NEWS & BLOG
Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2026-10-17 Origin: Site
Let me start with a question I get almost every week from French clients:
"Why is shipping to France so much more complicated than shipping to Germany?"
Fair question. Germany is straightforward — one main entry port (Hamburg), dense road network, everything runs like clockwork.
France? France has its own way of doing things.
You've got Le Havre and Marseille as entry ports. You've got Corsica and all the island territories that are technically part of France but require completely different logistics. You've got Paris with its delivery restrictions, its narrow streets, its weight limits. And let's not even get started on French customs documentation.
But here's the good news: none of that is your problem if you use DDP sea freight.
In this guide, I'm going to break down exactly how much it costs to ship oversized cargo from China to France (real October 2026 prices), how long it takes, what the deal is with all those island postcodes, and why DDP is quietly becoming the go-to option for French e-commerce sellers and B2B importers.
DDP stands for Delivered Duty Paid. In plain French: livraison à domicile, droits de douane et TVA inclus.
You send us your cargo details. We pick it up in China, ship it by sea, clear it through French customs, pay the import duty and TVA, and truck it to your address anywhere in France.
One price. Everything included. You don't deal with customs. You don't get surprise bills.
If you've ever imported something from China and thought you knew the price — then got hit with customs charges, a broker fee, a trucking surcharge, and something called "frais de gestion" that you can't even explain — you understand why this matters.
This service is for anyone shipping bulky, heavy, or oversized cargo from China:
Furniture (mobilier de salon, mobilier d'extérieur, mobilier de bureau)
Gym and fitness equipment (matériel de musculation, tapis de course)
Industrial machinery and equipment
Building materials and renovation supplies
Retail displays and store fixtures (présentoirs, étagères, mobiliers de magasin)
E-bikes, electric scooters, and mobility products (en vrac)
Kitchen and bathroom cabinetry
Basically anything 100kg+ that's too expensive for air freight but too small for a full container
Alright, let's get to the numbers. These are all-inclusive DDP rates — door to door, duty and TVA included.
France has two price zones based on postal codes. Zone A covers most of mainland France. Zone B covers more rural areas, some mountain regions, and certain island postcodes.
This covers roughly 80% of French addresses, including Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Nice, Nantes, Lille, Strasbourg, Montpellier, and most of the country.
Weight Range | Price per kg (DDP, all-in) | Example: 1000kg shipment |
|---|---|---|
50 – 100 kg | ~ ¥17.5 / kg | ~ ¥17,500 |
101 – 300 kg | ~ ¥14.5 / kg | ~ ¥14,500 |
301 – 500 kg | ~ ¥13.5 / kg | ~ ¥13,500 |
501 – 1000 kg | ~ ¥13.3 / kg | ~ ¥13,300 |
1001 – 2000 kg | ~ ¥12.9 / kg | ~ ¥12,900 |
2001 – 3000 kg | ~ ¥12.7 / kg | ~ ¥25,400 |
3001 kg + | ~ ¥12.5 / kg | ~ ¥37,500 |
Zone B covers certain rural departments, mountainous regions (Alps, Pyrenees), and specific postcodes in Brittany, Normandy, and the Atlantic coast that are harder to reach by truck.
Weight Range | Price per kg (DDP, all-in) |
|---|---|
50 – 100 kg | ~ ¥18.2 / kg |
101 – 300 kg | ~ ¥16.0 / kg |
301 – 500 kg | ~ ¥14.9 / kg |
501 – 1000 kg | ~ ¥14.5 / kg |
1001 – 2000 kg | ~ ¥14.4 / kg |
2001 – 3000 kg | ~ ¥14.2 / kg |
3001 kg + | ~ ¥14.1 / kg |
Ah, yes — the famous complications.
Corsica (20xxx) : Yes, we ship there. But it's not the same price as mainland. It requires additional sea freight from Marseille to Ajaccio or Bastia, plus special handling. Pricing is significantly higher — roughly 20 RMB/kg and up for DDP.
Overseas France (DOM-TOM) : Guadeloupe, Martinique, Guyane, La Réunion, etc. These are technically French, but logistically they're a completely different story. We can arrange shipping there, but it's a custom quote every time. Don't expect standard pricing.
Pro tip: If you're not sure which zone your postcode falls into, just send it to us. We'll check and give you an exact price within a few hours. Most of the time, if you're in a major French city, you're Zone A.
For a typical 500kg shipment of furniture:
Air freight to France: ~ ¥45-65 / kg = ¥22,500 – 32,500
Sea DDP to France (Zone A) : ~ ¥13.3 / kg = ¥6,650
That's about 70% cheaper. For cargo over 100kg, sea DDP isn't just cheaper — it's a completely different pricing universe.
Let's be honest about French customs.
If you've ever tried to clear a shipment through Le Havre or Marseille on your own, you know what I'm talking about. The paperwork. The delays. The TVA. The droits de douane. The fact that nobody seems to be in a hurry to do anything.
With DDP, we handle all of it. We have a French-registered importer of record, a French EORI number, and a local team that deals with douanes every day.
You don't need to:
❌ Avoir un numéro EORI français
❌ Gérer les déclarations en douane
❌ Calculer les droits de douane et la TVA
❌ Traiter avec les services des douanes
❌ Attendre des factures surprise après livraison
We take care of everything. Your job is just to receive the goods.
Pour les entreprises françaises assujetties à la TVA: If you're TVA-registered in France and want to reclaim the import TVA on your déclaration, we can provide the proper customs documentation. Just mention it when you request your quote.
Here's the step-by-step process, in order:
Send us: weight, dimensions, product type, photos (if you have them), and your French postcode. We get back to you with an all-inclusive price — usually within a few hours.
Your supplier delivers to our warehouse in Dongguan (near Shenzhen) or Yiwu. We can also arrange pickup from the factory directly — just let us know the address.
Your cargo gets properly labeled, palletized if needed, and loaded into a shared container with other France-bound shipments. This is how the pricing stays competitive — you share the container space instead of paying for a whole one you don't fill.
The ship sails from China (Shenzhen or Shanghai) to Le Havre. Some shipments go through Marseille for southern France. Sea time is roughly 30-38 days, depending on the route.
This is where DDP earns its keep. We file the customs entry, pay duty and TVA on your behalf, handle any inspections or queries from the douanes, and get your goods released. You do nothing.
After customs clearance and deconsolidation, your cargo goes onto a truck for final delivery. For most mainland French addresses, this takes 2-5 business days.
No more invoices. No customs forms. No "we need more paperwork" emails. Just your goods, at your door.
Transit Time: Be Realistic
Sea freight to France isn't fast. If you need it in two weeks, you're paying air freight prices and you know it.
Here's the realistic timeline for DDP sea freight to France:
Étape | Temps estimé |
|---|---|
Réception + consolidation en Chine | 3 – 7 jours |
Trajet maritime (Chine → Le Havre) | 30 – 38 jours |
Dédouanement en France | 3 – 10 jours |
Livraison camion (dernier km) | 2 – 5 jours |
Total porte-à-porte | 40 – 60 jours |
La vérité sur les délais annoncés: You'll see forwarders advertising "28 days to Le Havre!" — and that might be true for the ship itself. But what they don't tell you is the 3-7 days of consolidation before sailing, the customs clearance time, and the last-mile delivery. By the time your goods are actually at your door, it's more like 45-55 days. Plan accordingly.
Delivery in Paris can be trickier than other French cities. Narrow streets. Weight restrictions. Limited truck access in certain arrondissements. Delivery windows can be shorter, and there might be additional fees for central Paris addresses.
If your delivery address is in Paris proper (especially the 1st-7th arrondissements), let us know — we'll confirm if there are any special arrangements needed.
I work with a lot of French clients — Amazon.fr sellers, Cdiscount merchants, B2B suppliers, boutique owners. Here's what they tell us:
This is the #1 complaint. You agree on a price with a freight forwarder, then two months later you're paying frais de port, frais de douane, frais de dédouanement, frais de transport, and something called "frais administratifs" that nobody can explain. With DDP? Le prix est le prix. C'est tout.
Running a business is already a full-time job. The last thing you need is to become an expert in French customs procedures. With DDP, we handle everything — you focus on your business.
I had a Paris-based client last quarter who sells outdoor furniture on Amazon.fr. They were used to paying air freight prices for restocks. We switched them to sea DDP and their per-unit shipping cost dropped by 72%. That's not a small improvement — that changes the whole economics of their product line.
A lot of French small businesses think they only have two options: expensive air freight or complicated full-container shipping. They don't know there's a middle ground. Sea DDP is that middle ground.
I'm not here to sell you a perfect fairy tale. Here's what you need to know before you decide:
If you need your stock for the soldes d'été and it's already May, you're cutting it too close. Plan at least 8-10 weeks ahead, ideally 12 weeks for first-time shipments.
Sea freight is rough. Your pallet goes from truck to warehouse to ship to warehouse to truck. If your packaging is weak, your goods will be damaged.
For anything over 30kg, des palettes en bois sont obligatoires. For fragile items (verre, marbre, écrans, produits électroniques), you need proper wooden crates. If your Chinese supplier doesn't know how to pack for sea freight, we can arrange professional packaging at our warehouse in China. It costs more — but it always costs less than replacing broken merchandise.
Corsica. The Île d'Yeu. Île de Ré. Overseas departments. If it's on an island, the logistics are different and more expensive. Send us the exact postcode and we'll give you a real quote.
Most commercial goods are fine. But hazardous materials, certain battery types, perishables, restricted imports — there are limits. Not sure if your product qualifies? Send us the details and we'll tell you straight.
I get asked about Paris delivery enough that it deserves its own section.
Paris has some unique challenges for oversized cargo delivery:
Street access: Many central Paris streets are narrow or have vehicle weight restrictions
Parking: Good luck finding a place to park a delivery truck in the 6th arrondissement
Building access: Old buildings, narrow staircases, no elevators — ground floor delivery vs upstairs delivery makes a big difference
Delivery windows: Some areas only allow deliveries at certain times of day
Does this mean we can't deliver to Paris? No, we deliver to Paris all the time. But it might mean:
The price is slightly higher than other French cities
You might need a liftgate or special equipment for heavy items
Delivery might take an extra day or two
Just let us know the exact address (and what floor you're on, if it's an apartment building) and we'll sort it out.
You sell bulky products on Amazon.fr, Cdiscount, Etsy, or your own Shopify store
You're a B2B company importing equipment, machinery, or supplies from China
You're setting up retail stores and need display fixtures, shelving, or fit-outs
You're a restaurant owner or hotelier importing furniture, kitchen equipment, or décor
You're shipping 100kg+ of oversized cargo and you don't fill an entire container
You're tired of surprise customs bills and dealing with French bureaucracy
You need your goods in less than 30 days
You're shipping less than 50kg (colissimo or air courier is cheaper for small parcels)
You're shipping personal effects or moving house
You're shipping something highly regulated or hazardous
Q: Est-ce que j'ai besoin d'un numéro EORI ?
R: Non, pas du tout. Nous agissons en tant qu'importateur enregistré avec notre propre numéro EORI français. Vous recevez simplement la marchandise. Si vous êtes assujetti à la TVA et souhaitez récupérer la TVA à l'importation, nous pouvons fournir les documents douaniers nécessaires — mentionnez-le lors de votre demande de devis.
Q: Est-ce que la TVA est incluse ?
R: Oui. Le prix DDP inclut les droits de douane ET la TVA à l'importation. Pas de facture supplémentaire.
Q: Livrez-vous aux entrepôts Amazon FBA en France ?
R: Absolument. Nous livrons dans tous les principaux centres FBA français — CDG7, CDG9, LIL1, LIL2, MRS1, BVA1, etc. Donnez-nous simplement le code de l'entrepôt et nous nous occupons de tout.
Q: Et les inspections douanières ?
R: Si les douanes inspectent l'envoi, nous nous en occupons. C'est inclus dans le service DDP. L'inspection ne vous coûte rien de plus.
Q: Pouvez-vous récupérer la marchandise à l'usine en Chine ?
R: Oui. Nous avons des services de ramassage dans toutes les principales régions manufacturières chinoises — Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian, Shandong, etc.
Q: Quels moyens de paiement acceptez-vous ?
R: Virement bancaire en EUR, USD, GBP, ou RMB. Le paiement est dû avant le départ du navire de Chine.
Q: Qu'en est-il de l'assurance ?
R: Une couverture de base pour perte est incluse. Pour les marchandises de grande valeur ou fragiles, nous recommandons une assurance supplémentaire. Nous pouvons l'organiser pour un faible pourcentage de la valeur déclarée.
Si vous expédiez des marchandises volumineuses ou lourdes de Chine vers la France et que vous en avez assez des tarifs aériens et des tracas douaniers, le transport maritime DDP est probablement la solution que vous cherchiez.
Demander un devis est gratuit et prend 5 minutes. Envoyez-nous les détails de votre cargaison — poids, dimensions, type de produit, et code postal français — et nous vous répondrons avec un prix tout compris, sans frais cachés.
Pas de surprises. Pas de petits caractères. Juste votre marchandise, livrée.
Demander un devis gratuit: STU Supply Chain EU DDP Service
Email: sales@stusupplychain.com
WhatsApp: +86 13662266273
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