How to ship FBA from China to US by air?

There are four main methods to ship goods from China to Amazon FBA warehouse. these are: Express transportation, Sea transportation, Air transportation. The time of each way of transport and the cost of transportation are different. You can choose the method of transportation based on the weight of your product.

If your time is urgent, you can choose international Express, such as DHL, UPS or FedEX, but the cost of transportation is very high. My suggestion is that if the weight of the goods is less than 21kg, you can choose international Express. If your products have 100kg + choose sea or train transportation will save a lot of shipping cost.

If the weight of the goods is between 21kg and 100kg, you can choose to ship by air. Air transport is not as convenient as express delivery, because the goods must pass Customs. But are you no ideas about how to ship the products from China to USA by air? If so, we here give you a detailed guide for new sellers like you.

This article mainly explains how to ship products from China to Amazon FBA warehouse by air. In order to solve the shipping problem of Amazon sellers, I will share the issues of Amazon shipping for everyone. I mainly share three major issues as below.

1. details about shipping by air

The basics of air transportation from China to Amazon FBA now include customs clearance and customs duties. I suggest that you find a Chinese FBA freight forwarder to handle your products, and the shipping cost includes customs clearance and customs duties. So we can avoid a lot of troubles. As a new Amazon seller, you are not a qualified Amazon seller if you don’t know the shipping costs, customs clearance and duties. If we need to do the preparation work ahead of time, then we can have the advantage of selling price. So we can make more profit.

1.)Weight calculation

There are two methods for calculating the weight of air transport, one is to charge according to the actual weight, and other is to the dimensional weight. If the dimensional weight is greater than the actual weight, it is charged by the dimensional weight. This method of calculating shipping costs is similar to Express. The difference is that the Express is the volume divided by 5000, but the air transport is the volume divided by 6000.

Air transport dimensional weight calculation method:

Dimensional weight = length (cm) * width (cm) * height (cm) / 6000.

The price of air transportation will be much cheaper after compared with Express. Also the calculation of the size and weight that is better than the express. For example, the same size: 50x50x60cm, Express is charged at 30kg, and air transportation is only charged at 25kg. Air transport is a good choice.

2.) Transportation time from China to Amazon by Air

Air transport time will be about 10 days slower than Express, but it all depends on the flight chosen by your freight forwarder.

From China to Amazon warehouse in the US: Usually takes 10-12 working days (including customs clearance)

Tip: You can decide whether to choose air transport based on your sales on Amazon. The shipping costs generally include customs clearance and customs duties if you use a shipping agent or your supplier, but you must confirm with your supplier or shipping agent in advance. After the customs clearance is completed, the shipping agent will usually arrange DHL, UPS or FedEX from the airport to Amazon FBA.

2.Customs and Amazon certification

Usually, transportation products from China to Amazon require two certifications. One is product certification for customs and the other for Amazon. When purchasing products from China, it is better to confirm what certifications the suppliers have. You must consider replacing another supplier if the product does not have any certification. If the supplier’s product does not have any certification, it means that his product is unqualified. Product certification is also very important for us to sell on Amazon. Finally, the product certification can't be ignored.

1.)Certification required by customss

When the goods are cleared, Customs has the right to require your products to provide relevant product certification. If you are unable to provide it, Customs may fine, detain or destroy your product. So you have to know what kind of product certification you need to provide in order to successfully pass the customs (this is very important). Because this is not a joke. We must minimize the risk.

The following is a list of commonly used US customs import products that need to be certified as follows:

Certification	Products	Remarks
FCC	All products	There are three types of FCC certification: FCC-VOC, FCC-DOC and FCC-ID.
FDA	Food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, biological agents, medical equipment and radioactive products
UL	Direct contact with high voltage and safety related products: LED lights, Wifi plugs, power adapters, Wall Charger…etc.	UL or ETL ,both are ok
ETL	Direct contact with high voltage and safety related products: LED lights, Wifi plugs, power adapters, Wall Charger…etc.	ETL or UL ,both are ok
CPC	Toy
BQB	Bluetooth products

2.) Amazon required certification

When selling products on Amazon, we must know if we need product certifications to sell on Amazon. We must comply with Amazon’s product regulations which would otherwise cause the listing to be closed.

Last year, the fidget spinners sold very crazy on Amazon (hot selling). Many sellers have purchased a large number of fidget spinners products from China and ship them to Amazon FBA. But many sellers did not consult Amazon when they purchased the product. When the product is shipped to Amazon FBA, Amazon requires sellers to provide certification, ASTM F963-16 certification in the United States, and SOR/2011-17 in Canada. In the end, many sellers were unable to provide these certifications, causing these sellers to lose a lot of money.

As you can see from the above case, certification is very important on Amazon. When purchasing products from China, we must confirm with Amazon whether we need certification or special requirements to sell products on Amazon.

These products are required to provide certification or reports on Amazon in the US.

3. Amazon's requirements for product barcodes and boxes

Before shipping products to Amazon FBA, we must understand Amazon’s requirements for products and boxes. All product packaging, boxes must comply with Amazon warehouse regulations. If we do not comply with Amazon’s requirements, your product will be rejected by Amazon warehouse. If your product packaging does not have the correct FBA label, Amazon does not know that your product belongs to that seller.

Amazon has different packaging requirements, and the requirements are different. For example, if your product packaging is an OPP bag with an opening size larger than 5 inches, Amazon must ask you to put a “suffocation” warning label on the packaging.

If the FBA label is not placed, your item will also be rejected. when your goods arrive at the FBA, they need to scan the barcode to identify them and place the goods in the correct position. So you can see that labels are very important process in FBA.

We are currently providing labeling and inspection services to more than 1,200 Amazon sellers in the United States and Europe. This step is very important and will determine your product into Amazon warehouse and its sales. If you need Amazon prep service, please contact us.

Below I share some Amazon warehouse requirements for products, weights and boxes:

1.)Product label

Amazon’s labeling of products is required. Amazon warehouse will scan your FNSKU label when your products are delivered , so Amazon will place your products in the correct warehouse location.

FNSKU label:

Amazon requires an FNSKU label on each product package. If we don’t attach the FNSKU label, so Amazon can’t identify your product and you can’t sell it on Amazon.

Once you’ve created a product on Amazon backend, you can download the FNSKU label directly.

There are 11 FNSKU label sizes are available for download:

21-up labels 63.5 mm x 38.1 mm on A4
24-up labels 63.5 mm x 33.9 mm on A4
24-up labels 64.6 mm x 33.8 mm on A4
24-up labels 66.0 mm x 33.9 mm on A4
24-up labels 66.0 mm x 35.0 mm on A4
24-up labels 70.0 mm x 36.0 mm on A4
24-up labels 70.0 mm x 37.0 mm on A4
27-up labels 63.5 mm x 29.6 mm on A4
30-up labels 1 “x 2-5/8” on US letter
40-up labels 52.5 mm x 29.7 mm on A4
44-up labels 48.5 mm x 25.4 mm on A4

Suffocation Label:

If your product package is an OPP bag, you must pay attention to whether the size is bigger than 5 inches. If the OPP bag is larger than 5 inches, Amazon must require a “suffocation” label. Amazon will not allow you to sell if find that your product is OPP bag packaging and there is no “suffocation” label.

2.) Shipping label

If you want to ship to Amazon warehouse, we must create a “Shipping Plan” on Amazon background. You can download the master box label. After downloading the box label, you can print it out and then attach the label to your box. If the box doesn’t have this label attached, Amazon will also reject you. Amazon requires that each box must have 2 shipping labels at least.

3.) Amazon Requirements: Box Size and Weight

Amazon warehouse also has requirements for the size and weight of the box. If you do not follow Amazon’s request, Amazon may fine, reject or warning to you .

The size of the master box cannot exceed 25 inches on either side.

The weight of a single box cannot exceed 50 lb. If the weight of a single box exceeds 50 lb, Need a “Team Lift” label must be attached to the top of the box. If the weight of a single box exceeds 100 lb, need a “Mech Lift” label must be attached to the box.

Tip: Normally, if you are the first time, Amazon may warn you. If it is the second time, Amazon warehouse may reject your product. If your product size or weight exceeds the above requirements, please consult Amazon in advance.

Finally, I have shared what I know about Amazon and hope this article can help you purchase products from China to Amazon. The most important is FBA freight calculation, and I believe that it is very helpful to calculate the cost of your product. after reading this article, if you have any questions, please leave a comment below or email me. We will reply you as soon as possible.