ant questions, dated and verified."> ant questions, dated and verified."> ant questions, dated and verified.">
metier
RESOURCES

Plain answers to important questions

These are working guides, written the way we'd explain things across a desk. Every piece carries the month it was last updated. Guides that ride on tariff rules or trade agreements also carry a shelf life: the date after which you should ask before relying on them.

START HERE
FIRST-TIME IMPORTERS
Importing your first product from China
A first order from idea to delivered carton: samples, a small first run, the documents you'll see, and the mistakes that cost beginners money. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
FIRST-TIME IMPORTERS
How big should a first order be?
Why the smallest order that tells you what sells beats a full range, how to pick the SKUs that carry the most information, and when to reorder on what moves. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
ALWAYS CURRENT
What a pre-shipment inspection covers
The checklist run before goods leave the factory: counts, dimensional and functional checks, workmanship, packaging, and destination-market documentation. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
ALWAYS CURRENT
Comparing quotes across origins
Factory price is a fraction of the answer. A true landed-cost comparison covers duty, freight, lead time, minimums, tooling, and the cost of qualifying a new supplier. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
FOR US IMPORTERS
US IMPORTERS
First sale: paying duty on the factory price
US customs value can lawfully be declared on the manufacturer's price to the middleman rather than the price you pay. The conditions are strict and the paperwork has to be built in from the start; confidentiality toward your own customers is unaffected. Open-book pricing is what makes first sale available in the first place, because the valuation rests on a factory invoice you can see. →
UPDATED AUG 2026GOOD THROUGH FEB 2027
US IMPORTERS
Metals tariffs: caught for what's inside
Metals tariffs reach into long derivative lists, and an ordinary good can be caught for a bracket or a housing. The 2026 changes moved duty onto full customs value; how to check your product before it ships. →
UPDATED AUG 2026GOOD THROUGH FEB 2027
US IMPORTERS
AD/CVD: the duty orders that surprise importers
These orders target specific products from specific countries, stack on every other duty, and can dwarf them. How to check for active orders before you commit to a supplier. →
UPDATED AUG 2026GOOD THROUGH FEB 2027
US IMPORTERS
Forced-labor enforcement: proving a supply chain clean
US enforcement can hold shipments until the importer proves the inputs' origin, down to raw materials. What tracing documentation requires, and why it must exist before the shipment. →
UPDATED AUG 2026GOOD THROUGH FEB 2027
TIME-SENSITIVE · EXPIRES DEC 2027
Preserving refund rights on the expired Section 122 surcharge
If you paid the surcharge before it expired in July 2026, you may hold refund rights with a closing window. What to gather, who to ask, and the deadlines. Retires when the window closes. →
UPDATED AUG 2026EXPIRES DEC 2027
OPERATING GUIDES
ALWAYS CURRENT
Importer of record: what you own
The importer of record answers for classification, valuation, origin, and recordkeeping, whoever arranged the shipment. What the role obligates you to before the first container moves. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
ALWAYS CURRENT
What actually changes country of origin
What customs looks for, what third-country assembly does and doesn't change, and the questions to ask before anyone promises you a new origin. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
ALWAYS CURRENT
Who sees what in a Metier order
As our customer you see everything: the factory invoice, the costs, and our fee. The parties either side of you see only what they need to. Your customers don't learn the factory or its price, the factory doesn't learn your customers, and customs always receives true values and true origin. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
OUTSIDE THE US
One product, four rulebooks: importing outside the US
Canada, Mexico, and Central America each run their own tariff schedules, remedies, and import systems. What changes when the same product lands in a different market. →
UPDATED AUG 2026GOOD THROUGH FEB 2027
ALWAYS CURRENT
Where the margins hide in a sourcing quote
Factory commissions the buyer never sees, marked-up freight, and inspection fees folded into the unit price. How to ask for a quote that separates them, and what an open-book invoice looks like. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
ALWAYS CURRENT
When consolidation starts paying
LCL minimum charges, broker fees on every separate entry, and the arithmetic that decides whether your suppliers should deliver to one point in China and ship together. →
UPDATED AUG 2026
ALL MARKETS
The certificate that decides your duty rate
Under most of China's trade agreements goods enter at reduced or zero duty, if a valid certificate is in hand when you file. Who issues it, when to ask for it, and how to make it a condition of the purchase order. →
UPDATED AUG 2026GOOD THROUGH FEB 2027
ALWAYS CURRENT
Connecting your store to your supply chain
What an order integration actually involves: which platforms have connectors, what data moves in each direction, and what you can keep to yourself while it runs. →
UPDATED AUG 2026

This page grows as guides are written and verified. If one of these questions is urgent for your business, ask us directly through the form below.

Tell us what you need to import.

Whether it's a product idea, a supplier problem, or a full supply chain to rebuild, start with an email. We reply within one business day.

Answer what you know. Blank is fine.
Please don't send confidential drawings or specifications yet. If the work needs them, we'll put an NDA in place first.
We read it, come back with questions, and give you a view on whether it's worth pursuing before anyone quotes anything.
[email protected]