Key information
According to the Yunnan Provincial Government Electronic Information Portal (posted on October 16, 2026), Thien Bao border gate in Ma Lap Pha district, Van Son district, Yunnan province has just been accepted by Chinese Customs for two designated supervision zones for imported goods:
- The monitoring area designates imported chilled seafood: area of about 262.5 m², announced inspection capacity of over 30,000 tons/year.
- Surveillance zones designate live aquatic animals used for food: area of about 237.1 m², with inspection area and detention area, announced capacity of over 80,000 tons/year.
With two new zones, Thien Bao now has four types of designated monitoring zones: fruit, grain, chilled seafood and live aquatic animals. This border gate is located opposite Thanh Thuy border gate on the Vietnamese side.
Meaning for seafood export businesses
Live seafood such as lobsters, crabs, and eels have so far mainly passed through border gates in the Guangxi area. The new surveillance area at Thien Bao opens up another official route option to the Yunnan market and the Southwest provinces of China.
However, there are two points businesses need to note:
- The day the supervision area officially receives the first shipment and The species list is processed here has not been clearly announced in the source. Enterprises should carefully ask their import partners or declaring units before changing routes.
- Information is available at local authority source level; The list of designated monitoring zones on the Chinese Customs website (customs.gov.cn) has not yet been reconciled.
The new border gate does not change the conditions of the shipment
Regardless of which border gate it passes through, a batch of seafood officially exported to China still needs:
- The facility has a valid registration code, correct product group. The list of permitted establishments can be looked up on the Chinese Customs system.
- Species are in the allowed list imported from Vietnam.
- Quarantine certificate, packaging, declaration form match the registration code: facility name, address, code must be consistent on all documents.
Things to do before changing routes
- Check the registration code status of your facility and the supplier.
- Confirm with the Chinese importer the date of receipt of goods and the species processed at Thien Bao.
- Review sample documents to ensure information matches before the first batch.
Source: Yunnan Provincial Government E-Portal, "天保口岸两类进境产品指定监管场地通过验收" (October 16, 2026): https://www.yn.gov.cn/ztgg/yhbmhsfw/bjzsdt/202610/t20261016_331689.html. Reference information, businesses compare original documents before applying.
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