing goes through the Automated Broker Interface or ACE, which in practice means a licensed customs broker or compliant software
· The practical reading: these deadlines do not move, so the booking date has to be set backwards from them

Duty and the Valuation Rules

· The classification layer: the Harmonized System covers more than 5,000 commodity groups in six-digit codes and is used by more than 200 countries and economies, while each country extends those digits into its own national code
· The valuation layer: the WTO customs valuation agreement requires a fair and neutral system and prohibits arbitrary or fictitious values
· What that means in practice: the invoice has to reflect the real transaction, and a second set of numbers for customs is a liability rather than a saving
· The commercial side of the same question is covered in our payment terms and risk article
· The staging: duty is assessed on entry, so a defect found after release is a defect on which duty has already been paid

Stage Six: Arrival at Your Warehouse, Intake and Review

· The inland delivery booking, made before the container is released rather than after
· The delivery window, which the receiving site has to be able to meet with labour and dock space
· The unstuffing and count, compared against the packing list carton by carton
· The condition check, which separates transit damage from production faults because the two have different remedies
· The consolidation case: where goods come from several suppliers, the warehouse and delivery service covers the collection and loading side

The Checks to Run After Intake

· Quantity against the packing list, recorded at the moment of unloading rather than reconstructed later
· Damage against the carrier record, because a claim needs evidence created close to the event
· Function on a sample, because a defect rate only becomes visible once stock is being picked
· Photos and a written note filed with the shipment, because memory is not an audit trail
· The supplier scorecard entry for the next order, since the point of a review is to change the next purchase

FAQ

How long does the whole process take

It depends on the product, but the shape is stable. Sampling and approval usually take as long as production, and transit is a separate block again. A buyer who plans only for production time plans for about half the order.

Who is the importer of record

The importer of record is the party responsible for the declaration and the duty, and it is usually the buyer or a nominated customs broker acting on the buyer's behalf. Naming that party is a decision, not a formality.

Can the supplier handle customs clearance at destination

They can arrange it, but responsibility for the accuracy of the declaration stays with the importer of record. Arranging something and answering for it are different roles.

What if the goods fail inspection

The options shrink as the goods move. Before loading, a fault can be reworked or the shipment held. After release and duty payment, the remaining routes are a claim, a discount or a write-off.

Do all orders need all six stages

The stages happen whether or not anyone manages them. What changes with scale is who owns each handover point, and whether a document records that it happened.

The Handover Checklist

· The specification and the approved sample, signed by both sides and stored with the order
· The trade term, written in full, because it decides who books, who insures and where risk moves
· The payment schedule, with each stage tied to a milestone rather than to a calendar date
· The inspection standard and the appointment of the inspector, agreed before production starts
· The document set each party sends and when, including the filing deadlines that cannot move
· The intake record at your own warehouse, because it is the first evidence produced under your control

A sourcing order is not a single purchase. It is a chain of handovers, and each one either passes cleanly or becomes the story someone tells later about how the shipment went wrong. If you would rather have that chain managed from the first inquiry to the carton count, send us the requirement and the destination market, and we will map the stages that apply to your product.

From Inquiry to Warehouse: How a China Sourcing Order Actually Moves