Lithium battery freight focus Air · Sea · Land assessment Document-first planning
Shipment Status & Support

North America · sea freight from Dalian

Shipping from Dalian to Astoria

Dalian to Astoria

Yellow Sea · Korea Strait · Sea of Japan · Tsugaru Strait · North Pacific

Sea corridor illustration: Dalian to Astoria, United States Simplified map with a curved corridor from Dalian via Yellow Sea, Korea Strait, Sea of Japan, Tsugaru Strait, North Pacific to Astoria. Illustration only; not a vessel track or schedule. CHINA Korea StraitTsugaru StraitNorth Pacific DalianCHINA ORIGIN AstoriaUNITED STATES DalianBOHAI SEAYELLOW SEASHANDONGDEPARTURE AREA
  1. DalianChina origin
  2. Yellow Sea
  3. Korea Strait
  4. Sea of Japan
  5. Tsugaru Strait
  6. North Pacific
  7. AstoriaUnited States
Geographic corridor illustration only, not a vessel track, port-call list or sailing schedule. The loading terminal, carrier, transshipment and dates are confirmed per shipment.

This route runs from Liaoning through Dalian's Dayaowan terminals, then follows the open North Pacific, where weather is the main risk; at the far end is the port of Astoria.

The United States applies Section 301 and UFLPA scrutiny to Chinese lithium batteries and wants its manifest data before loading. 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

  • Winter ice & spring fog
  • Dalian Dayaowan export
  • Supply-chain tracing file
  • HTS code 8507.60
  • ISF filer
Ask about this route United States ports from Dalian

Route profile

The Dalian → Astoria route in brief

Sea corridor

Transpacific (North Pacific)

No canal or Red Sea passage, but a North Pacific crossing where winter storms have collapsed container stacks.

Import country

United States

US entry hinges on filings made in China (ISF and AMS), a traceable lithium supply chain and a road leg that is regulated as a hazmat move.

Blue harbour crane booms above a quay building in Dalian harbour
A container ship under way off the Guatemalan coast

Where this route gets difficult

5 pain points from Dalian to Astoria

Loading port first, then the sea leg, then Astoria and the United States market.

  1. Origin port

    Dalian's MSA says misdeclared battery cargo is common

    According to Dayaowan MSA in April 2024, lithium battery cargo was often under-declared or misdeclared because the rules are complicated. It responded with a dedicated desk and hotline, priority for EV batteries, and AI-based document comparison intended to reduce container openings, which means any mismatch between the declaration and its supporting papers gets flagged.

    What Anxin does: We reconcile the UN number, classification, packing group, quantity and SDS across every document before filing, which is exactly what an automated comparison will test.

  2. Sea corridor

    Winter storms with hurricane-force winds

    NOAA's Ocean Prediction Center found hurricane-force winds (64 knots and above) in North Pacific mid-latitude storms in every month from October to April, peaking in December, with 15 to 23 such storms per season in its 2001–2004 records. They are not typhoons, so they do not follow the tropical calendar.

    What Anxin does: For October–April sailings we check blocking and bracing on stuffing photos before sealing and confirm the full DG data are on the manifest.

  3. Import country

    UFLPA: lithium became a high-priority sector in August 2025

    DHS added lithium to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act high-priority sectors in August 2025. By then CBP had stopped more than 16,700 shipments for UFLPA examination. For battery importers the practical effect is that CBP can ask where cells, cathode and lithium compounds came from, and a shipment waits while the importer answers.

    What Anxin does: We tell the importer at quotation stage that supply-chain tracing may be requested, and keep manufacturer names and addresses consistent across invoice, packing list and ISF so the paper trail does not contradict itself.

  4. Import country

    Unentered battery containers go to General Order after 15 days

    A container landed at Astoria without a release permit may stay at the terminal only until the 15th calendar day. The carrier must then notify CBP and a bonded general order warehouse, which moves and stores the goods at the consignee's risk and expense (19 CFR 4.37). Not every general order warehouse can take Class 9 battery cargo, and where specialized storage is missing the port director decides where it goes.

    What Anxin does: We check with the importer's broker that the entry can be filed before arrival at Astoria, and chase any missing invoice or HTS detail while the ship is still at sea.

  5. Import country

    CPSC certificate data now filed at entry

    Since 8 July 2026, importers of consumer products that are subject to a CPSC certification requirement must electronically file the certificate data at entry; goods entered from a Foreign Trade Zone follow on 8 January 2027. Whether a battery-powered product is caught depends on the rules that apply to that product, not on the battery alone.

    What Anxin does: We ask whether the goods are consumer products that need a CPSC certificate and, if so, who files it, so that the question is settled before the goods arrive.

Locator map of Astoria, United StatesAstoria
Locator map in the same projection as the corridor map; the dot marks the listed port position (46.20°N, 123.83°W).
Containers on rail wagons next to a terminal in Vancouver

Documents & compliance

What to have ready: Dalian to Astoria

These documents come from the shipper, the manufacturer and the importer. Anxin checks them against each other; it does not issue test reports, safety data sheets or import certificates.

Before loading in Dalian

  • UN number, class, quantity and SDS reconciled across all documents before the Dalian filing
  • 'Made in China' marking on articles or containers checked on photos
  • Safety data sheet and dangerous goods safe-carriage declaration for the MSA cargo report
  • Customs packaging use-appraisal result for the dangerous goods packaging (with the maker's performance appraisal)
  • Container packing certificate signed by a certified packing inspector after supervised stuffing

Carrier and voyage

  • Stuffing photos before, during and after packing, checked for blocking and bracing
  • 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 import into United States

  • Supply-chain tracing file for cells and lithium inputs, in case of a UFLPA request
  • ISF filer named; stuffing location and consolidator sent right after packing
  • HTSUS classification from the broker (8507.60.0010 vs .0020 decides the Section 301 line)
A shrink-wrapped lithium-ion battery pack for a small electric vehicle
Before you book

Match the details first

We line up UN numbers, model names and package counts across the Dalian filings, the booking with the carrier and the documents for United States before the booking is confirmed, so that a mismatch is fixed at origin rather than discovered at Astoria.

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

Risk table for Dalian → Astoria

RiskWhereMitigationWho acts
Declaration flagged by document comparison; container openedDayaowanCross-document reconciliation before filingAnxin with the declarant
Heavy-weather damage in a winter stormNorth Pacific, Oct–AprCINS stuffing checksPacking site, checked by Anxin
UFLPA detention pending supply-chain evidenceCBP at entryImporter prepares tracing documents before shipping; consistent manufacturer data on all documentsImporter

Questions

Common questions on the Dalian → Astoria route

Yes. Under 49 CFR 171.25(b)(3), SP188 packages of UN3480 or UN3090 need the 'FORBIDDEN FOR TRANSPORT ABOARD PASSENGER AIRCRAFT' marking or a Cargo Aircraft Only label, and so do packages of batteries packed with or contained in equipment above 5 kg net. We check for it on carton photos before stuffing.

Weather is the main risk on this crossing: NOAA recorded hurricane-force North Pacific storms from October to April, most often in December. We tighten the packing checks for those sailings.

Dayaowan MSA reported in 2024 that omissions and misdeclarations of lithium battery cargo were frequent because the rules are complex, and it uses AI document comparison. Consistent data across the declaration, SDS and packing documents is the main defence.

References

Where these points come from

  1. 19 CFR 134.11: Country of origin marking required (Legal Information Institute (e-CFR text))
  2. 19 CFR 149.2 – Importer security filing: requirement and time of transmission (eCFR / CBP)
  3. Section 301 Modifications Determination (Federal Register notice, Sept 2024) (Office of the U.S. Trade Representative)
  4. 49 CFR 171.25 – Additional requirements for the use of the IMDG Code (eCFR / PHMSA)
  5. Update: Certificates of Compliance and eFiling (U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission)
  6. DHS designates steel, copper, lithium, caustic soda and red dates as UFLPA high-priority sectors (19 Aug 2025) (U.S. Department of Homeland Security)
  7. Hurricane force extratropical cyclones observed using QuikSCAT (Mariners Weather Log 49-1) (NOAA Ocean Prediction Center)
  8. Export dangerous goods packaging inspection: service guide (Chinese) (General Administration of Customs of China (Lanzhou Customs service guide))

Next step

From enquiry to import

  1. 1EnquiryCargo, origin, destination
  2. 2Documents checkUN 38.3, SDS, packing
  3. 3BookingAfter carrier acceptance
  4. 4HandoverAt Dalian
  5. 5ImportClearance at Astoria
Each step is confirmed in writing; an enquiry does not create a booking.

Ask about Dalian → Astoria

Origin and destination are filled in; add the cargo facts you have.

Sending this form starts a review; it does not confirm carriage. Full enquiry form

After you send it

We check carrier acceptance for Dalian → Astoria before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.

All destinations from Dalian · United States ports

Trailers backed up to the loading docks of a warehouse

Need Dalian → Astoria reviewed?

Share the cargo facts; we review the route in writing.

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