Outdoor Furniture from China to USA | Import Guide

Patio and outdoor furniture is one of China's largest furniture export categories: powder-coated aluminum dining sets, steel bistro furniture, synthetic-rattan lounge sets, umbrellas, and teak or acacia pieces for hospitality and retail. It is also one of the most seasonal imports in the US calendar — product has to land before spring, and a missed season means carrying stock for a year.

Our Foshan office is close to the Guangdong outdoor-furniture factories and works with suppliers in Zhejiang as well. We inspect and consolidate at origin, plan the containers around knock-down and nesting design, and clear the goods through our licensed customs brokers — including the aluminum-extrusion scope question that catches out many outdoor-furniture importers.

Last reviewed: October 2026

Shipping Outdoor Furniture from China to USA

Outdoor furniture is pure volume: aluminum frames weigh little and fill a 40ft High Cube long before any weight limit. Knock-down tables, nesting chairs and stacking loungers can multiply the number of sets per container, so the packing design is worth settling with the factory before production.

Timing is the product. Retail buyers want stock on the floor from late winter, which means loading in Q4 and early Q1 — exactly when Chinese factories slow down for Lunar New Year. Finalize production and book space early, because the patio-furniture peak overlaps the factory shutdown.

40ft High Cube is standard; LCL for samples and small replenishment
Knock-down and nesting designs can multiply sets per container
Cushions packed separately to arrive clean and dry
Load before Lunar New Year for spring sell-through

What Drives the Cost

Cubic volume and how well the design nests or knocks down
Whether aluminum components fall inside the aluminum-extrusion AD/CVD scope
Section 301 status of each HS line on Chinese-origin goods
Season — space and rates tighten ahead of spring retail
Material mix: aluminum, steel, synthetic rattan, teak or acacia
Delivery to distribution centers vs direct to hospitality sites

HS Codes and Duty Notes

Classification guidance only — duty rates change and depend on your exact product. Our licensed customs brokers verify every code before you commit to an order.

HS Code	Products	Notes
9401.79	Outdoor seating with metal frames (aluminum or steel), including synthetic-wicker seating on metal frames	Outside the Section 232 upholstered wooden-furniture action; Section 301 duties on Chinese goods may apply — verify the 10-digit line.
9401.5x	Seats of rattan, bamboo or similar natural materials	Synthetic wicker on aluminum frames is usually classified by its frame instead, so we confirm the line from the specification.
9403.20	Metal tables and other metal outdoor furniture	Section 301 may apply; loose aluminum parts can raise aluminum-extrusion AD/CVD scope questions.
9403.60	Wooden outdoor furniture (teak, acacia, eucalyptus)	Lacey Act declaration required; Section 301 may apply. Not upholstered, so outside the 25% Section 232 rate for upholstered wooden furniture.

Regulations and Compliance

Aluminum extrusions AD/CVD scope

China's antidumping and countervailing duty orders on aluminum extrusions reach further than many importers expect. Furniture fully assembled at entry, and finished-goods kits containing every part needed to build the final product, are generally excluded — but extruded aluminum parts shipped loose, partial kits and some sub-assemblies can fall inside the orders, at rates that can be very high. Get the scope analysis done before the order is placed, not after the container arrives.

Section 301 and metals

Many Chinese-origin furniture lines carry Section 301 duties, and steel or aluminum content can raise Section 232 metals questions on some lines. Rates and scope change, so we confirm them against your exact HS lines at quoting.

Lacey Act (teak, acacia, eucalyptus)

Wooden outdoor furniture requires a declaration of genus, species and country of harvest. 'Plantation teak' still needs a documented source, and some tropical species carry CITES listings — verify the species before production.

TSCA Title VI and flammability

Composite wood in table tops must meet EPA formaldehyde standards with compliant labeling. Cushioned seating may fall under the federal upholstered-furniture flammability standard (16 CFR 1640) — ask the factory for test documentation.

Door-to-Door Import Service

We work back from your in-store date: production finalized before Lunar New Year, inspection and loading supervised by our Foshan team, and space booked ahead of the spring peak. Every container is photographed before it is sealed.

From South China, FCL to a Southern California warehouse runs roughly 3–4 weeks door to door, with East Coast and inland destinations adding 1–2 weeks. Customs entry is filed by our licensed customs brokers, and we deliver to your distribution center, stores or hospitality sites.

Ocean Freight Customs Warehousing Ground Transport

Frequently Asked Questions

Do aluminum-extrusion duties apply to patio furniture from China?

Fully assembled furniture and complete finished-goods kits are generally excluded from China's aluminum-extrusion AD/CVD orders, but loose extruded parts, partial kits and some sub-assemblies can be caught at very high rates. We review the product and its packing configuration before you order.

When should I ship patio furniture for spring?

Plan to load in Q4 or early Q1, before Chinese factories close for Lunar New Year. Space tightens as the season approaches, so book early and leave a buffer for the shutdown.

How many patio sets fit in a 40ft container?

It depends almost entirely on the design: knock-down tables and nesting or stacking chairs fit many times more sets than fully assembled lounge furniture. We plan the load from the factory's packing list before booking so you know the freight cost per set.

Is teak outdoor furniture harder to import?

Not harder, but it needs paperwork: a Lacey Act declaration with genus, species and country of harvest, and a supplier who can document where the timber came from. We confirm the declaration data with the factory before shipment.

Outdoor Furniture is just one example. AGF ships whatever your business moves — on this lane and beyond. If your commodity isn't covered by one of our guides, tell us what you ship and we'll build the logistics around it.