Ask ten first-time importers what held up their first container, and eight will say the same thing: paperwork. Not the product, not the freight rate — a missing document, a wrong HS code, a certificate nobody mentioned until the vessel arrived.

The good news is that the document set for importing goods into the European Union is stable and predictable. Once you understand who is responsible for each item, a repeat order becomes a checklist exercise instead of a gamble. This guide walks through the full set, in the order you will actually need them.

The Core Four: Commercial, Packing, Transport, Origin

Every shipment into the EU — regardless of product category — travels on four foundation documents. Your supplier prepares the first two; the carrier issues the third; the fourth depends on your trade agreement.

• Commercial Invoice. The customs value, currency, Incoterm and buyer/seller details. EU customs assesses duty on this document, so the declared value must match your payment records.
• Packing List. Carton count, gross/net weight and dimensions per SKU. Customs and your warehouse both work from this file — a sloppy packing list causes inspections and receiving errors.
• Bill of Lading (B/L). The transport contract and title document. Check the consignee and notify party fields character by character; a typo here can block cargo release.
• Certificate of Origin. Only needed if you claim preferential duty rates. Note that China–EU trade has no FTA, so most shipments use a non-preferential certificate or none at all.

EORI: The One Number You Cannot Import Without

Before your first container leaves the origin port, your company needs an EORI number — the Economic Operators Registration and Identification number issued by your national customs authority. It is free, it takes days, and without it your goods cannot be declared.

An EORI number takes a week to get and zero euros. Missing one costs you demurrage at €80–150 per container per day.

— What we tell every first-time EU buyer

A practical tip: your EORI is usually your national VAT number with a country prefix — but the exact format varies. A Polish importer’s EORI, for example, is PL plus the 10-digit NIP plus five zeros. Verify it on the EU’s official EOS validation page before you print it on any shipping document.

Product Compliance: Where Documents Become Product-Specific

Beyond the core four, your product category determines the second layer of paperwork. Pet products and consumer goods each carry their own regime:

• REACH — chemical safety registration relevant to cat litter, plastics and coatings.
• EN71 — if any item could be mistaken for a toy (pet toys frequently are).
• CE marking — for electronics such as automatic feeders or GPS trackers.
• Phytosanitary or veterinary certificates — for anything containing plant or animal material, including some pet foods and natural chews.

Ask your supplier for test reports from an accredited lab (SGS, TÜV, Intertek) before you pay the deposit — not when the goods are already on the water.

Who Handles What

Under FOB terms — the default for most general trade from China — responsibilities split cleanly:

• We (the exporter) handle: commercial invoice, packing list, export customs clearance in China, certificates of origin and product test reports.
• You (the importer) handle: EORI registration, import customs declaration in the EU, duty and VAT payment, and any product liability documentation your market requires.

If you would rather not touch customs at all, ask about DDP terms: we deliver to your warehouse with duty paid, and the document burden moves almost entirely to our side.

The One-Paragraph Version

Get your EORI first. Collect the commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading from your supplier and check every field. Confirm which product compliance documents your category needs before production, not after. Do these three things and your container clears the EU border in days, not weeks.