Shipping from Thailand to USA

Main Origin Ports:

Laem Chabang, Bangkok

Main Destination Ports:

Los Angeles, Long Beach, Houston, New York

When air beats LCL from Thailand

• Small shipments: a few cartons of samples, spares or replenishment stock can cost less by air than as LCL once LCL minimums and the CFS charges at both ends are counted, and they arrive in days, not weeks.
• High value per kilo: electronics, components and showroom pieces, where the cost of stock sitting on the water for five or six weeks outweighs the freight difference.
• A fixed date: a launch, a trade show or a line-down spare part, where you can’t count on the ocean planning range to the day.
• Everything else (full production runs, bulky furniture, tires, canned food) moves by ocean; the FCL and LCL section below explains how to choose between them.

Which air service to ask for

• Standard airport-to-airport: cargo goes on a scheduled service and is charged on chargeable weight. The usual choice for pallets and larger shipments.
• Consolidated air freight: smaller shipments grouped under one master air waybill, which lowers the per-kilo cost when a full pallet isn’t justified.
• Door-to-door air: factory pickup in Thailand, the flight, the US customs entry through a licensed broker and delivery to your warehouse, all on one booking.
• Expedited ocean: if the deadline is tight but doesn’t justify a full air rate, ask for a comparison with the fastest Laem Chabang–Los Angeles routing (28–34 days) before booking.

Documents and compliance for air shipments

• Air waybill, commercial invoice and packing list, with the HS code checked before handover. The export declaration goes through the Thai Customs e-Customs system whether the goods fly or sail.
• No ISF: the Importer Security Filing applies only to ocean cargo. For air, the carrier or forwarder files advance air cargo data (ACAS) instead.
• Product rules still apply: FDA prior notice at least four hours before arrival by air for food and pet food, a Lacey Act declaration for wood products, and a CPSC certificate for children’s products.
• Duties follow the goods, not the mode: the 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty (a tariff on products of Thailand generally, not only on goods made with forced labor; CBP calls it the Section 301 Forced Labor Import Duties) and any other measure in force apply to an air shipment exactly as they would in a container. Air entries pay the merchandise processing fee but not the harbor maintenance fee.

What moves the freight rate

• FCL or LCL: a full container is priced per box; LCL per cubic meter or per 1,000 kg, whichever is greater, plus CFS handling at both ends. Under roughly 13 m³, LCL is usually cheaper; over about 20 m³, a container of your own usually wins; in between, ask for both.
• Thai port: Laem Chabang has the widest carrier choice and the shortest transits (28–34 days to Los Angeles). Bangkok Port suits a factory inside the city, but US-bound containers are relayed to a mainline ship and take longer, up to 37–48 days to New York. Trucking from the factory to either port is quoted separately under EXW or FCA terms.
• US port and inland routing: Los Angeles or Long Beach plus rail to the interior (an inland point intermodal, or IPI, move), or an all-water service to Houston or New York plus a truck leg at the end. The cheaper option changes with the season and the rail surcharge, so name the delivery point and ask for both.
• Direct call or relay: several transpacific services call Laem Chabang direct to Los Angeles or Long Beach, while others, mainly to the East Coast, relay at a hub such as Singapore or Tanjung Pelepas; the number of hub calls in a carrier’s rotation affects both the rate and the transit time you’re quoted.
• Container and cargo: 20′ standard, 40′ standard and 40′ high cube, plus open-top or flat-rack for oversized cargo. Furniture and décor fill a 40′ high cube by volume long before its weight limit; tires, rubber and auto parts hit the US road weight limit first, which often makes a 20′ the practical box.
• Season: peak-season surcharges and general rate increases typically run from July or August through the pre-holiday peak in October and early November. Thai factories close for Songkran (April 13–15) and the New Year, which bunches cargo-ready dates around those weeks.
• Contract or spot: recurring volumes can go on carrier contracts with protected space; a one-off shipment moves at that week’s spot rate.

Charges outside the ocean rate

• US destination charges: ISF filing, the customs entry and bond, chassis and drayage, delivery appointments, and detention or demurrage after free time. Ask for them to be quoted up front.
• Duties, which depend on the product and its value, not on the freight. As of September 2026 most Thai-origin entries pay their Column 1 rate plus the 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty (computers, network equipment, many chips, natural rubber and goods under the Section 232 headings in 9903.05.90 are exempt from it); tires, upholstered furniture, steel and aluminum articles and drones also carry Section 232 duties; and solar cells and modules, passenger and truck tires and frozen warmwater shrimp from Thailand are under antidumping or countervailing duty orders. The customs section below has the details, and the tariff simulator prices your HTS code.

Typical cargo:

• Furniture
• Textiles and apparel
• Automotive parts
• Electronics

Also handled:

Rubber products, plastics and consumer packaged goods.

Cargo guides for goods on this lane:

Each guide below covers packing, documents and the US agency rules for that product group: furniture and wood, textiles and apparel, automotive parts, electronics, rubber and plastics, and food, including the FDA steps for canned seafood, pet food and rice.

In Thailand (export)

• Export declaration: filed electronically with the Thai Customs Department through its paperless e-Customs system (ebXML), linked to Thailand’s National Single Window since 2011. The exporter must be registered with Customs before it can file. The declaration goes in with the commercial invoice, packing list and any export permit the product needs, and the data must be in the system more than six hours before the vessel’s schedule (two hours before the flight for air cargo). Customs then gives the shipment a green line for release or a red line for physical inspection.
• Commercial invoice and packing list: the invoice value and description must match what is declared to US customs, and the shipper’s and factory’s details should match the certificate of origin.
• Certificate of origin: US Customs doesn’t require one for a normal entry, and it won’t reduce duty, because no free-trade agreement or GSP preference is in force (the GSP Form A that once accompanied Thai goods has had no effect since the program lapsed at the end of 2020). Buyers and origin audits still ask for one. Since April 22, 2025, the Department of Foreign Trade (DFT) has been the sole issuer of non-preferential certificates for goods on its US surveillance list. Since June 1, 2026 that list covers 67 product groups, including hard disk drives, computer and automotive parts, steel and aluminum products, solar panels and vulcanized rubber tubes and pipes, and exporters must pass a DFT origin verification of their factory and export records, valid for one year, before applying. For other products, the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Thai Industries can still issue certificates. Applications go through the DFT’s electronic certificate-of-origin system.
• Wood packaging must carry the ISPM 15 mark, and a food processor or packer must be registered with the FDA before its goods ship (see the US list below).

In the USA (import)

• ISF (Importer Security Filing): due at least 24 hours before the container is loaded for the USA. Late or inaccurate filings can draw liquidated damages of up to $5,000 per filing.
• Customs entry with a bond: a continuous bond covers a year of entries and ISF filings; a single-transaction bond covers one entry (and, separately, one ISF).
• FDA for food and pet food: canned tuna and other seafood, pet food, rice and canned fruit need a registered foreign facility with a US agent, prior notice filed before arrival (at least eight hours by sea, four by air) and a Foreign Supplier Verification Program record kept by the importer.
• Other agencies: FCC equipment authorization for radio-frequency devices such as computers, telecom equipment and other electronics; a Lacey Act declaration for wooden furniture and other plant products; a CPSC Children’s Product Certificate for toys and children’s products.
• Apparel labeling: the FTC Textile Fiber Rule requires fiber content, country of origin and the manufacturer or RN number on the label; the Care Labeling Rule requires care instructions; and garments must meet the CPSC flammability standard, with a General Certificate of Conformity (adult) or a Children’s Product Certificate backed by third-party testing.

Duties on goods from Thailand (September 2026)

• Column 1 duty: the normal HTS rate for the product. Many of Thailand’s largest lines (computers, hard disk drives, storage devices and telecom equipment under headings 8471, 8517 and 8523) are free of Column 1 duty, radial passenger-car tires (4011.10.10) pay 4%, and apparel carries some of the highest rates in the tariff. There is no preference to claim: Thailand has no free-trade agreement with the USA, and the US Generalized System of Preferences expired on December 31, 2020 and hasn’t been renewed (a reauthorization bill, H.R. 4276, had cleared committee but not passed as of September 2026).
• Section 301 forced-labor duty: an additional 12.5% on products of Thailand from July 24, 2026, under heading 9903.05.77. Thailand sits in the higher of the two tiers, alongside China and Vietnam; Cambodia, Indonesia and Malaysia pay 10%. It is reported first among the Chapter 99 trade-remedy lines. Goods under the Section 232 headings listed in 9903.05.90 (metals; passenger vehicles, light trucks, medium- and heavy-duty trucks and buses, and their parts; wood products; patented pharmaceuticals; and the 25% band of semiconductors) are exempt from it, and so are the products listed in U.S. note 52(b) of HTS Chapter 99, which include computers and hard drives, smartphones, network equipment, many chips and natural rubber; drones are not exempt.
• Section 232 duties, where the product is covered: passenger-car and light-truck tires (HTS 4011.10 and 4011.20) are treated as auto parts at 25%, which is why the tire duty pages linked below show 29% in total; upholstered wooden furniture pays 25% under the timber program, with an increase scheduled for January 1, 2027; steel and aluminum articles and their derivatives, including metal furniture of heading 9403, pay 50% or 25% on full customs value; a narrow band of advanced semiconductors has paid 25% since January 15, 2026; and drones pay 100% or 25% by type, and critical drone components 100%, since September 3, 2026, with other listed drone components at 25% from February 9, 2027.
• Antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD): crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells and modules from Thailand have been under AD and CVD orders since June 24, 2025; passenger-vehicle and light-truck tires from Thailand under an antidumping order since July 19, 2021, and truck and bus tires since December 17, 2024; and frozen warmwater shrimp from Thailand remains under an antidumping order continued after its 2023 sunset review. Rates are case-specific and change with every administrative review, and scope is decided product by product, so check before you place the order.
• IEEPA tariffs no longer apply: the Supreme Court held on February 20, 2026 that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs, collection stopped on February 24, 2026, and refunds of IEEPA duties paid since February 2025 are being processed through ACE. The Section 122 surcharge that briefly replaced them expired on July 24, 2026.
• Duties are assessed on the customs value of the goods, not on the freight; the merchandise processing fee and harbor maintenance fee are added at entry.

Forced-labor enforcement (UFLPA)

• Under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, CBP presumes that goods made wholly or partly in Xinjiang, or by an entity on the UFLPA Entity List, were made with forced labor, and detains them unless the importer rebuts the presumption with supply-chain evidence. The presumption follows the inputs, not the country where the goods were finished.
• Cotton and polysilicon are priority sectors, so apparel, textile and solar importers buying from Thailand should be able to trace yarn, fabric or cells back to their source. Keep supplier declarations, purchase records and the certificate of origin with the shipping documents: a detention can hold a container for weeks, with storage and demurrage building up while the evidence is reviewed.

Full container load (FCL)

• Equipment: 20′ standard (about 33 m³ of usable space), 40′ standard (about 67 m³) and 40′ high cube (about 76 m³), plus open-top and flat-rack equipment for machinery and out-of-gauge cargo.
• Your cargo decides the container: light, bulky goods (furniture, lamps, décor, packaged consumer goods) fill a 40′ high cube by volume long before its weight limit; dense goods (tires, rubber sheet, auto parts, canned food) reach US road weight limits first, which often makes a 20′ the practical choice.
• The container is loaded and sealed at your supplier’s factory or a container freight station, travels under one bill of lading through any relay port and is delivered intact to your door; no other shipper’s cargo touches it.
• Cut-offs: the booking confirmation lists the document, verified gross mass (VGM) and gate-in cut-offs at Laem Chabang or Bangkok. On a relay routing, a missed cut-off can cost the hub connection as well as the sailing, so the delay is measured in days, not hours.

Less than container load (LCL)

• LCL from Thailand is available on request: your cartons or pallets are consolidated with other shippers’ cargo at origin and unloaded at a CFS near the US port before delivery.
• LCL is charged on weight or measure (per cubic meter or per 1,000 kg, whichever is greater) plus CFS handling at both ends. Light furniture and décor cartons are almost always charged by volume.
• Ocean transit is the same as FCL on the same service, but consolidation at origin, the hub connection and deconsolidation at destination add days, so door to door takes longer than with a container of your own.
• Buyer’s consolidation: if you buy furniture, lamps or garments from several Thai suppliers, ask whether their goods can be loaded into a single container under one bill of lading.

How to choose

• Under roughly 13 m³, LCL is usually cheaper. Between about 13 and 20 m³, ask for both: a 20′ container often costs little more than the same cargo as LCL once CFS charges are added. Over 20 m³, FCL usually wins on cost, handling and transit.
• Fragile or time-critical goods (showroom furniture, lamps, glass-fronted pieces) favor FCL even at small volumes, because the container is sealed at origin and opened at your door.
• Very small shipments, such as a few cartons of samples or replenishment stock, can be cheaper by air once LCL minimums and CFS charges are counted; the air section above explains how chargeable weight is calculated.

What the US delivery leg involves

• Drayage: a truck and chassis move the container from the terminal or rail ramp to your door, and the empty goes back to the depot.
• Free time: terminals and rail ramps allow a few days to collect the container before demurrage starts, and carriers allow a few days to return the empty before detention applies. Both are billed per day, so book the delivery appointment before the ship arrives.
• Transloading: for retail distribution, containers can be unloaded at a warehouse near the port and reloaded into domestic trailers, which suits multi-stop furniture deliveries and retailer routing rules.
• Delivery appointments, liftgate service and residential delivery are extra services; mention them when you request a quote so they are priced in.

Shipping line, forwarder or NVOCC: who does what?

• Ocean carriers (shipping lines) own or charter the ships that call at Laem Chabang and at relay hubs such as Singapore and Tanjung Pelepas, and each sets its own rates, schedules and relay pattern.
• An NVOCC (non-vessel operating common carrier) buys space from those lines, issues its own house bill of lading, and is licensed and bonded by the FMC. Airlift USA is an NVOCC, so the rates it quotes are its own carrier rates, not a referral.
• A freight forwarder arranges everything around the ocean leg: pickup, export clearance, ISF, the US customs entry and delivery. Most importers want a forwarder that is also an NVOCC, so one company is accountable for both the bill of lading and the service around it.

What to check before you choose a forwarder:

• An FMC license and NVOCC bond, so the forwarder can issue its own bills of lading.
• Partners in Thailand who handle pickup, loading and the export declaration, not just a spot booking desk.
• Both ocean and air capability on the lane, so a delayed order can switch modes without switching forwarders.
• Its ISF filing record: late or inaccurate filings can draw CBP liquidated damages of up to $5,000 per filing.
• US customs handled through licensed brokers, with HTS classification and duty estimates available before you book.
• Live tracking and document access, not emailed status updates.