Yesterday afternoon I got a call from my freight forwarder—one of our air shipments to Riyadh got held up by customs. The value? Only about 3000 RMB, just electronics accessories. But customs wouldn't release it. Why? Missing the electronic Certificate of Origin (e-CO).
Honestly, I didn't take this new rule seriously at first. Since June 1st, Saudi customs has mandated e-CO for all commercial imports, including low-value items under SAR 1,000 that used to be exempt. In my experience, a lot of sellers still don't know this change.
So what do you do? First, make sure your supplier or factory issues an e-CO before shipping. If it's your own factory, apply online via CCPIT or China Customs. If you're a trader, use a third-party certification agency—costs around 150-300 RMB per CO. Note: it must be an electronic PDF with a QR code. Saudi customs scans it to verify authenticity.
For example, before you could just fill in an invoice and clear customs. Not anymore. The system now automatically cross-checks the e-CO with the invoice. Any mismatch in product description, quantity, or value triggers a hold. And clearing agents will charge you extra—anywhere from $200 to $500. That's not a fine, it's detention and handling fees.
Practical tip: ask the supplier to send you the e-CO before shipping, and double-check everything. HS code must be correct, amount must match the invoice. Better yet, use dual-name CO (your supplier and your company) to avoid hassles with export tax refunds. My own team has already added e-CO as a mandatory step in our SOP with the freight forwarder.
Honestly, this hits COD sellers the hardest. If your parcel is held, logistics costs double, and the buyer might just refuse delivery. Can you afford that risk?