International transit
Shipping from China to South Sudan via Kenya
China is the largest single origin for goods reaching South Sudan through Mombasa. This page covers the route and the customs process; if you want our published door to door prices, they are on the China to Juba page.
Looking for prices? We publish door to door DDP rates for air and consolidated sea freight from China, with duty and taxes included, on the China to Juba cargo page. This page explains the route and the customs process behind it, which matters most if you are clearing in your own name.
The route
Goods load at a Chinese port, usually Shenzhen or Yantian, Guangzhou or Nansha, Ningbo, Shanghai, Qingdao or Xiamen, and sail to Mombasa. There is normally a transhipment somewhere in the Gulf or at a regional hub. At Mombasa the container is discharged, placed under a transit declaration and trucked north through Kenya and Uganda to Nimule and on to Juba.
| Route | Container size | Cargo origin | FCL transport rate | Currency | Transit time | Container handling conditions | Port charges | Customs brokerage | Deposit & detention | Empty return | Rate validity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mombasa to Juba | 20ft | Kenyan export | Contact us for current rates | USD | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | |
| Mombasa to Juba | 20ft | International transit | Contact us for current rates | USD | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | |
| Mombasa to Juba | 40ft | Kenyan export | Contact us for current rates | USD | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | |
| Mombasa to Juba | 40ft | International transit | Contact us for current rates | USD | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us | Confirm with us |
FCL or LCL from China
FCL gives you a full container in your own name. Cleaner, faster to clear and cheaper per unit once you have the volume. You control the stuffing and the seal.
LCL consolidates your cargo with other people's at origin. It is the right answer for smaller orders, but it involves deconsolidation at destination, and the charges at that end can be a significant share of the total.
Sort the Certificate of Conformity at purchase order stage
This is the most common failure point on the China lane, because Chinese suppliers vary enormously in how familiar they are with South Sudan's requirements.
South Sudan runs a pre-export verification of conformity programme. Goods within its scope need a Certificate of Conformity obtained in the country of export, before shipment, and the certificate is required for customs clearance at destination.
What that means in practice when you buy from China:
- Establish at quotation stage whether your goods are within scope
- Write the certification obligation into the purchase order explicitly
- Allow time in the schedule for inspection or testing before the booking
- Get a copy of the certificate yourself; do not rely on the supplier sending it onward
Full detail on the Certificate of Conformity
Documents from a Chinese supplier
Check these before the container is sealed, not after it sails:
- Commercial invoice showing a realistic transaction value, in the currency you paid
- Packing list matching the actual pieces, weights and marks
- Bill of lading naming the correct consignee and notify party
- Certificate of origin, where you need one
- Certificate of Conformity, where the goods are within scope
- Product-specific documents: test reports, material certificates, MSDS for anything chemical
A common and avoidable problem is an invoice value that doesn't stand up at valuation. South Sudanese customs assess value under the Customs Service Act. An unrealistically low invoice invites a valuation dispute, which costs far more in delay than it ever saves in duty.
How valuation and classification work
Watch for regulated goods
Chinese consignments frequently contain items that are regulated even when the buyer does not think of them that way:
- Lithium batteries, including batteries built into devices, which are regulated for transport
- Electrical goods and anything needing safety certification
- Cosmetics, food and pharmaceuticals, which carry additional sector controls
- Chemicals and aerosols
- Branded goods, where you need to be sure of your supply chain
Declare them properly. A misdeclared consignment is a far worse problem than a correctly declared one.
Get a quotation
Tell us what you are shipping
Send us the cargo description, weight or volume, and the pickup and delivery addresses. We reply with a written rate, the transit time and the documents you will need.
What we handle
We take the shipment from Mombasa onwards: port clearance, transit declaration and bond, container collection, the road leg to Juba, border formalities and destination clearance. If you want the sea leg arranged as well, tell us the port of loading and the volume and we will quote it.