Can you believe it?
The most troublesome problem of returns for cross-border e-commerce has been completely solved since April this year!
In the past, returning goods was like taking a long detour, with expensive freight and long cycle times. Many sellers simply abandoned the goods and lost money; now the 9610 Cross-Customs Zone returns have been launched nationwide. There is no need to return the same way. Customs clearance can be done at any port across the country, and the cost is directly reduced by 30%. Small and medium-sized sellers must seize this wave of policy dividends!
Let’s make the latest policy clear first, and don’t play with lies: Starting from April 1, 2026, the General Administration of Customs will officially promote the 9610 cross-border e-commerce retail export cross-customs area return model nationwide, ending the previous situation of only 20 pilot projects directly under the customs.
To put it simply, goods exported using the 9610 model do not need to be returned to the original export customs when returning overseas. Returns can be made at any port with a cross-border supervision site across the country, completely breaking the old rule of “where to go, where to go”.
Some people may have no idea and think it’s just a matter of changing the return port?
Then you are wrong. Behind this is a major liberation of reverse logistics for cross-border sellers, which directly hits the three major pain points of the industry, each of which is closely related to the wallet.
The first pain point: The cost of returns is so high that many sellers are forced to abandon their goods.
Before the New Deal, returns had to be returned via the original route. For example, goods exported from Shanghai, even if you had a warehouse in Guangzhou, had to be shipped back to Shanghai first and then transferred to Guangzhou.
We have made a real calculation: for a 100 kilogram return, the old model goes overseas → Shanghai → Guangzhou, and the freight and warehousing cost is almost 2,000 yuan; the new model goes directly overseas → Guangzhou, only 800 yuan, and you can save 1,200 yuan on one trip.
The pilot data is more convincing: As of the end of February 2026, the pilot ports have processed a total of 381,300 returns, with a value of 94 million yuan, and the average logistics cost has dropped by 30%-50%.
For medium-sized sellers who return 500 orders per month, they can save more than 100,000 in logistics fees a year. Small sellers can directly reduce the loss of abandoned goods and no longer have to watch returns lose all their money.
The second pain point: the return cycle is too long, it is overwhelming for funds and it is difficult to revitalize inventory.
In the past, cross-customs returns, including customs clearance and transshipment, took at least 20-30 days, sometimes even a month.
Returns are stuck at sea or in warehouses, and the funds cannot be moved. The inventory cannot be resold, and the capital chain of small sellers is easily strained.
Now that the new policy is implemented, the return cycle has been directly shortened to 7-15 days, and customs clearance and warehousing can be completed in 3-5 days at the fastest.
The capital turnover efficiency is doubled, returned goods can be quickly inspected and re-sold, and the inventory revitalization rate is increased by more than 50%. This is simply a life-saving straw for cross-border sellers who rely on capital turnover to survive.
The third pain point: For sellers with multiple ports, the return operation is so troublesome that it collapses.
Nowadays, many large, medium and small sellers, in order to improve delivery efficiency, will prepare goods in multiple ports such as Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hangzhou.
Before the New Deal, goods had to be returned to the port at which the goods were shipped. The communication cost and time cost of connecting multiple logistics and multiple customs were extremely high, and even the slightest mistake would cause delays.
Now, returns are available at all ports across the country. Sellers can choose the nearest port for returns based on their warehouse location and logistics price.
For example, the seller’s main warehouse is in Shenzhen. Regardless of whether the goods are exported from Beijing or Ningbo, returns can be shipped directly to Shenzhen and processed in a unified manner. There is no need to go back and forth, and the operation difficulty is directly halved.
Many people will ask: With such a good policy, can all cross-border sellers enjoy it?
The scope of application and practical requirements must be clearly explained here. Don’t blindly follow the trend and avoid stepping into pitfalls.
First of all, only 9610 model retail export goods are available, which is what we often call cross-border direct mail exports. The overseas warehouse model (9810) is temporarily not applicable.
Secondly, returned goods must be returned to a cross-border e-commerce supervision workplace registered with the customs and cannot be returned directly to an ordinary warehouse. This must be noted.
Finally, enterprises need to meet three basic conditions: first, complete the registration of cross-border e-commerce enterprises; second, the system must be connected with the customs information system; third, there must be an independent return operation functional area, otherwise customs clearance cannot be handled.
There is also great news. The New Deal and the tax preferential policies introduced in February are superimposed, and the dividends have doubled.
Eligible returned goods, non-food items returned in their original condition within 6 months, are exempt from import duties, value-added tax and consumption tax, and export duties paid can also be refunded.
In other words, returning goods not only saves shipping costs, but also saves taxes and fees, which is a double cost reduction. This is a real support provided by the state to cross-border sellers.
Seeing this, many people will think that this policy is good for big sellers, but small sellers have no share?
On the contrary, the biggest beneficiaries of this new policy are small and medium-sized cross-border sellers.
Large sellers have strong funds and were able to withstand high returns costs and long cycles in the past. However, small and medium-sized sellers are different. They have less funds, weak ability to resist risks, high return costs, and inventory backlog, and can easily be brought down.
Now that the new policy has been implemented, small and medium-sized sellers no longer have to worry about high return costs and are not forced to abandon goods. Capital turnover is faster, inventory can be quickly revitalized, operating pressure is greatly reduced, and the living space is directly expanded.
Moreover, competition in the cross-border e-commerce industry is becoming increasingly fierce, price wars are fierce, and profits are already thin.
The new policy is equivalent to “giving profits” directly to small and medium-sized sellers. The saved costs can be used to optimize products, improve logistics timeliness, and promote promotions. It can not only enhance competitiveness but also increase profits. It can be said to be the most practical dividend in the cross-border circle in 2026.
Of course, with favorable policies, industry reshuffle will also accelerate.
In the past, sellers that relied on low prices to increase volume, did not pay attention to compliance, and had poor after-sales service would not be able to last long even if they had the dividends of the new policy. However, those sellers who plan for compliance in advance, pay attention to after-sales, and refine operations can better seize the policy dividends, quickly expand their scale, and seize market share.
With the development of cross-border e-commerce today, it is no longer an era of barbaric growth.
From the nationwide implementation of 9610 cross-customs area returns, to the superimposition of preferential tax policies, to supporting support such as overseas warehouses and AI operations, the country has been paving the way for cross-border sellers and lowering operating thresholds and costs.
For us small and medium-sized sellers, instead of worrying about whether to do well in the industry, it is better to grasp the new policy rules thoroughly, do system docking, port layout, and return process optimization in advance, and truly transform the policy dividends into profits.
After all, opportunities always come to those who are prepared.
To summarize: the implementation of 9610 cross-customs area returns across the country is not a small adjustment, but a major change in cross-border e-commerce reverse logistics. The cost has dropped by 30%, the cycle has been shortened by half, and the operation difficulty has been halved, directly solving the pain points of the industry for many years.
In 2026, cross-border e-commerce will still be in the spotlight, but only those who understand policies, know how to operate, and can persist can really take off.
Are you engaged in cross-border e-commerce?
After the new policy is implemented, how do you plan to adjust your return strategy?
Welcome to leave a message in the comment area for discussion, exchange practical experience together, and seize this wave of policy dividends!
