A series of measures aimed at overseas exhibitors and buyers has been introduced by Guangzhou Customs to ensure the smooth operation of the 138th China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair), being held in three phases from October 15 to November 4 in Guangzhou City, South China.
Nine actions include an integrated online service platform for clearance for participants and exhibits, faster processing for duty-free pickup and tax refunds, on-site one-stop customs services, support for enterprises exhibiting outside bonded areas, and preferential tax policies for imported exhibits.
During the Canton Fair, to boost consumption among buyers and exhibitors, Guangzhou Customs has enhanced the city's outbound tax refund system by integrating data among tax authorities, customs, and refund agencies. This has improved processing efficiency by 90%. A new "one refund form per sealed goods package" model has also reduced customs verification time by around 70%.
Currently, Guangzhou has nearly 800 tax refund stores. In the first nine months of 2025, Guangzhou Customs handled over 20,000 departure tax refund cases worth more than 300 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 150%.
This session features a 10,000 square meter import exhibition area in each phase. As of October 11, 72 batches of exhibits worth about 3.96 million yuan had entered Guangzhou via Nansha Port, Jiaoxin Wharf, and Baiyun International Airport, mainly including kitchen appliances, hardware tools, and machinery. These exhibits are from 222 exhibitors across 13 countries and regions, such as Egypt, Turkiye, Thailand, and Japan.
From January to August 2025, Guangzhou's total import and export volume reached 820.62 billion yuan, up 13.4% year-on-year, marking a record high for the same period. Exports rose 22.2% to 542.09 billion yuan, ranking first in growth among China's top 10 foreign trade cities.
Reporter | Dai Bosi
Photo | Guangzhou Customs
Editor | Hu Nan, James Campion, Shen He
