Yangshan Customs celebrates its 20th anniversary: standing at the forefront of the tide for 20 years and writing a new chapter of openness

On December 10, 2005, Yangshan Deepwater Port officially opened. After 20 years of hard work and perseverance, Yangshan Customs shoulders the responsibility and mission of serving national strategies and assisting local economic development, always standing at the forefront of institutional innovation - from the launch of the first bonded port area in the country, to the official establishment of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, to the creation of the only special comprehensive bonded zone in the country, every step embodies the courage and wisdom of pioneering and testing. Relying on continuous reform exploration, Yangshan Customs has formed a batch of replicable and promotable experience achievements, helping Yangshan Port rise from a former sea island to a modern hub ranked first in global container port performance.

Create a new benchmark for efficient customs clearance

Since its opening, the container throughput of Yangshan Port has been increasing year by year. In the first 11 months of this year, various terminals of Yangshan Port completed a container throughput of 26.25 million TEUs, a year-on-year increase of 9.7%. Yangshan Customs continues to innovate its supervision mode, focusing on improving supervision efficiency, creating an efficient and convenient customs clearance environment, and attracting various fresh products such as New Zealand kiwi, Chilean cherries, and Spanish persimmons to choose to clear customs from here.

The "speed and temperature" of cherry fast air fresh food clearance

On December 8th, the first cargo ship loaded with Chilean cherries arrived at Yangshan Port this winter.

In response to the strong seasonality and high preservation requirements of fresh fruits, Qiu Wenjun, Deputy Director of the Inspection Department of Yangshan Customs, introduced: "We use the intelligent customs system to conduct plant inspection certificate review and cold treatment verification in advance. By putting the work in advance, we shorten the customs clearance time after the goods arrive at the port; open a dedicated green channel and use '7 * 24-hour' appointment inspection, and increase human resources to ensure that cherries are inspected immediately and enter the domestic market in the freshest state; through sensory inspection, fruit cutting inspection, brown sugar water test and other methods, we carry out disease and pest screening, sample and detect pesticide and heavy metal residues, and safeguard national security

We have chosen Yangshan Customs for customs clearance as a convenient measure of 'immediate inspection upon arrival' to ensure the freshness of cherries to the greatest extent possible. In the future, 'Cherry Express' will gradually ship ships, and before the Spring Festival in 2026, major shipping companies are expected to have 31' Cherry Express' ships dock at Yangshan Port in Shanghai. The plan is to deliver 250000 tons of high-quality cherries to the dining tables of citizens before the Spring Festival, and the import volume is about 2 to 3 times that of last year's cherry season, "said Xu Zhen, the manager of the customs declaration department of Shanghai Huizhan International Trade Co., Ltd.

Smooth the "Qian Kai Shanghai" New Era Yala Land Sea New Channel

The efficient customs clearance mode has also attracted more and more international routes to choose Yangshan Port as a transit hub. On November 19th, a "Eastern Memphis" cargo ship from Qiankai Port in Peru docked at Yangshan Shengdong Port.

This long-distance cargo ship not only carries ordinary trade goods, but also serves as a new footnote for Yangshan Customs to serve the national strategy and ensure the smooth operation of emerging shipping routes. Yangshan Customs has established a full chain exclusive supervision service model for the newly opened route of "Qian Kai Shanghai". Before the ship docks, we conduct document review of imported goods in advance. After the ship docks, we arrange boarding inspection and complete health quarantine as soon as possible. For goods that need to be inspected, we have set up a 'green channel' to ensure 'zero waiting' for customs clearance through a 'one-stop' service. At the same time, the customs optimize supervision services and support international shipping to efficiently complete bonded fuel refueling and ship supply material supply supply. "Zhu Xuelong, Deputy Director of the Comprehensive Business Department of Yangshan Customs under Shanghai Customs, introduced.

According to customs statistics, the import and export value of the "Qiankai Shanghai" shipping route has exceeded 5 billion yuan, reaching 5.35 billion yuan, and the import and export goods have reached 197000 tons. Driven by this route, Shanghai's foreign trade import and export value to Peru increased significantly by 47.1% in the first 10 months of this year.

Establish a pilot field for institutional innovation

The innovative practice of port supervision not only improves customs clearance efficiency, but also vividly reflects the innovative vitality of the Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone system. As the only special comprehensive bonded zone in the country, 36 landmark institutional innovations such as the "direct release" regulatory model have been born in Yangshan, and significant progress has been made in bonded maintenance and other businesses. Yangshan Customs' forward-looking regulatory model strongly supports the continuous release of huge policy dividends from this' experimental field '.

Intelligent supervision of 'direct release' enhances logistics efficiency

On November 2, 2025, 3489 Kia brand imported new energy vehicles from South Korea were unloaded from the "Postman" roll on/roll off ship at Nangang Port and directly transported to the Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone through the "radial release" supervision mode. They will then be shipped in batches to overseas routes such as South America and the Middle East according to market demand. At present, this business model has expanded to international car brands such as General Motors, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Kia, and its routes cover ports in Europe, America, the Middle East, Australia, and other regions.

As the first national customs supervision model, the "direct release" supervision model is a vivid practice of Yangshan Customs' reform and innovation genes. Through digital transformation, empowering the construction of smart customs, successfully breaking down data barriers between customs, ports, and enterprises. With the help of intelligent supervision methods such as "district port direct channel" and RFID, VIN code binding, unlicensed vehicles have been automatically inspected and released without stopping. According to calculations, under this mode, the logistics cost of each vehicle is reduced by 12%, and the time efficiency is improved by 25%, truly achieving a "double speed" improvement in customs clearance efficiency and optimizing the business environment. At present, the "direct release" regulatory mode has been expanded to include ports such as Waigaoqiao Port and Pudong International Airport, achieving seamless connection between air and sea ports and Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone.

In the first 11 months of this year, Yangshan Customs supervised 92000 transit vehicles through the "direct release" mode. This pioneering customs supervision model has demonstrated resilience in the face of external challenges and has become a powerful engine for Yangshan Port to promote high-quality development of foreign trade.

Bonded maintenance stimulates the development momentum of foreign trade

Relying on the institutional innovation advantages of the Lingang New Area, Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone has made significant progress in the field of bonded maintenance business, providing important support for the transformation and development of equipment manufacturing enterprises, enhancing international competitiveness, and expanding foreign trade development space.

On October 30th, after 180 days, an aircraft engine from Zhejiang Changlong Airlines Co., Ltd. completed maintenance work in Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone. Yangshan Customs collected taxes on the maintenance costs to ensure its rapid exit from the zone. Aviation bonded maintenance is an important part of the aviation industry chain in Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone. With the development of civil aviation industry in Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone, the aviation industry chain has extended from bonded processing and manufacturing to later bonded inspection and maintenance services, forming a virtuous cycle of mutual driving and promotion. The integration of aviation bonded manufacturing, bonded maintenance, bonded testing and other industries in Yangshan Special Comprehensive Bonded Zone is accelerating the formation of a high-energy aviation "bonded+" industrial ecosystem. It has attracted leading enterprises in the aviation industry chain, including composite material processing, engine assembly, and aviation engine maintenance, and the high-energy aviation industry circle has begun to take shape.

In addition, in the field of bonded automobile maintenance, Shanghai Customs has achieved dynamic supervision of maintenance vehicles throughout the entire process by integrating enterprise ERP system data into an integrated information management platform, solving the regulatory difficulties of a wide variety and different states of second-hand goods, and effectively enhancing risk prevention and control capabilities. In the process of supervision, timely summary of pilot experience and targeted optimization of the bonded maintenance business system functions within the zone have significantly improved the quality and efficiency of supervision, successfully assisting the implementation and operation of the first domestic second-hand car bonded maintenance project. In the first 11 months of this year, Yangshan Special Comprehensive Zone completed the maintenance declaration and imported 31 aircraft engines for export, a year-on-year increase of 40.9%, with a cargo value of 2.56 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 41.1%.

Enhance the new level of shipping hub

Measuring an international hub port, container throughput is only a basic indicator; The key is whether the service is better and whether the functions have been improved. Yangshan Customs has increased its research and exploration on the "software" supporting shipping services, amplified the spillover effects of shipping system innovation, and empowered the construction of international shipping centers to a new level.

'Linkage unloading' ensures smooth operation of the Yangtze River Delta water transportation network

On November 15th, a batch of 470 electric tools departed from Taicang Port on board the "Remote Ship" and successfully arrived at Yangshan Port in Shanghai. On November 23rd, they were loaded onto the international cargo ship "COSCO Shipping Gemini" for export overseas. The "linkage unloading" mode has shortened the entire transportation time between the two ports to 48 hours on average, saving nearly half of the time compared to other modes. According to the shipper's calculation, compared to the traditional water transfer mode, the "linked unloading" mode can save logistics costs of 400 yuan per TEU for exports and 200 yuan per TEU for imports.

The Yangtze River Delta region is one of the most developed regions in China's economy, with its foreign trade volume consistently leading the country. In order to thoroughly implement the integrated development strategy of the Yangtze River Delta, Yangshan Customs has pioneered the "linkage unloading" supervision mode, fully leveraging the natural advantages of the dense water network and port coordination in the region, and building an efficient logistics system.

This model closely connects Yangshan Port with 14 ports in 4 provinces of the Yangtze River Delta, attracting over 500000 TEUs annually to Yangshan Port for transshipment, expanding regional shipping volume, and forming a good effect of pioneering, reform and innovation, helping to promote high-quality economic development in the Yangtze River Delta. In the first 11 months of this year, the total amount of containers unloaded through linkage has reached 473900 TEUs.

Bonded ship refueling solves the problem of ship supply

If the deepening of regional coordination solidifies the hinterland foundation for the construction of Shanghai International Shipping Center, the bonded ship refueling business injects new momentum into the upgrading of the hub level. By building fuel supply tanks for incoming and outgoing ships, the resource allocation capability of Shanghai Port will be further strengthened.

On November 19th, under the supervision of Yangshan Customs, the refueling ship "Huaihe Energy Sail" successfully added 2329.8 cubic meters of bonded LNG to the "Linuo Nanjingguang" ship docked at Yangshan Port in Shanghai. The entire refueling process was completed in just 8 hours. As the first port in China to simultaneously have the refueling functions of liquefied natural gas (LNG), green methanol, biofuel oil, ultra-low sulfur marine fuel oil, etc., the realization of these functions is closely related to the continuous reform and innovation of Yangshan Customs.

In the early stage, Yangshan Customs conducted research on key shipping enterprises in its jurisdiction through joint efforts with local management committees, understood their needs, formed a list of key tasks, quickly established export supervision warehouses, and provided one-on-one guidance to optimize the construction of warehouse management systems for enterprises. At the same time, optimize the refueling mode and achieve dual functions of bonded warehouse and export supervision warehouse for storage facilities and tanks through the integration of "two warehouse functions", saving more than 50% of the domestic export ship fuel inbound and outbound circulation time. In the first 11 months of this year, the refueling volume of liquefied natural gas (LNG) alone exceeded 651000 cubic meters, a year-on-year increase of 65.3%.

The 'Coastal Escort' Business Unleashes the Transit Potential of Shanghai Port

On September 23rd, the Maltese owned Daffy Grand River cargo ship carrying 19 TEUs of "coastal escort" export goods arrived at Yangshan Port from Durban, and after reloading, it was transported to destination ports such as Tianjin. This business will extend the radiation and driving range of Yangshan Port from the Yangtze River Delta to northern ports, and its position as a transit hub is increasingly prominent.

The "coastal escort" business of foreign-funded shipping companies allows non five-star international shipping vessels of overseas international container shipping companies that meet the conditions to apply for foreign trade container coastal escort business between Dalian Port, Tianjin Port, Qingdao Port, Lianyungang Port and Shanghai Yangshan Port Area, with Yangshan Port Area as the international transit port. As an important measure in the construction of Shanghai International Shipping Center, this business further enhances trade circulation efficiency and drives rapid growth in business volume. In the first 11 months of this year, Yangshan Customs has received a total of 4692 "coastal escort" transactions and 51000 TEUs.

Conclusion

As the core project of Shanghai International Shipping Center construction, Yangshan Port has achieved a leapfrog development from "following" to "leading" by relying on a series of regulatory innovations and policy breakthroughs of customs. Standing at a new starting point of the 20th anniversary, Yangshan Customs will continue to take institutional innovation as the core, intelligent supervision as the means, and serving national strategies as its responsibility, and write a more brilliant chapter in the journey of reform and opening up in the new era.