Import from 1688 to Singapore & Malaysia: Tax & Rules

If you sell on Shopee, Lazada, TikTok Shop or your own Shopify store in Singapore or Malaysia, you have probably noticed the same thing: the product you resell often costs a fraction of its retail price at the source. Most of that gap is markup added by resellers and middle layers.

1688.com, China's domestic wholesale marketplace, sits close to the factory end of that chain. It lists millions of products at prices aimed at Chinese trade buyers, and it was never built for you. This guide covers how to import from 1688 to Singapore or Malaysia: what makes the site hard to use, the tax and product rules to check before your first order, and how a purpose-built platform changes the picture.

Why 1688 is cheaper, and why it is hard to use

Prices on 1688 are set for domestic buyers purchasing in volume. Compared with buying the same item through AliExpress, Alibaba or a local wholesaler, you skip at least one layer of margin. But the site creates four practical problems for a buyer in Singapore or Malaysia:

Language. Listings, specifications, sizes, colours and seller policies are in Chinese. Even buyers who read some Chinese can misread a variant table or a carton quantity, and that mistake is expensive.
Payment. Paying usually means Alipay or a Chinese bank account, which most small businesses in Singapore and Malaysia do not have set up for this.
Shipping. Many sellers only deliver inside China. Getting goods to Singapore or Malaysia means finding a separate freight forwarder or agent.
Unclear total cost. The listed price is only the start. Domestic delivery in China, international freight and agent fees come first, then GST in Singapore, or duty and sales tax in Malaysia. It is hard to know your margin before you order.

Many beginners end up sending screenshots to an agent over chat. That works for a one-off, but it is slow, error-prone, and leaves you with no clear view of where your order is.

What to sort out in Singapore before you order

We build platforms rather than give tax or legal advice, so treat this as a checklist to confirm with Singapore Customs, IRAS or a declaring agent, not a ruling on your situation. We checked the points below against official and specialist sources at the time of writing. Rules change, so confirm the details for your product.

Business setup

Register the business with ACRA and you receive a Unique Entity Number (UEN). Before you import, activate a Customs account with that UEN. Import permits are applied for through TradeNet, either by you or by a declaring agent you appoint, and Singapore Customs requires an Inter-Bank GIRO account for paying duties and GST.

GST and customs duty

Most goods carry no customs duty in Singapore. Only intoxicating liquors, tobacco products, motor vehicles and petroleum products are dutiable; everything else pays GST only. Import GST, currently 9%, is charged on the CIF value (cost, insurance and freight) plus any duty. GST registration becomes compulsory once taxable turnover passes S$1 million in a calendar year, or is expected to in the next 12 months, so ask an accountant where your business stands.

Low-value goods

Since 1 January 2023, goods worth S$400 or less that are bought from overseas and delivered by air or post carry GST at the point of sale, collected by GST-registered overseas vendors and marketplaces. At the border, air and postal imports with a CIF value of S$400 or less are generally relieved of import GST. That relief does not apply to sea or land imports, so a consolidated sea shipment of stock pays import GST whatever its value.

Controlled goods and other regulators

Some products cannot simply be listed and sold. Enterprise Singapore's Consumer Product Safety Office runs a registration scheme for controlled goods, a list of household electrical, electronic and gas products that must be tested, certified, registered and marked with the SAFETY Mark before they are sold. Food, health products and telecom equipment have their own regulators. Check your categories before you shortlist a supplier, not after the goods are in transit.

What to sort out in Malaysia before you order

The same caution applies: confirm these points with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department, the Energy Commission or a licensed customs agent before you rely on them.

Business setup

Register the business with the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM), as a sole proprietorship, partnership or private limited company. Commercial shipments are usually declared through a licensed customs agent, who handles the paperwork and pays duties and taxes on your behalf. Ask your agent which documents they need from you before the first shipment arrives.

Sales tax on low-value goods

Since 1 January 2024, goods sold online for RM500 or less and brought into Malaysia from abroad by land, sea or air carry a 10% sales tax. Sellers, local or foreign, whose sales of these low-value goods pass RM500,000 in 12 months must register with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department and charge the tax at checkout. Cigarettes, tobacco, liquor and e-cigarettes are outside this regime.

Duty and sales tax on bulk stock

Goods you import in bulk and resell from local stock follow the normal rules. Import duty depends on each product's tariff code, and sales tax is collected at customs clearance. Since 1 July 2025, many non-essential goods carry sales tax of 5% or 10%, while essential goods stay exempt. Your model matters: a parcel shipped to each customer is taxed differently from cartons imported in bulk, so settle this with your agent before you design checkout.

Product approvals

Regulated electrical equipment needs a Certificate of Approval from the Energy Commission (Suruhanjaya Tenaga) and the ST-SIRIM label before it can be sold, and imported batches are consignment-tested by SIRIM. Devices with Wi-Fi or Bluetooth need their own certification as communications equipment, and anything sold as halal must meet Malaysian halal requirements. The Customs (Prohibition of Imports) Order lists goods that are banned or need a licence.

How your customers will pay

Shoppers in Singapore commonly pay with PayNow, cards and wallets such as GrabPay, Apple Pay and Google Pay. In Malaysia, online banking through FPX, DuitNow QR and e-wallets such as Touch 'n Go eWallet sit alongside cards. Whatever you offer, show the final price before the buyer pays. If you are GST-registered in Singapore, prices shown to consumers must include GST.

Test orders versus bulk orders

1688 sellers often set minimum order quantities (MOQs), and prices can change by variant. The sensible approach for a new business is to start small:

Approach	Good for	Watch out for
Single test order	Checking quality, packaging and real landed cost	Higher cost per unit
Small batch within the MOQ	Validating demand on your own store or marketplace	Cash tied up if the product does not sell
Larger MOQ order	Better unit economics on proven products	Tax, product approval and freight exposure grow with volume and value

Order a sample, check it against the product rules for the country you sell in, and only then scale.

Who we are and what we provide

We are a web and e-commerce team. We handle what a person needs to start and run a 1688 sourcing business, from the first idea to a live website and ongoing upkeep. The point is that you talk to one team instead of juggling a developer, an API provider, a designer and a marketer.

Here is what working with us looks like, in the order you experience it.

We plan the business website with you. Your market, language, currency, product categories and how orders should flow, agreed before anything is built.
We build the website. Usually a 1688 sourcing platform, or an online shop or custom web app if that fits you better. It includes keyword and image search, product pages with per-variant price and stock, MOQ, weight, specs and seller info, pricing in SGD and MYR, shipping and total-cost display, cart, wishlist and orders, an order tracking dashboard, a mobile-first installable app, reseller tools such as image download and copy link, and a banned-items list on product pages.
We connect the 1688 data. We set up the integration and connect the API keys, so live prices, stock, images and variants flow into your site and nobody adds products by hand.
We keep it healthy. After launch we maintain the site and the API connections and keys, so the data keeps flowing. We also design for cost: search caching reduces repeat calls to the external API.
We set up payments and costs. Payment integration around the methods that suit your business, plus a shipping and total-cost calculator so buyers see what an order costs before they place it.
We help you get customers. After launch we also do digital marketing, video and content, and can connect tracking such as the Facebook Pixel.

What you do not have to worry about once we are running it

Adding products by hand. The 1688 data comes in through the integration.
Keeping the API keys connected and working.
Keeping the site itself running and healthy after launch.
Repeat-search costs piling up, because caching is part of the design.
Building the cost display, cart, orders and tracking features yourself.
Finding a separate marketer, since digital marketing, video and content come from the same team.

What stays with you is the business itself: choosing products, working with your customs broker and accountant on duty, tax and compliance, and serving your customers.

A short proof point

We built TradeOn Global, a live 1688 sourcing platform for a different market. It shows the approach working end to end: search, per-variant product pages, local-currency pricing, cost visibility, order tracking and a banned-items list. TradeOn Global does not operate in Singapore or Malaysia; we mention it as proof of the build, not as a service you can buy there.

A simple path to your first order

Whether you use a platform or not, this order of operations keeps you out of trouble:

Set up your business basics. Register with ACRA in Singapore or SSM in Malaysia, and speak to an accountant about GST or sales tax.
Shortlist products. Check each against the controlled goods, product approval and prohibited import rules for the country you sell in.
Work out the total landed cost. Include product price, China domestic delivery, international freight, GST or sales tax, any duty and agent fees.
Place a sample or test order. Inspect quality, packaging and labelling.
Confirm customs handling. Decide whether you will declare imports yourself or use a declaring or customs agent.
Scale what sells. Move to larger quantities only after the numbers and the compliance checks hold up.

Frequently asked questions

Do I pay GST on goods imported from 1688 into Singapore?

Usually, yes. Import GST, currently 9%, is charged on the CIF value plus any duty. Air and postal imports with a CIF value of S$400 or less are generally relieved of import GST at the border, but low-value goods bought from overseas can carry GST at the point of sale instead, and sea or land shipments of stock pay import GST whatever their value. Check with an accountant how this applies to your model.

What tax applies to 1688 goods imported into Malaysia?

It depends on how the goods arrive. Low-value goods sold online for RM500 or less and brought in from abroad carry a 10% sales tax. Goods imported in bulk follow the normal rules: import duty by tariff code, and sales tax collected at customs clearance, at 5% or 10% for many non-essential goods since 1 July 2025. Confirm the treatment with your customs agent.

Do I need a customs agent to import from 1688?

Not always, but it helps. In Singapore, import permits go through TradeNet, either by you or by a declaring agent you appoint. In Malaysia, commercial shipments are usually declared through a licensed customs agent, who handles the paperwork and pays duties and taxes on your behalf.

Can I sell electrical products bought on 1688 in Singapore or Malaysia?

Only after they meet local rules. In Singapore, controlled goods must be tested, certified, registered and carry the SAFETY Mark before sale. In Malaysia, regulated electrical equipment needs a Certificate of Approval from the Energy Commission and the ST-SIRIM label, and devices with Wi-Fi or Bluetooth need their own certification. Check this before you choose a supplier.