• China is Malaysia’s largest trading partner.
• Malaysia is China’s second largest trading partner, second largest export market and largest source of imports in ASEAN.

When it comes to shipping from China to Malaysia, all the methods of transport including ocean/air/courier have their advantages and disadvantages. It all depends on you: your conditions, your time, your budget, your goods, the origin, the destination, the documentation, and many other factors that you should take into consideration.

Malaysia Customs

Malaysian Customs stipulates that for all goods imported, exported and transited in Malaysia, customers must provide the correct 6-digit HS code of the goods description.

When importing goods into Malaysia, understanding the complexity of the tax system is crucial. Three main taxes are applied to imported goods:

• Import Duty
• Sales Tax
• Excise Duty

Import Duty, also known as customs duty or customs tariff. To calculate the tariff rate, you need the HS Code of the goods and the corresponding import duty rate.

Sales Tax is the second key tax in Malaysia’s import tax structure, following Import Duty. The tax rate varies depending on the goods’ Harmonized Systems Code (HS code), with rates ranging from 10% or 5% to specific rates for certain products.

As the last of the three taxes applicable to imported goods in Malaysia, Excise Duty serves as a regulatory measure targeting specific products. Unlike Import Duty and Sales Tax, Excise Duty does not apply to all imports but rather is targeted at certain goods.

Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership – RCEP

The RCEP, considered the largest FTA of world trade, is between the ten ASEAN members (Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) and China, South Korea, Australia, Japan, and New Zealand.

The RCEP came into force for Malaysia on March 18, 2022.

RCEP Tariff Rates

Malaysia has two classification systems for tariffs: one for intra-ASEAN trade (i.e. China), with a 6-digit tariff code; and the other for trade with other countries.

With the certificate of origin – Form RCEP, preferential tariff rates are applied.

You can visit the site: https://ezhs.customs.gov.my/, select the Tariff Type – RCEP, then input HS Code or Item Description to find the specific rate.

Contact CFC to issue your own certificate of origin – Form RCEP to benefit from the China-Malaysia FTA.

Sea Freight from China to Malaysia

Ocean freight is the ideal way to transport your goods if you wish to minimize the shipping cost to Malaysia. You won’t enjoy the speed advantage of air freight, but you will have the flexibility to choose between less-than-container-load and full-container-load shipping, which will really help you to find the most cost-efficient way to ship your freight, depending on the weight/dimension of your consignments.

You will also have the freedom to select either port-to-port or door-to-door shipping, both of which are services offered by CFC, and by some local freight forwarding companies in Malaysia.

Top Container Ports in Malaysia

There are 22 ports in Malaysia, including seven major ports, namely Port Klang, Johor Port, Tanjung Pelepas Port, Kuantan Port, Penang Port, Bintulu Port and Kemaman Port.

Port Klang, also known as Klang, Pklang, or Port Kelang is the largest port of Malaysia. Obviously, traffic from/to this port accounts for the majority of the shipments we handle from China to Malaysia. This is the official port of Kuala Lumpur, and is connected to the main cities of the country by road and railway.

Sea Freight Cost from China to Malaysia

Freight rates determine how much it will cost to transport cargo from one point to another. The total cost is affected by the type of goods, the mode of transport, the dimensional weight of the cargo, and the distance to destination. Other factors go into the cost of shipping, including location, size, and shipping mode: sea FCL or sea LCL.

⬇️How much is shipping to a business address in Malaysia by SEA?⬇️

Peninsular Malaysia (West)	Malaysian Borneo (East)
RM 450 per CBM	RM 600 per CBM

Please note that these are just estimates, and the actual cost of your shipment may be higher or lower.

Sea Freight Transit Time from China to Malaysia

Your shipment’s transit time will be impacted by location, shipment size, and season. Transit times aren’t always the same. Depending on market conditions, acts of nature, holiday impact, and other occurrences, freight shipments may be delayed.

Rules of thumbs for lead times (in regular conditions) are 8-10 days for ocean freight. Please note that these are just estimates, and the actual transit time for your shipment may be shorter or longer.

Air Freight from China to Malaysia

There are two kinds of air freight to Malaysia from China, which is classic air freight and express air freight. If above 200 kgs, classic air freight is more suitable; If smaller shipment under 200 kgs, express such as FedEx/UPS/DHL is better.

We offer door-to-door and airport-to-airport air freight shipping service to Malaysia. CFC provides the most reliable air logistics solutions for your Malaysia shipments.

Top Airports in Malaysia

There are 8 international airports in Malaysia, namely Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Penang International Airport, Langkawi International Airport, Kota Kinabalu International Airport, Kuching International Airport, Malacca International Airport (no domestic routes), Johor Senai International Airport and Kuala Terengganu Sultan Mahmud Airport. These airports and other domestic route airports form the backbone network of Malaysia’s air transport.

Air Freight Cost from China to Malaysia

Shipping by air is generally faster but more expensive than shipping by sea. Air freight by far the fastest for the price. Express air freight is a little more expensive.

⬇️How much is shipping to a business address in Malaysia by AIR?⬇️

	Peninsular Malaysia (West)	Malaysian Borneo (East)
11KG+	RM 12.5/kg	RM 25.5/kg
46KG+	RM 11.5/kg	RM 25.5/kg
101KG+	RM 11.0/kg	RM 22.5/kg

Air Freight Transit Time from China to Malaysia

The quickest way to get from China to Malaysia by plane will take about 4-6 hours.

There are many routes from China to Malaysia. Airlines include Air China, Malaysia Airlines, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, Xiamen Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Spring Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways. They fly regularly every week between Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xiamen, Kunming, Nanning, Hong Kong, Macau in China and Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Langkawi and Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia.

For express services, our air shipping time to Malaysia is around 1 – 2 days. We offer daily departures from major China airports so delivery time from China to Malaysia is normally no longer than 3 days.

Working with CFC

CFC has focused on shipping from China to Malaysia for over twenty years. You can rely on us as the most reliable freight forwarder in China. We offer various shipping solutions, including DDP (DOOR TO DOOR), Air Freight, Sea Freight, and Express Shipping to Malaysian cities.

We’ll ensure the safe and timely delivery of your goods to your preferred destination in Malaysia, including Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, Ipoh, George Town, Kota Kinabalu, Malacca, Kuantan, Kuching and beyond.

Start Shipping Today