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Foshan makes furniture and ceramics on a scale that is difficult to convey until you have stood in it. Lecong, in Shunde district, is the largest furniture wholesale market in the world. That fact turns up in almost every move out of this city, because people buy things here.
We match you with one vetted mover from our network covering the delta. The specific skill worth asking about in Foshan is crating, since a good deal of what leaves the city is bulky, fragile and newly bought rather than used and familiar.
Foshan has river ports of its own but deep sea container traffic clears at Nansha, the terminal at the mouth of the Pearl River south of Guangzhou. The drive is under two hours.
Foshan sits immediately west of Guangzhou and the two are effectively continuous at the boundary. The Guangfo metro line, the first inter-city metro built in China, runs between them, which tells you how integrated they have become.
Deep sea containers clear at Nansha, at the river mouth, and drive north west into Foshan in under two hours. Local river ports handle coastal and feeder traffic but rarely appear on a household booking from Europe.
Because Nansha also serves Guangzhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan and Zhuhai, a mover running a weekly delta service can often combine your delivery with others in the same window. Where your dates allow, that usually shows up as a better price.
The packing question deserves more attention here than the routing does. Foshan produces ceramics, glass, lighting components and furniture, and people who live here tend to accumulate all four. Large ceramic pieces in particular need proper crating rather than blanket wrapping, and a crew that treats a two metre vase like a wardrobe will not deliver it intact. Ask specifically what crating is included and what it costs before you accept a figure.
Foshan's five districts vary more than most people expect for a city that reads as one place on a map.
Shunde, in the south east, is the wealthiest and the one most international residents choose. It holds the furniture trade at Lecong, a large appliance manufacturing base, and a good deal of modern compound housing built around it. Wide roads, service lifts, space to unload. It is also widely regarded as the best place to eat in Guangdong, which is not a small claim in that province. Straightforward delivery.
Nanhai, between Foshan and Guangzhou, is where the two cities meet. Modern residential development, good metro links into Guangzhou, easy access. A lot of people who work in Guangzhou live here for the space.
Chancheng, the historic centre, is denser and older. Streets narrow around the ancestral temple area and the older lanes, lifts are absent in some blocks, and parking near an entrance often needs arranging. Not difficult by Chinese standards, but slower than Shunde.
Sanshui and Gaoming, to the north west and west, are more industrial with newer residential development scattered through. Access is generally easy and the compounds are newer.
Typhoon exposure runs from roughly June to September, in the standard Guangdong pattern. A held sailing in August is common enough to plan around, and storage while a container waits is a real cost line rather than a theoretical one.
Foshan prices close to Guangzhou with a slightly longer drive. Where quotes here diverge from the rest of the delta is crating, because a shipment leaving this city is more likely than average to contain something large, fragile and awkwardly shaped.
Plan for around £250 to £1,000
Single postings in the manufacturing zones and short technical contracts.
Plan for around £1,250 to £3,300
Apartment moves into Shunde or Nanhai compounds.
Plan for around £3,500 to £8,400
Family moves, and the band most furniture heavy shipments fall into.
Tell us what you are shipping, particularly anything large, fragile or newly bought. That is what sets a Foshan quote.
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Clearance is at Nansha and is efficient when the inventory is complete and valued. You need a valid residence permit, a full inventory and your passport details. The Foshan specific point is the line between used personal effects and newly purchased goods, which is where most difficulties in this city start.
The national rules are the same across mainland China, so the detail on permits, restricted goods and the cultural relics rule is set out in full on the China removals and shipping page. Read that before you start packing, particularly the section on items made before 1949.
Almost everyone who leaves Foshan takes something home from the furniture or ceramics trade, and it is worth planning properly rather than deciding on packing day.
New pieces are not used personal effects. They can be shipped, and often should be given what they cost here, but they are declared separately and may attract duty on arrival. Get the invoices, keep them with the shipment and tell your mover in advance.
Old pieces are a different question entirely. Anything made before 1949 falls under the cultural relics rule and needs an export certificate. Redwood furniture and older ceramics are exactly the categories that catch people, so have them assessed weeks ahead.
For Britain, apply for Transfer of Residence relief with HMRC before the goods leave.
A move usually means moving money too, whether that is a deposit on a Foshan flat or funds coming back the other way. We have helped customers with currency exchange in any currency through trusted partners for many years, and our partners can help with the money side of your move. Mention it on the form and it gets included.
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Nansha serves most of the western delta, so a mover running the region can often combine deliveries across several of these cities.
For the full picture on routes, sea freight, rail freight, costs and Chinese customs, start at the China shipping and moving page.
Yes, and many people do given what Lecong offers. New furniture is not used personal effects though, so it is declared separately and may attract duty at the far end. Keep the invoices, tell your mover before loading, and expect it to sit outside your personal effects relief.
Nansha, at the mouth of the Pearl River south of Guangzhou. The drive in is under two hours. Foshan has river ports of its own but they handle coastal and feeder traffic rather than deep sea containers from Europe.
For anything large, yes. Foshan produces ceramics and glass at scale and people accumulate them. Big pieces need proper crating rather than blanket wrapping. Ask specifically what crating is included and what it costs, because a crew treating a two metre vase like a wardrobe will not deliver it whole.
Shunde, in the south east. It is the wealthiest district, holds most of the modern compound housing, and has wide roads and working service lifts. Nanhai, on the Guangzhou boundary, is the other easy option. Chancheng, the historic centre, is denser and slower.
Six to eight weeks door to door by sea. That covers roughly thirty five days sailing, clearance at Nansha, and the drive into Foshan. Air freight into Guangzhou or Shenzhen takes about ten days and is priced by weight rather than volume.
Often. Nansha serves Guangzhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan and Zhuhai as well as Foshan, so a mover running a weekly delta service can sometimes fit several deliveries into one window. Where your dates allow it, that usually shows up as a better price.
Yes, roughly June to September in the standard Guangdong pattern. Sailings get held, the port backs up, and a delayed container may need storage that was not in the original figure. If your date can move, spring or late autumn runs more predictably.
A valid residence permit, a complete inventory with values and your passport details. The goods should be used personal effects arriving as one shipment within the permitted window after you enter the country. In Foshan the line between used effects and new purchases is where most problems begin.
Only with an export certificate. Anything made before 1949 falls under the cultural relics rule, and redwood furniture and older ceramics are exactly the categories that catch people out. Have pieces assessed weeks before packing rather than on the day.
Send your collection address, your Foshan district, a rough idea of the volume and your date. A vetted mover from our network checks the route, the access and the paperwork, then comes back to you with the price.
Send your move detailsWe match international moving enquiries with vetted moving companies in the AGM Group network, each holding FIDI FAIM certification and BAR Overseas membership.
We are not a removal firm ourselves. We find you the one that suits your route, and you deal with them directly from there.