Lithium battery export from China fails on paper as often as it fails on labels. A carrier does not load Class 9 because a factory sent carton photos. It loads when the UN number, the UN38.3 test summary, the SDS, and a signed dangerous goods declaration exist before cutoff. This article is the document pack: what must exist, who signs it, and which papers belong to China export versus destination import.
Xinhan Logistics books lithium batteries as dangerous goods when the file is complete. For a real quotation, send packed CBM, gross kg, UN number, battery configuration (contained in equipment, packed with equipment, or standalone cells), origin city in China, and delivery city. We will tell you which papers the line or airline will actually ask for. We will not invent a live freight rate on a missing test summary.
1. Treat the document pack as cargo
If the carton is ready and the file is not, you do not have cargo. You have inventory sitting in a factory while a DG desk waits. Cutoff is a document event. The warehouse gate is a second event. Book both. Photograph packed cargo the day it is packed, then attach that photo to the same folder as the invoice. A “files coming later” message is not a booking. Assign an owner for each paper. Xinhan Logistics will not load a mystery Class 9 lot because someone promised a PDF after sailing.
2. Classify before anyone prints an invoice
UN numbers decide the declaration, the packing instruction, the airline yes or no, and whether LCL consolidators will even look at the booking. Get the configuration right first.
- UN3480: lithium-ion batteries shipped alone (cells, packs, power banks, spare batteries).
- UN3481: lithium-ion batteries contained in equipment or packed with equipment.
- UN3090: lithium-metal batteries shipped alone.
- UN3091: lithium-metal batteries contained in equipment or packed with equipment.
Contained in a laptop is not the same file as a carton of loose packs. If the factory cannot say which one, stop printing commercial invoices.
3. Commercial invoice: a Class 9 customs document
The invoice must name seller, buyer, Incoterm, currency, unit prices, and a description a customs officer can read. “Electronics,” “parts,” and “gifts” are not descriptions. Write the product, the battery type, watt-hour or lithium content when that is how the model is identified, and the UN number if the destination file uses it. Values must be defensible. Match the legal names on the invoice to the names on the declaration and the bill. Ltd versus Limited is enough to park a delivery order.
4. Packing list that a DG clerk can count
Carton counts, inner quantities, net and gross kg, outer dimensions, and marks must match what the warehouse can count. If you have three pack styles, list three pack styles. Totals must add up. This document drives CBM, remeasure arguments, and sometimes the customs quantity. For batteries, also show how cells sit in the carton: terminals protected, inner packaging, UN specification box marks when those boxes are required. A packing list that only says “20 cartons mixed goods” is how a DG booking dies at receiving.
5. SDS that matches the actual cell
The safety data sheet is a handling and emergency document, not a brochure. It should identify the product, the hazards, firefighting notes, and transport classification that match the UN number you are booking. An SDS for a different model, or a stale version for a new cell, will be rejected by a careful airline desk. Ask for it before the factory tapes cartons. If they cannot produce one, they are not ready to export. Xinhan Logistics will not rewrite an SDS for a factory that refuses to name the chemistry.
6. UN38.3 test summary is not a rumour
The UN38.3 test summary proves the battery type passed the transport tests: altitude, thermal, vibration, shock, external short circuit, impact or crush, overcharge, and forced discharge as applicable. Carriers want the summary that belongs to the model you are shipping, not a cousin SKU and not a screenshot of a cover page. Keep the full laboratory report as well. If the factory says they have UN38.3 and then sends a quality certificate for the device housing, you do not have UN38.3. Start that chase before you book space.
7. Who signs the dangerous goods declaration
The shipper’s declaration for dangerous goods is a signed legal statement. For air, IATA rules want a trained signatory. For sea, IMDG wants a declaration that matches the packed cargo. The signer attests that classification, packing, marks, and labels are correct. Factories sometimes want the forwarder to sign as if the forwarder manufactured the cells. That is not how liability works. Xinhan Logistics will prepare and check the file. Name the shipper.
8. Packing certificate and UN specification packaging
Standalone batteries often need UN specification packaging and a packing certificate that says the boxes were closed as tested. Inner protection against short circuit is not optional. A pretty carton with a logo is not a UN box. If the instruction requires a 4G fibreboard box with a specific marking, that marking must be on the box you actually use. The packing certificate is signed after packing, not before. Photograph the UN mark, the Class 9 label, and the lithium battery mark. Those photos belong in the file.
9. China export papers versus destination import papers
China export is one legal story. Destination import is another. They share the invoice and packing list. They do not share every certificate. The China export declaration needs a consistent commodity, a real exporter, and data that matches the house bill. Destination entry needs an importer of record, a tariff classification, and whatever licences that country wants. Split the folder: origin set and destination set.
10. China transport condition appraisal and export filing
For many China DG bookings, an authorized institute issues a transport condition appraisal for the year and the mode. Airlines and some ocean desks still ask for it. It is an origin paper. It is not a substitute for UN38.3 or the SDS. Export customs still needs a declaration that does not describe Class 9 batteries as toys. Amendments after cutoff delay stuffing. Ask Xinhan Logistics for a written origin checklist on the UN number and the port.
11. IMDG sea file versus IATA air file
Sea and air share classification and UN38.3. They do not share packing instructions, labels, or the declaration form. IMDG cares about stowage, segregation, and a dangerous goods manifest. IATA cares about packing instructions, passenger versus cargo aircraft, and a shipper’s declaration in the air format. If you switch mode after packing, you may need to repack and relabel. Budget that as a new file, not a PDF rename. Dual-mode “maybe air maybe sea” bookings create two incomplete packs and zero cutoffs.
12. Carrier acceptance is a document, not a vibe
Many airlines and some ocean lines want a pre-acceptance or a DG booking confirmation before the cargo enters the warehouse. Without it, the warehouse can receive cartons and then refuse to build the shipment. Origin dwell starts here, not at the gate. Acceptance can fail because the watt-hour is too high for that airline, the state-of-charge statement is missing, the UN box mark is wrong, or the line simply does not take UN3480 this week. Get the no early. A late no is a week of storage and a new routing.
| Document | Who typically provides or signs it | What breaks if it is missing or wrong |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial invoice | Seller / factory | Export filing, duty, exams, delivery-order identity |
| Packing list with CBM and kg | Seller / factory | Receiving, remeasure, quantity disputes |
| SDS / safety data sheet | Manufacturer | Airline or line rejection at origin |
| UN38.3 test summary | Cell or pack manufacturer / lab | No DG booking, no load |
| Dangerous goods declaration | Trained shipper signatory | Illegal or refused carriage |
| Packing certificate / UN box evidence | Packer / shipper | Warehouse refusal, carrier audit failure |
| China export declaration data | China exporter / origin broker | Missed cutoff, unlawful export |
| ISF / ENS / AMS-style filings | Forwarder or destination broker by lane | Fines, holds, destuff delays |
13. State of charge statements for air
Air rules for lithium-ion often require a state of charge at or below 30 percent for standalone UN3480, and 2026 IATA updates expanded that discipline to more UN3481 cases above a watt-hour threshold. The factory must state SoC in writing if the airline asks. A verbal “we discharged them” is not a statement. Put SoC on the same sheet as the model and the UN number. If the production line cannot discharge before packing, you do not have an air product. You have a sea conversation.
14. LCL DG paperwork versus FCL DG paperwork
LCL consolidators are picky because your batteries share a box with someone else’s cargo. Some LCL products will not take UN3480 at any price. FCL still needs the full DG pack, but you are not begging a mixed CFS. The papers do not get shorter on FCL. The audience gets smaller. If you are under a few CBM of standalone cells, ask early whether a DG LCL closing even exists on that lane. Packed CBM and UN number belong in that first email, not after the truck is at the gate.
15. DDP files versus port-collect files
On a real DDP product, the destination agent should already hold what they need to file: invoice, packing list, classification, and the DG story the customs house will see. On port-collect, you and your broker must be ready when the box is available. DDP does not delete UN38.3. DDP does not delete ISF. DDP changes who is late. If a so-called DDP house asks you to invent a broker after berthing, you bought port delivery with a DDP sticker. Xinhan Logistics will say which papers we file and which papers you still own.
16. Marks, labels, and photos are part of the file
Class 9 lithium battery labels, lithium battery marks, cargo-aircraft-only labels when required, and UN numbers on the package are documents printed on cardboard. The house bill marks should appear on the cargo.
- Class 9 hazard label in the correct specification.
- Lithium battery mark with UN number where required.
- Proper shipping name if the packing instruction wants it on the package.
- Orientation arrows when the instruction cares.
Photograph two sides of a packed carton and the UN box mark. Put those photos in the same folder as the SDS.
17. Destination licences and product rules sit beside freight
Some countries want extra product files for power banks, e-bike batteries, or equipment that contains cells: conformity marks, importer registrations, or energy rules that have nothing to do with IMDG. Those papers do not load the vessel, but they park the cargo after arrival. Ask the destination broker before origin cutoff. Small LCL does not exempt you. Tell Xinhan Logistics at quote stage if the host product is regulated. A refused booking is cheaper than a destuff hold.
18. Advance cargo filings: ISF, ENS, and friends
Importer Security Filing on US ocean is a before-loading conversation. ENS and ICS2 on Europe want quality data. AMS-style filings want names that match the bill. Late or junk data is a fine and sometimes a hold. Name who files. DG descriptions in those filings must match the declaration. Calling UN3480 “consumer electronics accessories” in ISF while the ocean manifest says Class 9 is how you buy an exam. Freeze the wording.
19. What must exist before CFS or CY cutoff
Before the cargo is received: draft invoice, packing list with CBM and kg, SDS, UN38.3 test summary, UN number and configuration, origin city, and a statement of how the batteries are packed. Before the DG cutoff: signed declaration, packing certificate as required, labels confirmed, carrier acceptance, and export data that will not be amended for fun. If any of those are “coming,” you are not at cutoff. Put a document-ready date next to the cargo-ready date on the purchase order.
20. Common document mistakes that stop the load
Invoice quantity does not match cartons. CBM on the packing list is fantasy. UN3480 described as UN3481 because someone thought equipment sounded safer. SDS for a different watt-hour. UN38.3 for last year’s cell. Declaration signed by a person with no training. Labels printed on paper and taped crooked. Consignee spelled three ways. Wood pallets with no ISPM 15 mark sitting under a UN box. Hide-and-hope undeclared batteries are not a paperwork shortcut. They are a seizure product. Xinhan Logistics will not participate.
21. Factory versus importer: who owns which paper
The factory typically owns SDS, UN38.3, packing, origin export data, and the facts about watt-hour and configuration. The importer typically owns destination identity, tariff classification, bonds, licences, and the delivery address that will appear on the bill. The forwarder owns the booking file, the house bill, and the check that those two stacks actually match. When nobody owns the declaration, it arrives unsigned. When nobody owns ISF, it arrives late. Write the split on the booking.
22. Amendments after the DG booking is locked
Changing buyer, quantity, UN number, or description after the DG booking is in motion is how files miss the vessel or arrive as a customs puzzle. Freeze the commercial set before warehouse receiving when you can. If you must amend, do it in writing and accept that carrier acceptance may restart. A new UN number is a new shipment. A new consignee on a US ocean file can be a new ISF. Do not treat DG like general cargo where a clerk “just updates the system.”
Contact Our China Freight Forwarding Team
If you are importing from China and need a shipping plan, transit-time estimate, or all-in quotation, contact Xinhan Logistics. Send the product name, packed dimensions, gross weight, origin city in China, and delivery city so we can recommend LCL, FCL, air freight, or DDP door-to-door service.
Email: gzxinhang@126.com
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