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✈️ Air Freight

China to Air Cargo, Duty Paid Air Freight (Express)

Door-to-door transit 5-10 business days. Duty and final delivery are inside the published rate.

Air freight operations on the China to France lane
Air freight — China to France

Air Freight from China to Air Cargo, Duty Paid runs 5-10 business days door to door, clearing through the destination customs authority. Rates shown are indicative freight estimates; duty, tax and customs handling depend on the commodity and are quoted separately. Send weight, dimensions and product details for a firm figure.

Transit time
5-10 business days
Destination
Air Cargo, Duty Paid, France
Customs authority
the destination customs authority
Duty-free threshold
EUR 150

Indicative published channel rate for planning, not a quotation. What you actually pay depends on the product and its HS code, chargeable weight, declared value, duty and tax at destination and the exchange rate on the day — it can come in above or below this.

Current Freight Rates

Price data updating. Contact us for current rates.

Trade Terms Explained — Who Pays for What EXW, FOB, CIF, DDP and seven more — see which costs sit with us and which sit with you

The rate above is quoted on one specific trade term. Change the term and you change how much of the journey to France is already inside the price. The table below maps the eleven common Incoterms® against the twelve cost stages of a door-to-door shipment, so you can see exactly where our responsibility ends and yours begins.

  • Seller — Cost and arrangement sit with the seller / shipper.
  • Buyer — Cost and arrangement sit with the buyer / consignee.
  • Negotiable — Not fixed by the rule — agree it in the contract.
Responsibility for each shipment stage under each Incoterms rule
Term 1 Loading on truck 2 Export customs declaration 3 Carriage to port of export 4 Unloading at port of export 5 Loading on vessel / aircraft 6 Main carriage 7 Cargo insurance 8 Unloading at port of import 9 Loading on truck at import 10 Carriage to destination 11 Import customs clearance 12 Import duties & taxes
EXW Ex Works Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck Buyer Buyer — Export customs declaration Buyer Buyer — Carriage to port of export Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of export Buyer Buyer — Loading on vessel / aircraft Buyer Buyer — Main carriage Buyer Buyer — Cargo insurance Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of import Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck at import Buyer Buyer — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
FCA Free Carrier Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Buyer Buyer — Carriage to port of export Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of export Buyer Buyer — Loading on vessel / aircraft Buyer Buyer — Main carriage Buyer Buyer — Cargo insurance Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of import Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck at import Buyer Buyer — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
FAS Free Alongside Ship Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Buyer Buyer — Loading on vessel / aircraft Buyer Buyer — Main carriage Buyer Buyer — Cargo insurance Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of import Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck at import Buyer Buyer — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
FOB Free On Board Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Buyer Buyer — Main carriage Buyer Buyer — Cargo insurance Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of import Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck at import Buyer Buyer — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
CFR Cost and Freight Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Seller Seller — Main carriage Buyer Buyer — Cargo insurance Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of import Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck at import Buyer Buyer — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
CIF Cost, Insurance and Freight Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Seller Seller — Main carriage Seller Seller — Cargo insurance Buyer Buyer — Unloading at port of import Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck at import Buyer Buyer — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
CPT Carriage Paid To Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Seller Seller — Main carriage Negotiable Negotiable — Cargo insurance Seller Seller — Unloading at port of import Seller Seller — Loading on truck at import Seller Seller — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
CIP Carriage and Insurance Paid Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Seller Seller — Main carriage Seller Seller — Cargo insurance Seller Seller — Unloading at port of import Seller Seller — Loading on truck at import Seller Seller — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
DAT Delivered At Terminal (DPU) Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Seller Seller — Main carriage Negotiable Negotiable — Cargo insurance Seller Seller — Unloading at port of import Buyer Buyer — Loading on truck at import Buyer Buyer — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
DAP Delivered At Place Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Seller Seller — Main carriage Negotiable Negotiable — Cargo insurance Seller Seller — Unloading at port of import Seller Seller — Loading on truck at import Seller Seller — Carriage to destination Buyer Buyer — Import customs clearance Buyer Buyer — Import duties & taxes
DDP Delivered Duty Paid Seller Seller — Loading on truck Seller Seller — Export customs declaration Seller Seller — Carriage to port of export Seller Seller — Unloading at port of export Seller Seller — Loading on vessel / aircraft Seller Seller — Main carriage Negotiable Negotiable — Cargo insurance Seller Seller — Unloading at port of import Seller Seller — Loading on truck at import Seller Seller — Carriage to destination Seller Seller — Import customs clearance Seller Seller — Import duties & taxes

EXW Ex Works

Buyer takes over at the seller's door and carries every cost from there. Lowest quoted price, highest buyer workload.

FCA Free Carrier

Seller clears the goods for export and hands them to the carrier the buyer nominated.

FAS Free Alongside Ship

Sea and inland waterway only. Seller delivers alongside the vessel; loading is on the buyer.

FOB Free On Board

Sea and inland waterway only. Risk passes once the goods are on board. The most common buying term.

CFR Cost and Freight

Seller pays the main carriage but carries no insurance obligation; risk still passes on loading.

CIF Cost, Insurance and Freight

As CFR, plus the seller must buy and pay for cargo insurance (minimum cover unless you agree more).

CPT Carriage Paid To

Any mode. Seller pays carriage through to the named destination; insurance is not obligatory.

CIP Carriage and Insurance Paid

As CPT, plus the seller must insure the cargo through to the named destination.

DAT Delivered At Terminal (DPU)

Seller delivers unloaded at the named terminal. Renamed DPU (Delivered at Place Unloaded) in Incoterms® 2020.

DAP Delivered At Place

Seller delivers to your address ready for unloading; import clearance and duty stay with the buyer.

DDP Delivered Duty Paid

Seller carries everything through to your door, duty and tax included. Highest quoted price, least buyer workload.

Two things worth flagging. Under CIF and CIP the seller is obliged to buy cargo insurance and pay the premium; under every other term insurance is optional, and we recommend buyers arrange their own cover so a loss or damage in transit is recoverable. And this table is a working summary for planning purposes — the binding definitions are the ones published by the International Chamber of Commerce in the Incoterms® rules, so confirm the exact term wording in your sales contract before you ship.

Service Details

China → France CTG Europe Express – General Cargo (EUKXPH)

Air freight rates from China to France. We publish the actual tier structure rather than a single headline number, because the price per kilo on this lane changes materially with consignment size and the tier you land in decides your landed cost more than the headline rate does.

Cargo on this service moves through CDG (Paris), LYS (Lyon) and MRS. Clearance happens at the arrival airport, so an inland consignee adds a trucking leg on top of the transit time quoted here. Expect 3–6 days of dwell at destination before release.

This rate is freight only. Import charges for France are assessed separately on arrival — Import VAT 20%; duty 0–12% by TARIC — and whoever is named as importer of record is liable for them. If you would rather have one all-in number, ask us for the duty-paid version of this lane.

Space on this lane tightens through Sep–Nov, which is peak season for France. Rates published outside that window are not a reliable guide to what you will pay inside it, so if your order lands in peak, book earlier rather than budgeting from an off-peak figure.

Current Rate Card

  • 0-0.3 — USD 67.87 per KG
  • 0.3-1 — USD 75.95 per KG
  • 1-2 — USD 75.95 per KG
  • 2-5 — USD 75.95 per KG

Last refreshed 2026-08-06.

Rates on this lane are per kilogram of chargeable weight, which is the greater of actual gross weight and L×W×H ÷ 6000. One cubic metre of cargo is treated as about 166.7 kg, so anything lighter than that per cubic metre is billed on the space it occupies rather than on the scale reading. Knowing which side of that line your cargo falls on changes the quote more than any negotiation will.

The consignments that move regularly on this service into France are dominated by electric motors (HS 84), where clearance turns on cE marking to the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC with a signed declaration of conformity, glass packaging (HS 39 / 40) and prefabricated building (HS 68 / 69 / 70 / 44). We publish a handling brief for each, because the difference between a clean clearance and a two-week hold is almost always documentation prepared before the cargo leaves the factory rather than anything that happens in transit.

We fly this lane into CDG (Paris), LYS (Lyon) and MRS. Clearance happens at the arrival airport rather than at the delivery address, which matters if your consignee is inland: the customs step and the trucking step are separate, and only the first sits inside the transit time quoted above.

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Additional Information

Scope, Exclusions and What to Check Before Booking

Chargeable weight on this service is the greater of actual weight and volumetric weight, with volumetric calculated as length × width × height in centimeters divided by 8000. For anything light and bulky the volumetric figure is the one that bills, which is why carton dimensions are worth optimizing before you book rather than after the cargo is weighed at the airport.

  • General commercial cargo. Battery, magnetic, liquid and powder content must be declared at booking, not on arrival
  • Chargeable weight is the greater of actual and volumetric weight (divisor 8000)
  • Fuel and security surcharges, remote-area delivery and oversize handling are quoted on top where they apply
  • Routing on this lane is via CDG (Paris), LYS (Lyon) and MRS — inland delivery beyond that point is quoted against the delivery address
  • Clearance at destination is handled by French Customs (Douane)
  • France de-minimis: EUR 150 — commercial consignments sit above it and are dutiable in full
  • Destination conformity: CE marking + IOSS for low-value parcels

On the duty side, the applicable regime is: Import VAT 20%; duty 0–12% by TARIC. Those are planning references rather than a ruling: the rate that binds is the one assessed against your declared HS code at the moment of entry, and classification is where most landed-cost surprises actually originate. Duty and tax are settled in EUR at destination.

Before you book, confirm two things with your consignee: that they are registered to import into France, and that whoever is named as importer of record accepts the duty liability. Those are dull questions and they are also the two that most often surface only after the cargo has already sailed.

Where these numbers come from

Every duty and tax figure quoted on this page is our working estimate for planning, not a ruling. The binding rate for your consignment is whatever French Customs (Douane) applies against your declared HS code on the day of entry, and their published guidance is the source to check before you commit stock.

Most landed-cost surprises trace back to classification rather than freight. the WCO Harmonized System defines the heading structure every customs administration builds on, and ITC Market Access Map will show you the duty a given heading attracts in this destination.

On the air side, anything with a cell or a battery in it, plus liquids, powders, magnets and aerosols, is governed by the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations. Those articles are not refused outright, but they need to be declared at booking so the shipment is built correctly — declaring them late is the single most common cause of an air consignment being offloaded.

For a wider view of how importing into France actually works — documentation norms, inspection behavior, the paperwork that tends to hold shipments — the U.S. ITA guide to France customs regulations is a useful independent read alongside our own lane notes.

China to France — Shipping Reference Data

Main air gatewaysCDG (Paris), LYS (Lyon), MRS
Destination customs authorityFrench Customs (Douane)
De-minimis / duty-free thresholdEUR 150
Import tax & duty regimeImport VAT 20%; duty 0–12% by TARIC
Local currencyEUR
Typical clearance / dwell time3–6 days
Peak / busy seasonSep–Nov
Conformity & certificationCE marking + IOSS for low-value parcels

Thresholds and duty bands are buyer-planning references, not formal customs rulings — confirm the exact HS-code rate for your goods before shipping.

Free 3D Loading Tools for This Air Route

This page covers a Air freight service from China to France. Use the matching tool below to plan your cargo before requesting a quote.

3D Carton Packing Calculator

Before tendering this CTG Europe Express – General Cargo (EUKXPH) shipment, check how many units really fit per carton — the 3D packing tool computes layers, rotation, and protective gaps for your exact product dimensions.

Open Packing Tool →

France Air Freight Checklist

  • Keep single cartons under 30 KG for air handling to France to avoid overweight surcharges.
  • Compare volumetric weight (L×W×H÷6000) with actual weight — the higher one is billed.
  • Confirm whether the France rate includes fuel and security surcharges or lists them separately.
  • Book 2-3 days before your target ETD; same-day air bookings usually carry premium rates.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does CTG Europe Express – General Cargo (EUKXPH) from China to France take?

Air freight on this route runs about 5–10 business days door-to-door, plus roughly 3–6 days of clearance/dwell once it reaches the gateway. All times include customs clearance under DDP terms.

What duties and taxes apply when importing into France?

Clearance is handled by French Customs (Douane). The regime is: Import VAT 20%; duty 0–12% by TARIC, with a de-minimis position of EUR 150. Under DDP these are pre-paid, so nothing is collected on arrival.

Which ports or airports does this route use into France?

Sea cargo to France clears through Le Havre, Marseille-Fos, Dunkirk; air freight clears via CDG (Paris), LYS (Lyon), MRS. We route through whichever gateway gives the fastest onward delivery to your address and build it into the DDP price.

What certification is needed to import into France?

For regulated goods, plan for: CE marking + IOSS for low-value parcels. Missing conformity paperwork is the most common clearance hold with French Customs (Douane), so confirm requirements for your HS code before shipping.

Can you ship special cargo (batteries, branded goods) to France?

Yes — battery cargo by air follows IATA PI966/PI967; we run certified battery channels via CDG (Paris), LYS (Lyon), MRS. Brand-goods and DG paperwork are handled within the DDP service. Surcharges apply.

How is the shipping cost on this route calculated?

We compare actual gross weight against volumetric weight (L×W×H ÷ 6000, so one cubic metre counts as about 166.7 kg) and charge whichever is greater, rounded up to the next kilogram, then apply the per-KG rate shown in the table above. A 300 kg consignment measuring out to only 200 kg volumetric is still charged on the 300 kg.

Shipping France cargo by industry

This rate is for the lane. What decides whether the cargo arrives intact is the commodity — how it prices, how it must be packed and loaded, and which compliance step holds it at the border. These guides cover that per industry.

All 60 industry guides →

Get a quote — France

Send the cargo details below and we price your actual shipment. Weight, dimensions and what the goods are is everything we need to come back with a firm number.

Answer these and you get a real price, not a range. These are the exact figures a carrier needs before it will quote. Fill them in once and we can price your cargo the same day — leave them out and we have to come back and ask, which is what turns an hour into a week.

kg
ctn
Carton sizeoptional
× × cm
m³
ctr
Built-in battery?* Lithium cells are dangerous goods.
Someone else's brand?* Logos you are not authorised to ship.
Magnetic product?* Speakers, motors, magnets.
Why these three decide everything

They determine whether your cargo can fly, and on which service. A declared battery changes the price; an undeclared one grounds the shipment at the airport and you pay storage while it sits. Unauthorised brands are seized at customs and the freight is lost with them. Magnetic goods need a field test — routine, but it has to be booked ahead. Telling us now costs a click; telling us later costs the shipment.

Sea or air?*
Tick both and we quote both.
When should it move?optional
Photographs of the goodsoptional
    Your details are used to prepare this quotation and nothing else.

    Customs clearance in France

    Duty and tax position, certification, typical port dwell and what actually holds shipments at this border — plus who files the entry.

    France clearance requirements →