Since the beginning of 2026, cross-border e-commerce, as the core driving force for foreign trade growth, has received full-chain policy support from national strategy to implementation. As of April 2026, the core policies that have been introduced focus on four major directions: cross-border e-commerce + overseas warehouse expansion and upgrade, export return tax exemption extension, implementation of new foreign trade regulations, and tightening of global supervision, which has drawn a clear roadmap for the development of the entire industry.
1. Cross-border e-commerce + overseas warehouses have become a national strategy
For the first time at the national level, “cross-border e-commerce + overseas warehouses” have been included in the government work report as an independent key task, marking the formal rise of this model from a spontaneous choice by the industry to a core model of foreign trade development supported by national strategies.
In the future, the country will continue to increase the construction of overseas warehouses in terms of financial subsidies, land support, customs clearance facilitation, and logistics coordination. It will focus on encouraging the development of intelligent, standardized, and compliant overseas warehouses, and gradually eliminate low-quality and illegal small warehouses. At the same time, it will promote the construction of international logistics channels, optimize air freight, railway transportation, and shipping lines, directly reduce the logistics costs of cross-border sellers, and improve distribution efficiency. Small and medium-sized sellers will become the core beneficiary group of the policy.
In addition, digital trade and green trade are being promoted simultaneously. Policies clearly support the digital transformation of cross-border e-commerce and encourage applications such as electronic invoices, electronic bills of lading, and digital customs clearance. At the same time, export products are required to comply with environmental standards and green packaging. In the future, green compliance will become a “passport” for cross-border overseas travel.
2. Extension of the tax exemption policy for export returns to the end of 2027
Multiple departments jointly issued an announcement to extend the preferential tax policy for cross-border e-commerce export returns to December 31, 2027, directly solving the core pain point of “losses on returns” commonly faced by sellers.
The policy applies to cross-border e-commerce products exported through regulatory codes 1210, 9610, 9710, and 9810 from January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027, if they are unsalable or returned within 6 months.
Goods returned to the country in their original condition (excluding food) are exempt from import duties, import value-added tax, and consumption tax when they are returned to the country; export duties collected at the time of export are allowed to be refunded; paid value-added tax and consumption tax shall be governed by the domestic sales return regulations.
In addition, the export tax rebate policy for the 9810 overseas warehouse model has been further optimized to achieve tax refund upon departure and re-accounting after sales. Enterprises can obtain 70%-90% pre-tax refund upon leaving the country. The tax refund will be settled based on actual sales before April of the following year. The tax refund time is shortened to 3 working days, which greatly improves the capital turnover efficiency of enterprises.
3. The industry has entered the era of strong compliance
From March 1, 2026, the newly revised “Foreign Trade Law” will be officially implemented, and the “VAT Law” will be fully implemented. The cross-border e-commerce industry will officially enter the era of “strict supervision and strong compliance”, and the extensive business model will be completely ended.
At the international level, the European Union will implement new tariff regulations on July 1, canceling the tax exemption policy for small parcels under 150 euros. All imported goods are subject to tariffs, which will be levied at the actual tax rate after the transition period. Chinese small parcel sellers need to optimize pricing in a timely manner and deploy a compliant customs clearance model.
New regulations at the mainstream platform level have also been implemented intensively. Since March, Amazon has added compliance requirements for AI tools, adjusted European digital service fees, and terminated shared inventory policies. Sellers need to promptly update store settings and standardize operations to avoid losses such as fines and store closures. Regional platforms in Southeast Asia and South Korea have also adjusted their rules simultaneously. TikTok Shop Thailand has adjusted its fee calculation method. Walmart and Coupang have launched new seller incentive plans. Opportunities and supervision coexist, and sellers need to accurately grasp the pace of platform policy adjustments.
4. Operation suggestions for cross-border sellers in 2026
Based on the latest policies and recent implementation rules, industry insiders put forward four practical suggestions for cross-border sellers: First, prioritize the layout of overseas warehouses, closely follow the national “cross-border e-commerce + overseas warehouse” strategy, choose overseas warehouse service providers that operate in compliance with regulations, improve delivery timeliness, and enjoy relevant policy subsidies to seize local market share; second, make good use of return tax-free bonuses to sort out the flow of returned goods.
process, and operate in strict accordance with the requirements of “six months, return in original condition” to reduce after-sales costs and increase capital turnover rate; third, fully implement compliance operations, complete tax, data, and operation compliance throughout the entire process, adapt to the requirements of the newly revised Foreign Trade Law and Value-Added Tax Law, and avoid policy risks; fourth, accelerate digital transformation, embrace digital tools to optimize order, logistics, and customs clearance processes, improve operational efficiency, reduce operating costs, and are in line with the development direction of national digital trade.
