Sea Freight from China to Seattle
China → Seattle · via SEA air / Seattle or Tacoma sea · clearance by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
For buyers shipping into Seattle, the practical question is not the ocean or flight time but what happens after arrival. Seattle is the shortest Pacific crossing from North China; cargo enters through SEA air / Seattle or Tacoma sea, and allow same day from port for the inland leg on top of clearance.
The clearing authority is U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Historical dwell on this gateway is around 3-10 days, longer at the San Pedro Bay ports in peak season, and it lengthens in Aug-Oct, ahead of the retail peak.
What the routing looks like in practice
The coast decides the route. Los Angeles and Long Beach together form the largest US gateway for Asian cargo and the shortest ocean leg from South China, with onward rail to Chicago and the interior. Savannah and New York serve the East Coast either all-water through the Panama Canal, which adds roughly ten days, or by rail from the West Coast. Houston serves the Gulf and the Texas triangle, and Seattle-Tacoma is the shortest crossing of all for cargo bound for the Pacific Northwest.
| Sea gateways used | Los Angeles / Long Beach, New York / New Jersey, Savannah |
|---|---|
| Sea transit, China to gateway | 18-28 calendar days to the West Coast, 30-40 to the East Coast |
| Gateway serving Seattle | SEA air / Seattle or Tacoma sea |
| Inland leg to Seattle | same day from port from the gateway |
| Typical clearance / dwell | 3-10 days, longer at the San Pedro Bay ports in peak season |
| Peak season to plan around | Aug-Oct, ahead of the retail peak |
What you will pay on arrival in United States
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) assesses duty and tax on cargo arriving for Seattle consignees. Current regime: No federal VAT; customs duty by HTS code, plus Section 301 tariffs on most China-origin goods, with a de-minimis position of The USD 800 Section 321 de-minimis exemption no longer applies; every shipment is a dutiable entry. Confirm the current rate with CBP or a licensed broker before quoting, because these rules have changed repeatedly.
Conformity is the part most first-time importers underestimate: FDA, FCC, CPSC or USDA requirements apply by product category; a customs bond is required for formal entries. Getting this wrong is expensive because it usually cannot be fixed after the cargo has landed.
Restrictions and known friction points for United States: The duty position, not the freight, is now the main commercial variable: with de-minimis withdrawn, a formal entry, a bond and Section 301 tariffs apply to consignments that previously moved duty-free, and the rates have moved more than once. Quote freight and landed cost separately and date the duty assumption.
What to sort out before the cargo leaves China
- Check the de-minimis position (The USD 800 Section 321 de-minimis exemption no longer applies; every shipment is a dutiable entry. Confirm the current rate with CBP or a licensed broker before quoting, because these rules have changed repeatedly) against your invoice value before you decide how to split the shipment.
- Get the conformity paperwork moving early: FDA, FCC, CPSC or USDA requirements apply by product category; a customs bond is required for formal entries.
- Compare gross weight against volumetric weight (L×W×H ÷ 6000) — the higher figure is what gets billed on air and express.
- Book earlier than the transit time suggests during Aug-Oct, ahead of the retail peak, when space on this lane tightens.
- Ask for the HS code in writing from your supplier and verify the United States duty rate against it yourself.
- Declare lithium batteries, magnets, liquids and powders up front — retro-declaring after booking usually means re-planning the whole shipment.
Frequently asked questions
How long does shipping from China to Seattle take?
China to the United States gateway is 18-28 calendar days to the West Coast, 30-40 to the East Coast. On top of that, allow 3-10 days, longer at the San Pedro Bay ports in peak season of clearance with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and a same day from port inland leg to Seattle.
What duty and tax will I pay importing into Seattle?
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) applies: No federal VAT; customs duty by HTS code, plus Section 301 tariffs on most China-origin goods. The de-minimis position is The USD 800 Section 321 de-minimis exemption no longer applies; every shipment is a dutiable entry. Confirm the current rate with CBP or a licensed broker before quoting, because these rules have changed repeatedly. Under a DDP arrangement these are pre-paid, so nothing is collected on arrival in Seattle.
Can you deliver door-to-door in Seattle?
Yes. Delivery to a Seattle address is quoted as one figure covering freight, duty and tax owed to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the same day from port inland leg. Confirm whether your consignee wants the goods at a warehouse, a marketplace fulfillment center or a shop front, because the last-mile requirement differs.
When is the busiest time on the China–United States lane?
Space and rates tighten around Aug-Oct, ahead of the retail peak, plus the China-side windows of Chinese New Year in January or February and Golden Week in early October. Book one to two weeks earlier in those periods.
How is the chargeable weight calculated for Seattle?
We compare actual gross weight against volumetric weight — length × width × height in centimeters divided by 6000 for air — and bill the greater of the two, rounded up to the next kilogram. Light, bulky cargo is almost always billed on volume.
Is sea freight cheaper than air freight into Seattle?
Per kilo, yes — usually by a wide margin. The trade-off is time: 18-28 calendar days to the West Coast, 30-40 to the East Coast by sea versus 3-6 business days by air to the United States gateway, before clearance and the same day from port inland leg. The crossover point is normally somewhere between 100 and 300 kg depending on the density of your cargo.
Other delivery cities in United States
References & official sources
Duty rates, thresholds and conformity requirements for United States change by ministerial decision, sometimes mid-year. The figures on this page are buyer-planning references, not a customs ruling — confirm the current position for your own HS code with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) or your broker before you ship.
- WTO — Tariff Profiles (applied MFN duty by country)
- IPPC — ISPM 15 wood packaging standard
- WCO — Harmonized System nomenclature
- IMO — IMDG Code for dangerous goods by sea
Page data last reviewed: November 2026.
Shipping by industry
This page covers the route and clearance picture for the destination. Packing, classification and the compliance step that actually holds a shipment depend on what you are sending — these guides cover that by commodity.
- Industrial Boilers General Machinery & Industrial Equipment
- Solar Panel New Energy, Power & Electrical
- Lithium Battery New Energy, Power & Electrical
- Bicycle Parts Automotive & Vehicles
- Wall Panels Building Materials & Construction Products
- Corrugated Packaging Wood, Bamboo & Paper Products
- Glass Packaging Plastics, Rubber & Packaging
- Electronic Switches Electronic Components & Semiconductors
- IoT Devices Consumer Electronics & Smart Devices
- Furniture Furniture & Home Products
- Home Storage Products Furniture & Home Products
- Fashion Textiles, Apparel, Footwear & Leather
Price Trend — Seattle
Live rate for the linked route page, shown here for a quick read before you click through.
Checking the United States duty position yourself
We publish these figures so you can budget, but the assessment that binds is the one U.S. Customs and Border Protection makes on your declaration. Where a shipment is large enough that a percentage point matters, check their current tariff guidance rather than ours.
Classification drives everything downstream: the same carton can attract very different duty depending on the heading it lands in, and the structure those headings come from is the World Customs Organization Harmonized System. If your product sits near a boundary between two headings, resolve it before shipping rather than at the border.
For ocean cargo, restricted commodities move under the IMO's IMDG Code, and the container has to be declared and stowed accordingly. Batteries, flammables and corrosives all have a compliant ocean path; what causes rolled bookings is finding out about them after the container is packed.
Watch: the process behind this route
This guide covers routing and clearance for Seattle. The video below covers the wider shipping process that sits around it.
LCL vs FCL | Difference Between Full Container Load & Less than Container Load | Which is better ? — 10 Min For Supply Chain. Published on YouTube by a third party; we link it because it explains the process well, not because we produced it or endorse the provider.