Starting from April 1, the Tuke industry is ushering in a historic transformation—the General Administration of Customs has officially promoted the cross-customs district return model for Tuke retail export goods nationwide!

Simply put, in the future, if your goods are sold abroad and returned, you no longer have to go back to the original export port. You can choose any port in the country!

In the past, what was the biggest fear when selling goods overseas? It wasn’t that you couldn’t sell them, but that you couldn’t get them back after selling. Now, the era of “worry-free returns” has finally arrived! According to statistics, after the implementation of this policy, some companies’ return costs have dropped by about 40%. The significance behind this is not just a little shipping fee, but a complete after-sales revolution for Tuke!

 

Image source: Securities Daily

How painful was the past?

Let’s first review the previous “return nightmare”.

Friends in Tuke all know that after goods are exported through the “9610 model”, if they are returned from overseas, the most troublesome thing is—you must return them the original way. For example, if you export from Yiwu Customs to Europe, the return must also go through Yiwu Customs.

Sounds reasonable? Here’s the problem. Yiwu may not have a complete return processing capability, or the logistics routes may not match at all. What’s even more awkward is that the returned goods have no sales market in Yiwu, so they have to be transported back to the place of origin for regrouping.

Back and forth, not only are logistics costs high, but the time consumed is enough to drive people crazy. Many small sellers simply choose to sell at a low price overseas, or even treat them as garbage, silently bearing all the losses.

Behind the rapid development of the Tuke industry, difficulties in returns and exchanges, and uneven product quality have become the focus of many consumers’ rights protection.

 

9610 Model Image source: Internet

How does the new regulation break the deadlock?

From today, all these troubles are swept away!

The core of this new regulation can be summed up in one sentence: When goods exported by Tuke companies are returned, it is no longer mandatory for the original export customs to be the only entry channel, but any domestic customs port can be flexibly chosen to complete the return procedures.

This means that if goods exported from Shanghai are returned, you can return them from Hangzhou, Ningbo, or even Guangzhou. All you need to do is send the goods to any customs supervision operation site or location engaged in Tuke retail export business.

 

Image source: Hangzhou Net

Double benefits! Tax incentives provide simultaneous support

In addition to the comprehensive relaxation of return routes, another benefit is also being implemented simultaneously.

In February this year, a tax incentive policy jointly issued by three departments stipulated: From January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027, if goods exported by Tuke are returned to China in their original state within 6 months due to poor sales or returns (excluding food), not only are import duties, import VAT, and consumption tax exempted, but previously paid export duties can also be refunded upon application.

What is most feared in cross-border returns? First, cost; second, taxes and fees. Cross-customs district returns save you logistics and time costs, while tax incentives save you import taxes—two major benefits “combine their power”.

Professor Chen Jianwei of the National Institute of Opening-up at the University of International Business and Economics commented that the superposition of multiple policies not only directly reduces the financial burden on enterprises, but also deeply reconstructs the risk compensation mechanism of Tuke—export return tax incentives can effectively offset the additional taxes and fees generated by returns and exchanges, enabling enterprises to boldly expand product categories to seize the market.

 

Image source: State Taxation Administration

Compliance requirements cannot be ignored

However, although the policy dividends are great, don’t forget the compliance threshold.

Companies need to pay special attention to two compliance thresholds:

First, to carry out Tuke retail export cross-customs district return business, enterprises themselves must operate in a standardized manner, have independent functional operation areas, and their production operation system data must be open to customs or directly connected to the customs information system.

Second, there are clear restrictions on the destination and scope of returned goods: returned goods can only be sent to customs supervision operation sites or locations that are already engaged in Tuke retail export business, and this return policy only applies to goods under the “9610 model”.

 

Image source: Internet

Future signals: Tuke enters a new stage of high-quality development

This nationwide promotion of cross-customs district returns is not an isolated event. What it reflects is the national strategic intention to promote Tuke from scale growth to high-quality branding development.

In the 2026 Tuke Facilitation Special Action, the General Administration of Customs has clearly focused on four major tasks: goods trade, service trade, digital trade, and green trade, launching a series of facilitation measures. Cross-customs district returns are just one part; next, there will be more innovative measures such as “inspection before shipment” for Tuke export consolidation.

As Professor Chen Jianwei said, the low-cost, high-efficiency closed-loop return design is driving Tuke from scale growth to a high-quality branding development model. This time, Chinese Tuke sellers can finally say with confidence: “I can afford to return!”