What is the best method to ship items from Vietnam to Germany cheaply but with a good carrier?

Let’s see the best transportation methods according to the nature/volume/weight/class of goods. DocShipper can send your effects by sea from Vietnam to Germany. We can also take care of customs clearance, delivery, loading and unloading and packing if required. According to your critters, our moving consultant will analyze and determine the most suitable solution.

There are two possible solutions to send your goods from Vietnam to Germany, sea freight and air freight. As you can guess, because of the sea, there is no rail freight possible.

We are going to see these two solutions.

Sea freight shipping from Vietnam to Germany

Overview - Ocean cargo from Vietnam to Germany

Sea freight is the most common method of international transport. It’s the most widely used method in the world.

Shipping company offering services from Vietnam to Germany ports 

Here are few examples :

Port of Hamburg

The port of Hamburg is at the bottom of the Elbe estuary at 144 kilometres from the North Sea, it is specialising in container traffic. Its location in centre of Germany allows the port of Hamburg to handle most of the national container traffic.

 The port of Hamburg is the most important commercial port in Germany. He is also the third in Europe, after Rotterdam (Netherlands) and Antwerp (Belgium).

Port of Bremerhaven

The port of Bremerhaven is the second most important port in Germany. It has direct access to the North Sea. It is therefore possible for you to send your goods to Bremerhaven.

Port of Bremen

 The port of Bremen is the third most important port in Germany. It is managed by bremenports GmbH & Co KG. In 2011, 60 million tonnes of products passed through this port. This includes 6 million containers and 2.1 million cars.

Because of its closeness to German car factories, the port of Bremen is the world's leading port for car transport.

Should I ship by consolidation or full container from Vietnam to Germany?

LCL - Less Than Container Load

(also known as consolidation) It's when several shippers are group in the same container. This makes it possible to send goods for less than an FCL (Full Container Load. If you don't have the necessary volume to fill an FCL, ship your goods by LCL can be a good option.

FCL - Full Container Load

FCL is an international standard. It exists two types of containers: 20' and 40'. FCL is a very good way to export products from Vietnam, especially if you have a large volume to ship.

How long does it take to ship from Vietnam to Germany by sea freight ?

Hamburg Bremhaven Bremen
Da Nang 31 days 30 days 30 days
Saigon 29 days 29 days 29 days
Ba Ngoi 31 days 30 days 30 days
Cam Pha 31 days 31 days 31 days

Please keep in mind that the transit time takes into consideration only the freight. Indeed, pick up, delivery, loading unloading aren’t take into consideration.

 

How much does it cost to transport a container from Vietnam to Germany?

Note that ocean freight is the most prevalent transfer method used by German importers anyway. Indeed, for large and regular shipments, it is the most cost-effective option.

As a result, most of the freight is transferred by ocean freight from Vietnam to Germany. If your shipment exceeds 1CBM / 100kgs, air freight isn’t the good solution, it will be too expensive.

Most of the time, sea freight is the cheapest way to send your products. This is the case for sending them from Vietnam to Germany.

Price depends on many factors:  POD, POL, Carrier, nature of goods, monthly price update. We quote case by case cause of price changes.

Special sea freight services 

Reefer container from Vietnam to Germany

We understand that some of our clients have very specific needs. Certain desire to send foodstuffs. That is why we are committed to guarantee the transport of containers at a controlled temperature in order to maintain the cold chain.

Docshipper will advise you, if necessary, and then reserve it for you.

 

Roro/Bulk/OOG from Vietnam to Germany

RORO:

A Ro-Ro is a vessel used to transport, among other things, vehicles, loaded by one or more ramps. They are also known as Ro-Ro, from the English word roll-on/roll-off meaning literally "roll, roll, roll", to distinguish them from the usual cargo ships where products are loaded vertically by cranes.

BULK:

Bulk products are products transported directly into the ship's hold or into the facilities provided for that purpose. A distinction is made in this case between bulk products and general cargo. A distinction is made between bulk cargoes and general cargoes: solid bulk cargoes : (such as coal, ferrous and non-ferrous ores) liquids in bulk: (petroleum and petroleum products).

OOG

OOG (Out of Gauge) cargoes are a special category of products. Because of their dimensions or weight, for example, some goods cannot be loaded in traditional containers. These types of cargo are usually loaded onto a platform or trailer for transport.

Air freight shipping from Vietnam to Germany

Overview – Classic vs Express air freight 

The length of the shipment is the aspect that makes all the difference between these two shipping methods. An express shipment takes about 4 days whereas a classic shipment takes 1 week. Customs clearance is also fastest for express shipment. These two methods will in any case be faster than a shipment via sea freight.

 

What is the difference between volumetric and gross weight?

*To consider the density of your shipment, two methods are used to sort out the chargeable weight of your goods.

The two calculations below are performed. The more important result will be consider.

Should I choose a Classic Air freight from Vietnam to Germany?

Which airlines company should you ship with ?

  • Lufthansa Cargo, a subsidiary of the German company Deutsche Lufthansa, is in charge of managing air freight transport. It is possible to charter an entire aircraft or use Lufthansa's regular routes.
  • Vietnam Airlines (in Vietnamese Hãng hàng không Quốc gia Việt Nam) is the national airline of Vietnam. It operates domestic and international flights from its two main hubs at Tan International Airport Sơn Nhất in Ho Chi Minh City and Nội Bài International Airport in Hanoi.

Transit time Door to Door from Vietnam to Germany by air freight ?

For a door to door operation, you should count at about 6 to 8 days depending on the time of the week and the period.

How much does it cost to ship a parcel from Vietnam to Australia?

Price depends on many factors:  POD, POL, Carrier, nature of goods, monthly price update. We quote case by case cause of price changes. Do not hesitate to contact our experts to get a detailed quote.

Should I choose an Express Air freight from Vietnam to Germany ?

Express service – Perfect solution for small package

Express services are the ideal solution if your products weigh less than 100 kg. If your products weigh more than 100 kg, it will be too expensive. However, we can give advices you on this matter

How long does it take for a package to be shipped from Vietnam to Germany? 

Thanks to our good relations with express shipping companies and our internal customs department, we can offer you good prices and faster delivery times. Thanks to the fast customs clearance process (automated), you should count no more than 4 days for the all process.

express-courier logo

 

How much does an Express service cost from Vietnam to Germany 

*To quote your express shipment, a different method than gross and volumetric weight is applied. For express freight, you must consider that 1 CBM = 200 kgs.  

It is impossible to provide price as it depends on so many factors (same as classic air freight) it is why we used to quote case by case. Please, advise more information about the operation, and then we will revert to you with a quotation. We are working with these companies for so long. Therefore, the price we can get from them are very low. If you ask them directly, you will have some bad surprises.

Major airports to ship in Germany

Frankfurt Airport (FRA)

Frankfurt Airport is the most important airport in Germany and the third largest in Europe. This allows it to be perfectly integrated into international air freight transport. It is also the hub of the country's biggest airline, Lufthansa.

Hamburg Airport (HAM)

Hamburg Airport  is located 8.5km north of Hamburg, which allows simplified deliveries to the centre of Hamburg.

Berlin Airports (SFX) and (TXL)

You can import freight into Germany thanks to these two airports. Their proximity to Berlin can be a great advantage for you, because they are near to a great hub.

Munich Airport (MUC)

The airport is also a major hub for Lufthansa Cargo. It is located 28 km north of Munich but is well served, so you can still easily reach it to pick up your cargo.

Door-to-door transfer from Vietnam to the Germany

Door-to-door method overview

You are looking for the most complete and top-of-the-range service? Take the door-to-door service. Therefore, we take care of all the process from the pickup address to the delivery address. We will pick up your shipping in Vietnam (with Packing / Loading if necessary) and make the delivery in Germany (with Unloading / Unpacking if necessary).

DocShipper – Door to Door specialist  

The comfort provided by our door-to-door services is really appreciated by our customers, thanks to our best price and high quality services. Besides, note that we are responsible for every phase of the transfer, and we are well skilled and proficient in this domain. We can therefore manage the entire logistics chain in order to provide you with the best possible protection against possible problems.

Customs clearance in Germany for products imported from Vietnam 

How much will I pay ? 

Knowing the precise cost of freight and customs clearance is very important for you, to know how much you are going to paid. Germany, as each member of the World Trade Organisation the HS code is used (composed of 6 numbers). the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System. This numbers defines the nature of your good (by ID).

Here is the composition of an HS Code

hs code of a pineapple

Calculate applicable tariff with the HS code

As Germany is a member of the European Union, EU customs duties apply. To import products into the European Union, customs duties must be paid on entry into any of the countries of the Union. Once these customs duties have been paid, the goods can move freely in any country of the European Union.

You found your HS Code ? It's now time to check how many taxes you will have to pay on your shipment. You just need to do the following steps :

Go to the portail of taxation and customs of European Union you should reach a page who looks like this :

UE custom clearance

As our example on the screenshot, fill 2 requested informations :

  • Your HS Code
  • Origin of goods

You will come to a page like this:

UE custom clearance 2

Scroll down, search for your product, and click on the HS code to get the duty information:

UE custom clearance 3

 

Check the duties and taxes applied on your product

In our example, European customs charge duties as 5.80% on pineapple coming from Vietnam :

Customs clearance process in Europe

Customs declaration

In order to make the customs declaration to clear your goods entering the European Union, you will use the Single Administrative Document (SAD). This document simplifies the process and has many advantages like:

  • ensuring openness in administrative requirements
  • reduce administrative documentation
  • reduce the amount of requested information and so simplify the process
  • standardize and harmonize data

This document can be use for:

  • export
  • import
  • transit where the new computerised transit system (NCTS) is not yet used
  • warehouses
  • temporary import
  • inward and outward processing

If you want more informations about the Single Administrative Document you can have a look on the import procedure section from European Union customs website.

 

Customs contact

import-custom-clearance-process

What are the Licenses required (import & export)?

Import license 

In order to import in European Union, or in Germany, you do not need import licence. But you can need some permits (depending on the nature of goods and his value) to avoid trouble with customs. Besides, an importer needs to ensure that the goods are well labelled and that it can not be a problem.

Licensing authorities also publish updates on current concerns. However, this does not always reflect current customs legislation.

 

Required documents 

Single administrative document (SAD)

The single administrative is the only one required for written customs declaration.

Here is a single blank administrative document.

single administrative document

 

The original invoice

The invoice is used to formalize a transaction between the buyer and the seller. It also makes it possible to know the value of the good, and thus to know the price on which the customs duties will be calculated.

  • Name and address of the importer and exporter
  • Date of issue
  • Invoice number
  • Description of the goods (as name, quality, etc.)
  • Unit of measure (Kg, Lbs,etc.)
  • Quantity of goods
  • Unit value
  • Total invoice value
  • Currency of payment
  • Method of payement
  • Date of payment
  • The terms of delivery
  • Means of transport

 

Freight Documents (Transport Documentation)

Such as:

  • FIATA Bill of Lading
  • Air Waybill (AWB)
  • ATA Carnet
  • Rail Waybill (CIM)
  • Road Waybill (CMR)
  • Bill of Lading
  • TIR Carnet

 

The packing list

The packing list is summing up all the items included in your shipment.

 

Freight insurance

The insurance invoice is only required when the insurance is not mentioned in the original invoice.

 

Prohibited & restricted items 

Certai products are prohibited for import into the European Union. Further import permits are required, in particular due to health reasons.

Restricted items :

  • Plants
  • Live animal
  • Seafood product
  • Dangerous and chemicals product (some need licence and some are prohibited)

 

Prohibited items :

  • Counterfeit or pirated products.

 

Trade agreement 

A draft bilateral agreement is currently under way, known as EVFTA. This project aims to eliminate 99% of customs duties between Vietnam and EU member countries, including Germany. This would greatly enhance trade between the two countries. For more information on this agreement you can go here.

EVFAT

 

Trade relationship 

The European Union has very good trade relations with the United States, China and Switzerland. Vietnam is not the main trading partner.

 

Additional services 

Our warehousing services 

We have warehouses in Vietnam, notably in the ports of Saigon, Haiphong and Quy Nhon. These warehouses are modern and perfectly secured. We can therefore receive your goods in Vietnam and store them, if necessary, in our warehouses.

Storage service in Germany

Thanks to our local network based on Germany, we can store your goods on the country for cheap. We also have warehouses close to the largest ports in Germany.

 

Our packing/unpacking services 

Overview 

Our experience enables us to provide you with the most suitable packaging for transporting your goods. Indeed a good packaging is necessary to avoid damaging your goods. Thus, we will propose you the best alternative corresponding to your needs and your budget.

 

Packing material 

Carton box

The best cartons boxes will be used for your belongings such as relocation. It will be thick and unfolded (for better protection against potential damage). Our packaging techniques will be adapted according to your goods.

 

Palletization 

It will be a much safer way to get your goods into the container. We have every pallet size available for you, if your supplier is not able to carry out this operation.

 

Wooden boxes 

Once again, this method aims to facilitate transportation by protecting your belongings. The wooden crate is intended for rather bulky objects. There are wooden crates and wooden chests. The crate will be preferable if you have to place it in a certain direction. Otherwise, you may as well use the crate. Docshipper is able to manufacture those that will fit your goods and your needs.

 

Packing very important for the insurance 

Thanks to our experience and professionalism, it is very rare that your goods are damaged during transport, as is often the case with sea and air shipments.

 

Freight insurance 

How much does a freight insurance cost ?

The amount of your insurance policy will be based on the value of your goods.

The following calculation is made in general : (freight value + product value) * 2-3%.

Of course, these rates depend on the insurance companies, the goods being transported, etc.

 

Supplier management in Vietnam 

Control quality in Vietnam 

Our goal is for you to find the best products. We will therefore contact your supplier to check your products (their condition and especially their packaging). Good packaging prevents your products from being damaged during transport.

We guarantee smooth shipments. For this we check all aspects of your products, such as standards, HS code. This is also easy because our teams speak Vietnamese, French and English fluently.

 

3PL Services in Vietnam 

Order fulfilment/Packing & labelling in Vietnam 

Completely mastering the supply chain is very complicated. For electronic devices, for example, quality and  packaging are very important. This is why we will accompany you during all the steps of the supply chain.

Last kilometer delivery 

Thanks to our networks and the relationship in Germany and in Vietnam, we can guarantee you a delivery at your residence in Vietnam or in Germany and a professional service of delivery and unloading and unpacking.

Shipping personal effects from Vietnam 

Excess baggage 

If you come back from your trip and you bought too much on the spot, you probably won't be able to carry it on the plane. We can therefore deliver your extra belongings to you.

The solution? DocShipper and its express delivery will allow you to receive your excess baggage quickly at home in Australia.

Moving service from Vietnam to Germany

If you have problems with customs clearance, packing or sotcking, we can take care of it for you. Please see our relocation services page: Moving services

 

DocShipper | Your dedicated freight forwarder in Vietnam !

 

Due to our attractive pricing, many customers trust our services and we thanks them. Stop overpaying the services and save money with our tailored package matching will all type of shipment, from small volume to full container, let us find the best and cost-effective solution.

Communication is important, which is why we strive to discuss in the most suitable way for you!