I recently surf on taobao and found that Taobao Global Consolidation and Shipping now supports Japan now.That means Japan shoppers can buy directly from taobao now.I don’t know if this is old news or not, but thought I’d share anyway with an overview of the ordering process and shipping rate.

1.Ordering Process

The process of ordering on taobao using Global Consolidation and Shipping is pretty much the same.you can follow this guide.it covers every details you need to know.

2.Shipping Cost from Taobao to Japan

Here is the translated version of shipping rate from taobao.

3.Tax chart

There is also a tax chart,I don’t know what it is,if you are from Japan,please let me know why there is a tax on the products you buy from taobao.

Taobao Global Direct Shipping is a Taobao official forwarding service in Singapore and Malaysia areas. All you need to do is checkout all items in your shopping cart at once, select “Taobao Direct Shipping” and make payment, sit back and wait for your parcel to be delivered directly to you without having to undergo a consolidation process at the forwarder warehouse.

The biggest advantage of this service is you only have to make one-time payment including domestic + international shipping fee, so you won’t need to consolidate your orders and make any second payment – Fast and easy! Save time save money!

1. Shipping Rates for Taobao Global Direct:

2. The detailed procedures:

Step 1: Make your order by selecting “Buy Now” or “Add to Cart”. If you are making multiple orders, it is recommended that you choose “Add to Cart” to consolidate all your items and make a lump-sum payment.

After clicking “Add to Cart” you will be told that the item has been successfully added, click “Proceed to Checkout” to consolidate all your items and make payment.

Step 2: Select the items that you want to consolidate, click “Checkout”.

Tips: Consolidation in shopping cart – you can only consolidate items listed on this page.

Step 3: After clicking “Checkout” you will enter the “select delivery address” page. Please select your Singapore or Malaysia address.

Tips: You may click on the upper right to “use a new address” and “manage delivery address”.

After confirming the address, click “Next” to confirm the direct shipping method.

Tips: You can see the domestic shipping fee and international shipping fee clearly shown on the right. It’s convenient! It’s money-saving and trouble free!

After confirming the shipping method, your selected items will be listed at the bottom of the page, along with the total amount to be paid.

Check the item information, amount, etc. and click “Submit Order” to enter the payment page.

Note: Certain products which are not eligible for Taobao Direct Shipping will be shown under the “Submit Order” button. These items will not be included in the calculation of the total amount!

Step 4: After clicking “Submit Order” you will enter Alipay payment page. Here you can choose to view other overseas versions. You are advised to check and verify all order details, and then select your payment method.

After making the payment, you may go to “Purchased Items” to check the order details. Don’t forget to check the delivery status very closely!

Thinking about buying and shipping products from China online? Any time a shipment comes from outside your home country, it must be entered and cleared through customs, and may be subject to duties and taxes before you can receive delivery. The process can be complex, which is why I write this post about issues related to customs from four aspects.

1. what is customs clearance and customs duty
2. How much tax do we have to pay
3. How to pay the tax
4. Tax avoidance strategies

1. We need to understand customs clearance and customs duties.

What is customs clearance?

In a layman’s term, it involves submission of documents for relevant customs procedures (payment of duty, customs examination, etc.) when the goods have reached the customs.

What is customs duty?

It is the tax imposed on goods when transported across international borders. there are export duty and import duty.For buying from China, our concern is only about the import duty.

2. How much tax do we have to pay?

The value for the purposes of charging Customs Duty is calculated on the price paid or payable for the goods plus the cost of transport (including postage), insurance and any loading or handling charges associated with the delivery of the goods into your country.Every country has its own set of duty rates and the customs officers will determine, impose and collect customs duties.

3. How to pay the tax?

Once we know the taxable amount and the duty rate, we can calculate the amount to be paid.Paying custom depends on from which courier company you are ordering,
If you are using premium shipping like DHL,TNT,FedEx then they will email you invoice of custom and their personal will collect money at your doorstep at the time of delivery.

If you choose free shipping method such as China Air mail,Singapore Air mail,Hong Kong Air mail etc then once your courier reaches your local post office,you will receive a call from post office and you will need to go there and pay.

4. How to avoid import taxes?

Please note that not all products will be taxed. While luck may play a role, there are certain strategies which we can use to avoid tax.

Try to avoid direct shipping. Choose transshipment instead.

Some taobao sellers provide the direct shipping option. In order to ensure a secured shipping, they will normally choose the well-established courier services such as DHL, UPS, etc. which will impose a duty fee.

For large quantity and weight, split them equally!

The reason for splitting is to reduce the parcel size to avoid drawing attention. Imagine if you are declaring a huge, heavy box of personal items, will the customs skip examining it? Secondly, it is to put your eggs in different baskets, so that even when you are taxed, you can minimize the loss.

Check the weight: it would be best to keep it within 30 lbs.

Then, check the size:

you know the volume of your items. For instance, imagine you have bought 2 pieces of down jackets. The weight would be within the standard, but it will still be taxed. Why? It’s because of the volume! Two pieces of down jackets will have a parcel size larger than that of other heavier items. The customs will definitely examine it.

Avoid buying heavy items

We all know that there are many different transportation routes used by the courier to ship different types of products at a different shipping rate. There are routes used for shipping valuable objects and there are routes used for bulky items. As a rule of thumb, we should avoid buying heavy items, not only because it will increase the shipping cost, but also it will affect the shipping speed. Heavy items tend to be held by the customs for examination, causing a delay and other inconveniences.

Try not to have all same items in one parcel

Try to have different types of items packed in the same parcel so that when you declare it, it will be a list of many different items. If the number of units of the same item is big, it might be examined by the customs.

TaoBao.com is more or less a bottomless pit of e-commerce with wide selection and variety of items and services, and browsing through the site without purpose is like a deep sea exploration where you encounter all the oddities lurking in the dark spaces.

Here are 5 of the weirdest things sold on TaoBao.com

1. Taoist Talismans

The religion and ancient philosophy of Taoism has been a part of Chinese life for over thousands of years. The Taoist clergy Daoshi runs several shops on Taobao selling “Fu”. Fu is said to hold special powers that can ward off evil or bad luck and also bring good luck to whoever owns it. Many mothers seek it out to calm a fussy, crying baby. The Fu is generally written on a piece of special paper and sealed in a pouch. It is  given a religious rite first in order to make the healing powers of the Fu stronger. The price for a Fu can range from 0.1 yuan to 166,000 yuan.

2. Marmite

Taobao offers the British version of Marmite, available in a larger jar with a yellow top, as well as the New Zealand version that has a red label. Vendors buy the yeasty treat from different places overseas, such as Hong Kong, the UK, Canada, or New Zealand and offer it buyers on the site.

3. Poetry for the Soul

A site called “The Sadness of a 50 Cent Poet” was set up last August on Taobao. This site caters to poetry lovers who select one of the 45 short poems available, written by four different poets, and are kind enough to send a 50 cent donation in return. Their motto is “Ours is an age when poets starve. Our poems are free. If you think they are good, we would not mind a 50 cent donation”. To date, this site has only received two donations, proof that poetry readers may be as “starved” as the poets themselves!

4. President Combo Lunch

In December, 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinpling ate at Qingfeng Steamed Dumpling Restaurant in Beijing for lunch. He ordered six pork and leek dumplings, two sides of mustard greens, and a pig liver and intestine stew for 21 yuan. Known as the President Combo, you can order it from Taobao for 79 yuan!

5. Gaming Credits

China had 190 million online gamers in 2012, according to official statistics. Gaming online is a huge business in China, grossing 69bn yuan. Gamers turn to Taobao to buy credits or items for their virtual games. Some stores also offers leveling up services for gamers who are short on time. Staffs of these full time gamers work round the clock to level up a gamer’s avatar for a fee, moving them from level 1 to 90.