China is Senegal's leading supplier: according to the national statistics agency, it accounted for 17 percent of the country's imports in September 2025, and more than 11 percent in October and November. From large distributors to traders ordering on online platforms, everyone imports from China. And everyone has a story of a stuck container, a lost parcel or an unexpected customs bill.
This article focuses on the Senegalese end of the chain; for the wider region, see our guide on shipping from China to West Africa. Here are the steps of an import from China into Dakar, and the traps at each one.
1. Choose the Incoterm
Chinese suppliers often quote ex works (EXW), free on board (FOB) or cost and freight (CFR, CIF). The choice decides who organises transport, and therefore who controls it.
EXW: you handle everything from the factory, including Chinese export formalities. Hard to do from a distance.
FOB: the supplier delivers the goods on board at the Chinese port and your forwarder takes over. It is often the best balance: you choose the carrier and know the real freight cost.
CFR or CIF: the supplier chooses the carrier. Simple, but destination charges can bring surprises, since you did not negotiate them.
2. Full container or groupage
A full container makes sense once your volume roughly fills it, or when the goods are fragile or valuable.
Groupage (LCL) combines several importers' goods in one container, consolidated in a warehouse in China. You pay per freight unit: the tonne or the cubic metre, whichever is greater. It is the solution for small volumes.
Groupage has a trap few importers know about. The shipping line issues a single bill of lading, the master bill, in the consolidator's name; each importer receives a house bill issued by the consolidator. If another importer's file in the same container is incomplete, or the consolidator does not pay the carrier, the whole container can wait. Choose a consolidator used to Dakar, with reliable correspondents on the ground.
3. The pre-import declaration
Since 1 May 2024, any import with an FOB value of at least 500,000 CFA francs, and every container whatever its value, requires a pre-import declaration filed on the ORBUS platform. File it before loading: discovering it on arrival means starting to pay for waiting days.
4. The documents
- the commercial invoice, at the price actually paid;
- the packing list, consistent with the invoice;
- the bill of lading, or house bill;
- the pre-import declaration;
- certificates required for certain products (conformity, health, phytosanitary).
An undervalued invoice "to pay less duty" is a bad calculation: customs has price references, may revalue, and the adjustment then costs more than the hoped for saving. We explain why in our article on customs valuation disputes.
5. In Dakar: duties, taxes and leaving the port
The goods arrive at Dakar's container terminal. A licensed customs broker files the declaration, mandatory above 200,000 CFA francs of customs value. Duty depends on the ECOWAS common external tariff band, from 0 to 35 percent, plus the statistical fee, community levies and 18 percent VAT. For a category 3 consumer good, the total reaches almost 45 percent of value, as we calculated in our DDP vs DAP article.
Then come assessment, payment, the release order and delivery to your shop.
The costliest traps
- A supplier paid in full before any check. Have the goods inspected before loading by an independent inspector.
- A consolidator without a reliable correspondent in Dakar. The container arrives, but nobody knows who releases your share.
- Unnegotiated destination charges, especially under CFR or CIF.
- A wrong tariff line, which overcharges you or exposes you to an adjustment.
- Documents arriving after the vessel, which turn every waiting day into demurrage and storage.
Our reading
Importing from China is no longer difficult. What remains difficult is the last mile: from the vessel's arrival in Dakar to your door. That is where small importers lose their margin, in waiting days, unplanned charges and adjustments. A good China to Senegal forwarder is judged less on its price per cubic metre than on its ability to get your goods out of port within days of arrival.
Frequently asked questions
How do I import from China to Senegal?
Choose an Incoterm (often FOB), a mode (full container or groupage), file the pre-import declaration before loading, then entrust clearance in Dakar to a licensed customs broker.
What is groupage from China to Dakar?
Combining several importers' goods in one container consolidated in China. You pay per tonne or cubic metre, whichever is greater.
Do I need a DPI to import from China into Senegal?
Yes, for any import with an FOB value of at least 500,000 CFA francs and for every container, since 1 May 2024.
What duties apply to Chinese goods in Senegal?
Those of the ECOWAS common external tariff, from 0 to 35 percent depending on the band, plus the statistical fee, community levies and 18 percent VAT. Chinese goods get no tariff preference.
What we do
GraceRoad handles the arrival of your goods in Dakar: document checks before loading, pre-import declaration, clearance with a licensed broker, collection and delivery, in Senegal and onward to Mali. Send us your supplier's invoice and the volume: we will tell you what arrival will really cost.
Read next: small importers and part loads in Dakar and what is a freight forwarder.
Sources: Senegal national statistics agency (ANSD), monthly foreign trade bulletins for September, October and November 2025 (China's share of imports); Ndarinfo and Senego, April 2024, citing Senegal customs (pre-import declaration); French customs (DGDDI), "10 questions pour exporter au Sénégal", 21 February 2020 (200,000 CFA franc threshold, common external tariff bands, taxes); International Chamber of Commerce, Incoterms 2020 rules.