Shipping Container to Dubai: Full Container Load (FCL) Import

This page is for traders, distributors and factories that already import by sea. You know your supplier and your product. Above all, what you want is a forwarder that books on time, gets the papers right and keeps your containers out of storage.

That is exactly our work. We are a Dubai freight forwarder with our head office in Al Sabkha Tower. We also run our own offices in China, Türkiye (Bursa), Germany (Hamburg), Kabul and Herat. As a result, the people who book your container at origin answer to the same company that clears it in Dubai.

Looking to buy an empty container rather than ship one? See our container trading page.

For example, these are typical port-to-port windows for a shipping container to Dubai and the rest of the UAE. Door-to-door takes longer, because collection, customs and delivery add time at both ends.

Not sure which size you need? First, send us the packing list. Then we will tell you how many boxes, and which type, fit your monthly volume.

1. Quote and bookingyou send the shipment details; we confirm the sailing, the routing and the free time with the carrier
2. Empty container to your supplierthe line releases an empty box at origin; your supplier loads, seals and returns it to the terminal before the cut-off
3. Export clearance and bill of ladingthe export declaration is filed at origin; the carrier issues the bill of lading after loading
4. Document check while at seawe check the invoice, packing list and certificate of origin against the bill of lading before the ship arrives
5. Delivery order and customs declarationon arrival we collect the delivery order from the line and file the import declaration with Dubai Customs
6. Duty, VAT and releaseduty and VAT are paid through the customs system, then the container is released
7. Delivery and empty returna truck takes the container to your warehouse; after unloading, the empty goes back to the line’s depot within the free days

• Bill of ladingoriginal, telex release or sea waybill
• Commercial invoicevalue, currency, Incoterm and HS codes
• Packing listpackages, weights and measurements
• Certificate of originneeded for clearance and for any trade-agreement duty saving
• Delivery orderissued by the shipping line in Dubai once its charges are paid
• Importer’s trade licence and customs codethe goods clear under the importer’s Dubai Customs registration
• Permits for controlled goodsfor example food, cosmetics, chemicals or telecom items

In addition, commercial invoices of AED 10,000 or more for mainland imports need attestation by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, free-zone and transit imports are exempt. For more detail, see our customs clearance in Dubai guide.

Most goods entering the UAE mainland pay 5% customs duty on the CIF value. In other words, CIF means the goods plus insurance plus freight to the UAE port. On top of that, 5% VAT is charged on the CIF value plus the duty.

There are exceptions. Some foodstuffs and raw materials are exempt, while alcohol and tobacco pay much more. In addition, goods of GCC origin usually enter duty free. The UAE also has trade agreements, such as the CEPA with India, that can lower the duty when you hold the right certificate of origin.

Finally, where the goods go matters. Goods entering a free zone or passing through in transit do not pay UAE duty at that point. Therefore, decide the entry type before the container sails, not after it lands.

Every line gives a set number of free days once your shipping container lands in Dubai. After that, however, two daily charges start.

So how do you keep these at zero? First, use a telex release or sea waybill so you are not waiting for paper originals. Next, send us the documents before the ship arrives. Finally, if you ship every month, ask us about extra free days at the port.

Once customs releases the container, we book a truck from the port to your warehouse in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi or a free zone. You can then unload at your site, and afterwards we return the empty. Alternatively, the goods can be unloaded into a bonded or free-zone warehouse run by a licensed operator. Also, tell us your unloading address and opening hours when you book, so that the truck arrives on the right day.

Many containers that reach Jebel Ali are not for the UAE at all. Instead, the goods move on to the GCC, Afghanistan or Central Asia. In that case a transit or re-export entry avoids paying UAE duty on goods that only pass through.

In fact, Afghanistan and Central Asia are our core lanes, with our own offices in Kabul and Herat. See our pages for Dubai to Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. If the goods need to change containers on the way, we arrange cross stuffing in Dubai.

We do not publish rates for a shipping container to Dubai, because ocean freight moves every week. Instead, these are the things that set your price:

• Origin port and routingdirect sailing or transhipment, and the port of discharge in the UAE
• Container type and weightreefers and special boxes cost more, and heavy loads may need a 20ft
• Volume and regularityregular monthly volume helps us plan space and equipment
• Incotermwho pays which leg; see our Incoterms guide
• Commodity and HS codethese decide duty, permits and any special handling
• Delivery addressport pick-up, a Dubai warehouse, or onward transit