Importing from China to Pakistan: customs, PSQCA and ports 2026

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, CPEC, has driven energy, transport and infrastructure projects since 2015, largely equipped from China, with the port of Gwadar as its centrepiece, presented by its port authority as the industrial lever of the corridor, site accessed 27 September 2026. This setup steers Pakistani demand toward construction machinery and electrical equipment, alongside domestic textiles and consumer electronics, two sectors that also depend heavily on South China. We did not find a dated, sourced bilateral statistic quantifying these flows: check with official trade statistics before any business plan.

Pakistan is one of the few countries with a bilateral free trade agreement with China, alongside Sri Lanka and Malaysia, according to the US Department of Commerce's country commercial guide, source accessed 27 September 2026. The agreement reduces or removes duties on a list of tariff lines agreed between the two countries, revised in successive phases; the exact list and 2026 rates need checking line by line against the Pakistan customs tariff, as no consolidated, dated text was found during this research.

The CPEC corridor adds a logistics dimension: the port of Gwadar, on the Arabian Sea in Balochistan, is presented as the country's third deep-water port, alongside Karachi and Port Qasim, intended primarily for regional transshipment rather than routine imports.

Pakistani customs duties are calculated on an ad valorem basis, a percentage of the customs value determined by the Harmonized System code, payable in rupees, according to the US country commercial guide, which notes that these duties and taxes change frequently and should be reconfirmed with the authorities. The government revised the tariff-slab structure through a finance act that took effect on 1 July 2025.

Beyond customs duty, an import shipment typically bears sales tax collected at entry under Pakistan's sales tax law, administered by the Federal Board of Revenue, and may bear an additional or regulatory duty as well as an income tax withholding at clearance. No dated 2026 schedule by Harmonized System code was found: each rate should be confirmed via WeBOC, the Pakistan Single Window, or a local customs agent.

The US Department of Commerce's country commercial guide, accessed 27 September 2026, lists the documents expected: bill of lading or air waybill, commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of origin, a copy of the letter of credit if one is used, and an insurance certificate. The Federal Board of Revenue has also rolled out the Pakistan Single Window, a platform presented on its official site, same date, as the single entry point for filing these documents for imports, exports and transit, and which issues licences, permits and certificates online.

The Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority, PSQCA, established by a 1996 law according to its official site accessed 27 September 2026, oversees compliance of imported products through its quality control centre. It publishes a list of items subject to mandatory certification and issues, after testing, a certification mark, the PS Mark, to compliant products; its fee schedule, last revised in August 2017 according to the same source, has no dated, public 2026 version found here, so it should be requested directly from PSQCA for the relevant category before starting production.

Pakistan governs its imports through an import policy order published by the Ministry of Commerce, which splits goods into those freely importable, those subject to licence or condition, and those prohibited. A dated, publicly accessible 2026 version of this order could not be consulted for this research: the precise list should be checked directly with the Ministry of Commerce or the Federal Board of Revenue before any order, category by category, as it changes from one annual policy to the next.

Three ports handle most of Pakistan's maritime trade. Port Qasim, about 28 miles southeast of Karachi according to its port authority, site accessed 27 September 2026, operates 18 berths with an annual capacity of 89 million tonnes and claims over 52% of the country's imports and exports, making it the most likely entry point for a container from South China. Karachi Port, the older facility, remains the second-largest port complex, with no recent statistic isolating its share of traffic. Gwadar, on the Arabian Sea in Balochistan, is presented by its authority, same access date, as the third deep-water port and the gateway to the CPEC corridor, oriented toward regional transshipment rather than routine imports.

From southern China, a container most often departs from Guangzhou, Shenzhen or Yantian; no single, verifiable transit time to Karachi or Port Qasim was found, so ask your freight forwarder at the time of booking. FOB from South China suits an importer who arranges their own transport, CIF or CFR if the supplier handles it up to the port, and DDP remains inadvisable as long as the Chinese seller is not itself a licensed customs declarant in Pakistan, which remains rare.

On payment, standard practice with a Chinese factory remains a deposit on order followed by a balance before shipment, paid exclusively into the Chinese company's business account, never a personal account: a change of bank details received by email should always be verified by a direct phone call before any transfer. The arrangements for paying in foreign currency through Pakistan's banking system could not be confirmed for this research, so check with your bank.

A first order follows a stable sequence: specifications, factory verification, sample approval, proforma invoice with the chosen Incoterm, agreed payment method, production follow-up, pre-shipment inspection, gathering of documents, filing the declaration on the Pakistan Single Window, then arrival at the port and customs clearance by the importer or their local customs agent, duties and taxes included.

Sorva is a sourcing and trading house based in Guangzhou, in the Tianhe district, backed by a Chinese subsidiary whose business scope covers the purchase, resale and export of goods, and by a parent company in France. Our Chinese-speaking team finds and verifies factories, arranges visits and samples, negotiates terms, has quality checked before loading and organises freight to the chosen Pakistani port. We never act as the official importer of record in Pakistan, we do not clear customs there, and we do not export vehicles ourselves without going through a licensed Chinese exporter. Our base service is invoiced in US dollars, with optional zone add-ons quoted separately, including support with PSQCA certification.