New filing (备案) rules for exporters of food to China now in force

GACC has issued the revised "Administrative Provisions on the Filing of Importers and Exporters of Imported Food", replacing the 2012 rules (Annex 1 to former AQSIQ Announcement No. 55 of 2012). The provisions took effect on their publication date, 23 October 2026.

Key provisions

Overseas exporters or agents exporting food to China file with GACC using the Annex 1 information form, and are responsible for the accuracy of the information declared.
Filing, changes and cancellation are handled through the International Trade Single Window or the Customs online services portal (海关政务服务).
Complete applications are filed within 3 working days; for incomplete ones, customs notifies all missing items at once within 3 working days. Overseas exporters receive a filing number.
Filing information is published on the China Customs Enterprise Credit Information Publicity Platform; filings remain valid indefinitely.
Changes to filed information must be updated within 60 days of the change.
When food is declared for import, the overseas exporter's or agent's filing number is declared and verified by customs.
According to GACC's official interpretation, the overseas exporter form was cut from 20 to 10 items, and food categories were aligned across importer, exporter and overseas manufacturer registrations.

Impact for exporters

This affects every Turkish exporter selling food to China, and any agent selling to China on their behalf. It is a separate obligation from the manufacturing facility's CIFER registration: GACC's interpretation lists the importer, the overseas exporter/agent and the overseas manufacturer as three distinct food business operators. Because customs verifies the filing number at declaration, shipments from exporters without a filing, or with outdated information, may run into problems at customs.

Recommended actions

Check whether your company (or the agent selling to China on your behalf) holds a GACC exporter filing, and note the filing number.
If not, apply through the Single Window using the Annex 1 form.
If any filed information has changed, update it within the 60-day window.
Give your filing number to your Chinese importer and confirm the correct number is used in the import declaration.

Official sources

Official announcement (Chinese) — 海关总署公告2026年第150号
GACC official interpretation (政策解读) — 海关总署公告2026年第150号

This page is an informational summary of the official announcement; the translation is unofficial. Only the official Chinese text is legally binding. gacc.com.tr is not the official website of the General Administration of Customs of China.