Xiamen (Haicang / Songyu)
Fujian's battery gateway, handling more than 90% of the province's lithium battery exports, with 10-minute online packaging appraisal for compliant products and the Taiwan Strait's winter monsoon on the doorstep.
Europe · sea freight from Xiamen
Shipping from Xiamen to Riga
Xiamen to Riga
South China Sea · Malacca Strait · Indian Ocean · Bab-el-Mandeb · Suez Canal · Strait of Gibraltar · English Channel · Danish Straits
- XiamenChina origin
- South China Sea
- Malacca Strait
- Indian Ocean
- Bab-el-Mandeb
- Suez Canal
- Strait of Gibraltar
- English Channel
- Danish Straits
- RigaLatvia
This route runs from Fujian's battery makers through Xiamen port, then follows a long Europe voyage extended through the Danish straits into the Baltic; at the far end is the port of Riga.
The Latvia side follows the EU battery and customs pre-filing rules. This page sets out 5 points specific to this route, how Anxin handles each one and which documents to prepare.
What we need to start
- Online packaging appraisal
- Taiwan Strait monsoon Oct–Apr
- Consignee EORI
- National producer registration
- EU declaration of conformity
Route profile
The Xiamen → Riga route in brief
Latvia
The EU Battery Regulation's national registration, CE marking and label duties, and the ICS2 entry summary before loading.
Where this route gets difficult
Where Xiamen → Riga shipments get held up: 5 points
Loading port first, then the sea leg, then Riga and the Latvia market.
- Origin port
Xiamen's fast appraisal needs matching data
Through the single window, Xiamen Customs now issues the lithium battery packaging use-appraisal certificate after automatic pre-review matching: roughly 10 minutes in a case reported in August 2026, compared with about half a day for the former on-site inspection. Only products that pass pre-review as compliant and valid get the fast path; mismatches return to inspection.
What Anxin does: We check the product data, UN38.3 summary and packaging codes against the application before it is submitted, so the certificate comes through pre-review rather than falling back to an on-site check.
- Origin port
Xiamen MSA's 'one ship, one plan' for large battery cargo
Xiamen MSA offers pre-review of key DG documents, a pre-loading meeting at which ship, cargo owner, terminal and agent agree deck stowage and emergency measures, and a 'one ship, one plan' checklist from gate-in to sailing. In June 2026 it reported 104 energy-storage containers of 36 tonnes each loaded for Houston on a multipurpose ship.
What Anxin does: We send the key documents for pre-review before the formal filing and bring the stowage and emergency details the meeting will ask for.
- Sea corridor
Ice-class restrictions in the northern Baltic
Every winter Finland's Transport Infrastructure Agency sets traffic restrictions for its ports: only ships of a stated ice class and deadweight get icebreaker assistance. Exemption requests must be in at least three working days before arrival, and the restrictions for the Baltic are published on baltice.org. A feeder without the right ice class may not be allowed to call at Riga in the restriction period.
What Anxin does: For winter shipments we check the restrictions in force on baltice.org for Riga and ask the carrier to confirm that the final feeder has the required ice class before we book.
- Import country
The ICS2 entry summary is due before loading in Xiamen
Sea cargo for the EU needs a complete Entry Summary Declaration under ICS2 Release 3, and for deep-sea containers it is due 24 hours before loading at the departure port. Carriers apply 'no manifest, no load', and a filing without a valid EORI number is rejected, so a data gap in Xiamen leaves the box on the quay.
What Anxin does: We collect the consignee's EORI number, an HS-level goods description and the house-bill parties at booking, and make sure the party filing the ENS has them before the Xiamen cut-off.
- Import country
CE marking and a declaration of conformity in the right language
Since 18 August 2024 a battery sold in the EU needs the CE marking and an EU declaration of conformity from its manufacturer. The declaration has to be available in the language Latvia requires, and the importer is the one who must check both before the goods are released for sale.
What Anxin does: We ask the manufacturer in China for the declaration of conformity and a photo of the CE marking on the battery or its packaging before loading, and pass them to the Latvia importer. We check that the documents exist and match the goods; we do not assess conformity.
Documents & compliance
What to have ready: Xiamen to Riga
Anxin reviews documents supplied by the shipper, manufacturer and importer; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.
Before loading in Xiamen
- Packaging appraisal data (product, UN38.3 summary, packaging codes) checked before single-window submission
- For ESS: carriage type (container ship or multipurpose), class 9 terminal and pre-voyage meeting confirmed
- Load plan showing even weight distribution (no more than 60% of the cargo weight in either half of the container length)
- EU declaration of conformity and CE marking photo from the manufacturer
- Importer name, trade name and postal address printed on battery or packaging
Carrier and voyage
- Transhipment port, feeder operator and feeder DG acceptance named on the booking
- UN 38.3 test summary for every cell and battery type
- Dangerous goods declaration with UN number (3480 / 3481 / 3090 / 3091), proper shipping name and packing instruction (P903, or P908/P911 for damaged)
For the importer in Latvia
- Label and QR-code status against the August 2026 and February 2027 dates
- Instructions and safety information in the language Latvia requires
Before you book
Match the details first
We line up UN numbers, model names and package counts across the Xiamen filings, the booking with the carrier and the documents for Latvia before the booking is confirmed, so that a mismatch is fixed at origin rather than discovered at Riga.
Carriers we book with
Our booking panel; availability on this lane and acceptance of the declared UN numbers are confirmed for each booking. It does not mean that a listed carrier runs a direct service on this route. Carrier choice depends on the trade lane, cargo classification and each carrier's dangerous-goods acceptance at booking. The final carrier is confirmed on the booking.
Risk & mitigation
What could go wrong from Xiamen to Riga, and who acts
| Risk | Where | Mitigation | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Application fails pre-review and falls back to on-site inspection | Xiamen Customs | Data checked against the application first | Anxin with the manufacturer |
| Feeder lacks the ice class required under winter restrictions | Northern Baltic, winter | Ice class confirmed at booking | Carrier, checked by Anxin |
| Declaration of conformity missing or not in the required language | Importer in Latvia | Declaration and CE photo collected before loading | Manufacturer / importer |
| ENS not filed and the box is refused at loading | Loading port, Xiamen | EORI and house-bill data passed to the filer at booking | Filer (carrier / forwarder) |
Questions
Xiamen → Riga: questions we are asked
24 hours before the container is loaded in China, not before it reaches Riga. Without it carriers do not load the box, and a filing without an EORI number is rejected.
Often, but it depends on the service. The Baltic is reached through the Danish straits, and we ask the carrier to name any transhipment port and confirm DG acceptance for each vessel.
For products that pass automatic pre-review, Xiamen Customs issues it through the single window; the case reported in August 2026 took about 10 minutes, against about half a day for the old on-site inspection. Products that do not pass pre-review still need inspection.
References
Regulations and port sources cited
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on batteries and waste batteries (ELI) (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- ICS2 Release 3: Prepare your business for sending goods to or via the EU by sea and inland waterways (European Commission, DG TAXUD (leaflet KP0423828ENN))
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 concerning batteries and waste batteries (Official Journal PDF) (EUR-Lex / Publications Office of the EU)
- Navigation through Danish waters (version 16.0, 2025) (Danish Maritime Authority)
- Finland's winter navigation 2025–2026 (Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency)
- Xiamen Customs smart supervision of lithium battery dangerous-goods packaging (Fujian Provincial Department of Industry and IT (from Fujian Daily))
- Faster clearance for Fujian lithium battery exports (Fujian Provincial Department of Industry and IT)
- Xiamen port energy-storage battery transport safety guide 2.0 (Fujian Provincial Department of Commerce)
- Xiamen MSA measures for energy-storage battery exports (Fujian Provincial Department of Commerce)
- Export dangerous goods packaging inspection: service guide (Chinese) (General Administration of Customs of China (Lanzhou Customs service guide))
Next step
From enquiry to import
- 1EnquiryCargo, origin, destination
- 2Documents checkUN 38.3, SDS, packing
- 3BookingAfter carrier acceptance
- 4HandoverAt Xiamen
- 5ImportClearance at Riga
Prefer chat? Chat on WhatsApp (+86 151 4514 5178)
After you send it
We check carrier acceptance for Xiamen → Riga before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.
All destinations from Xiamen · Latvia ports
