Importing from China to Paraguay in 2026: customs, Mercosur and maquila

Paraguay has no diplomatic relations with Beijing, but China remains by far its leading supplier: according to the Central Bank of Paraguay, the BCP, Chinese imports reached 6,122 million dollars by the end of December 2025, or 34.5% of the country's total imports, up 18.1% on the year, against 5,183.1 million dollars and 32.5% a year earlier.

Paraguay is among the few countries in the world that recognise Taiwan rather than the People's Republic of China: the government of Santiago Peña maintains this alliance, which comes with Taiwanese support for financing a local university and open access for Paraguayan beef and pork, according to La Política Online. This lack of official relations does not stop private operators from dealing directly with Chinese factories, without any bilateral agreement or state trade mission between the two countries.

On customs, Paraguay applies Mercosur's common regime, being one of the bloc's four founding members alongside Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay: Chinese goods enter under the bloc's common external tariff, with no preference specific to Paraguay, as Mercosur negotiates its trade agreements collectively.

The common external tariff, the AEC, ranges from 0 to 30% depending on the product category: 0 to 6% for raw materials and capital goods, 6 to 16% for intermediate goods, 16 to 30% for consumer goods, with an effective average rate of around 10 to 12%, according to ParaguayTax. Since 18 February 2023, decree 8767/2023 has implemented an AEC reduction agreed by Mercosur on more than 7,900 tariff lines, of which 6,886 were lowered to rates of 0 to 12.6%, according to the official news agency IP Paraguay.

Added to the CIF value plus duties is import IVA, at a rate of 10%, according to ParaguayTax. Example: on a CIF value of 10,000 dollars taxed at an AEC of 16%, the duty comes to 1,600 dollars, then the 10% IVA applies to 11,600 dollars, a further 1,160 dollars, for a total of 2,760 dollars. The exact rate for the tariff line in question should still be checked before ordering.

Customs clearance rests on the commercial invoice, the basis for the transaction value, presented as one original and three copies, according to the official foreign trade procedures portal relayed by tradeportal.org. The transport document, bill of lading, air waybill or waybill depending on the mode chosen, must be supplied in three originals and three copies.

The Dirección Nacional de Aduanas, the DNA, assigns each declaration to a green, orange or red channel, which determines whether the goods are released directly, checked on documents only, or physically inspected, according to DNA resolution 308 as cited by several Paraguayan customs clearance agencies.

The turismo regime is a special VAT settlement scheme applicable to goods imported and then resold directly to non-resident buyers, mostly Brazilian and Argentine visitors who cross the border to shop. These goods are exempt from customs tariff, selective consumption tax and IVA, according to the Dirección Nacional de Ingresos Tributarios, the DNIT, but the trader must hold premises in a designated border city: Asunción, Ciudad del Este, Encarnación, Pedro Juan Caballero, Pilar or Salto del Guairá.

Of the 963 companies registered nationwide under this regime, 624, or 65%, operate in Ciudad del Este, which remains by far the country's leading re-export hub, according to La Clave. The regime applies only to resale to non-residents: goods destined for the Paraguayan domestic market remain subject to the standard customs regime described above.

The maquila regime, created in 1997 and modernised by law 7,547/2025, allows components to be imported temporarily, processed in Paraguay, and the finished product then re-exported without paying customs duty or IVA on the inputs, according to the consultancy CCPB. In exchange, the maquila contract is subject to a single 1% tax on the value added produced in Paraguay or on the export invoice, whichever amount is higher.

The 2025 reform extends programme durations to twenty renewable years and now recognises service maquila alongside traditional goods maquila. Exports under this regime grew by 36.1% in the first quarter of 2026, to 368.5 million dollars, then by 25% in the first half, to 717 million dollars, with Brazil receiving 64% of the total, according to ABC Color and PortalPortuario. For an importer, this regime is worth looking into as soon as a Chinese component enters a production chain destined for export.

Paraguay has no access to the sea and depends entirely on its neighbours' ports. Since 2024, 60 to 65% of containerised traffic bound for Paraguay has passed through Buenos Aires, in Argentina, with the rest through Montevideo, in Uruguay, according to Dinamicarg; MSC and Hapag-Lloyd withdrew their direct calls at Montevideo in May 2025. Freight bound for Ciudad del Este or maquila factories often travels on by road from Brazilian ports, Paranaguá foremost, whose catchment area covers Paraguay via the BR-277 highway.

From Buenos Aires or Montevideo, goods travel upriver by barge on the Paraná-Paraguay waterway, 3,400 kilometres linking Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay, which carries up to 85% of Paraguay's foreign trade according to a report cited by CEFADI; the most common point of arrival remains the port of Villeta, near Asunción. FOB suits a buyer organising transport itself; CIF or CFR where an intermediary handles it; DDP remains inadvisable unless the Chinese seller is a customs declarant in Paraguay. On payment, standard practice remains a deposit followed by a balance before shipment, paid into the factory's business account, never a personal account.

A first import follows the usual sequence: specification document, factory verification, approved sample, proforma invoice with Incoterm, production monitoring, pre-shipment inspection, freight to the chosen transit port, onward travel by river or road, then customs clearance by the importer or their agent, depending on the applicable regime: standard, turismo or maquila.

Sorva is a sourcing and trading house based in Guangzhou, in the Tianhe district, backed by a Chinese subsidiary and a parent company in France. Our Chinese-speaking team finds and vets factories, arranges visits and samples, negotiates terms, has quality checked before loading, and organises freight to the chosen transit port, Buenos Aires, Montevideo or a Brazilian port. Sorva never acts as the official importer in Paraguay, does not clear goods locally, and does not handle registration for the turismo or maquila regimes. Our base offer is invoiced in dollars, with options specific to the region quoted on request.