Frequently asked questions about importing into Ecuador

The total cost of importing from China to Ecuador is the sum of the FOB price (the factory price), international freight, insurance (1.5% of FOB), the COMEX tariff (0% to 30% depending on the tariff line), FODINFA (0.5% of CIF), IVA (Ecuador's VAT) at 15%, the customs broker's fees (USD 150 to 400) and local delivery (USD 50 to 220). In practice, a USD 5,000 FOB order ends up costing between USD 7,100 and USD 8,000 delivered to a warehouse in Quito or Guayaquil, depending on the transport mode and the tariff category. ATLAS, Daleki Trade's digital consultant, builds the referential estimate with the full breakdown in 30 seconds from the product link, and the team confirms it in writing.

Every commercial import to Ecuador pays four taxes built on the CIF value (FOB + freight + insurance). The COMEX ad valorem tariff ranges from 0% to 30% depending on the tariff line. FODINFA is a fixed 0.5% contribution earmarked for child development. ICE (Impuesto a Consumos Especiales, Ecuador's special consumption tax) applies only to alcoholic beverages, premium cosmetics, perfumes, vehicles and tobacco, at variable rates. IVA (Ecuador's VAT) at 15% is calculated on the sum of CIF, tariff, FODINFA and ICE. The IVA rate rose from 12% to 15% in April 2024 under the Ley Orgánica de Urgencia Económica. ATLAS runs the full formula before your first payment.

FOB (Free On Board) is the price of the product delivered at the port or airport in the country of origin, ready to ship. CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight) is FOB plus international freight and cargo insurance, and it is the value SENAE uses as the tax base for calculating taxes in Ecuador. If an Alibaba supplier quotes you "FOB Shenzhen USD 5,000", you pay USD 5,000 with the goods at the Chinese port, and freight to Ecuador is on you. If they quote CIF Guayaquil, the price includes freight and insurance to Guayaquil, although it usually costs more than booking freight separately.

A tariff safeguard is a temporary surcharge that COMEX applies to certain product categories to protect the trade balance or domestic production. It is calculated as an additional percentage of CIF and added to the regular ad valorem tariff. Safeguards change by COMEX resolution and are usually announced 30 to 90 days in advance. Categories affected in the past include footwear, apparel, certain home appliances and beverages. ATLAS checks the safeguards in force in every calculation and flags when a new resolution takes effect. If you are planning large orders, we recommend reviewing your order calendar with the Daleki Trade team to anticipate COMEX changes that affect your final cost.

In 2026, freight from China to Ecuador falls within these ranges: consolidated air, USD 8 to 12 per kilo; express courier air, USD 18 to 30 per kilo; LCL sea, USD 80 to 120 per cubic meter; a 20-foot FCL container, USD 2,800 to 4,500; and a 40-foot FCL, USD 4,500 to 6,500. Prices shift with the season (peak season runs from September to January), the freight exchange rate (USD against RMB), available carrier capacity and fuel costs. ATLAS uses current rates checked with freight forwarders at the time of calculation instead of averages.

ICE (Impuesto a Consumos Especiales, Ecuador's special consumption tax) applies only to specific categories, at variable rates: cigarettes and tobacco (150% of the ex-customs price), alcoholic beverages (per liter of pure alcohol, not per FOB), sugary drinks (USD 0.18 per 100 grams of sugar), perfumes and eau de toilette (20%), video games (35%), weapons (300%), games of chance (35%), premium cosmetics (10%), social club dues and memberships, and motor vehicles (tiered from 5% to 35% by engine size and CIF price, with 0% for electric vehicles). Most imports (consumer electronics, apparel, footwear, toys, accessories, hardware, machinery) do not pay ICE. ATLAS applies the current table in every calculation when the category requires it.

Consolidated air freight from China to Ecuador takes 7 to 12 days door to door. LCL sea freight takes 30 to 45 days, the same as a full FCL container. Clearance with SENAE, Ecuador's customs service, adds 3 to 7 business days. Air costs USD 8 to 12 per kilo and makes sense for electronics, product launches or fast-moving products. Sea costs USD 80 to 120 per cubic meter (LCL) or USD 2,800 to 4,500 per 20-foot container (FCL), and it is the best option for high volume, apparel, accessories and machinery.

Yes. For small and midsize importers, consolidation is one of the most effective ways to save. Daleki Trade consolidates LCL sea and air cargo at origin warehouses (Yiwu, Shenzhen, Miami, Panama) and combines several clients' products into one shipment. That brings the cost per kilo or per cubic meter down 30% to 60% compared with an individual import of the same volume. The tradeoff is that departure depends on when the container fills, which adds 5 to 14 days of waiting at origin. For urgent products, an individual air import is still the best option.

Air freight makes sense when weight is low and value per kilo is high (electronics, jewelry, premium accessories), when there is commercial urgency (a launch, a critical restock, a fashion season), or when the product is bulky but light and fits better on a plane. Sea freight makes sense when you import high volumes or heavy products (textiles, footwear, hardware, cosmetics), or when margins are tight and you need the lowest possible logistics cost. A practical rule: if air freight exceeds 25% of FOB, look at sea freight. If air costs less than 10% of FOB, it is almost always worth it for the speed.

Sea freight arrives by default at the port of Guayaquil, which handles most of Ecuador's foreign trade, or at the port of Posorja. Air freight arrives at Mariscal Sucre airport in Quito (Tababela) or José Joaquín de Olmedo airport in Guayaquil, depending on the freight forwarder's route and the final destination. Daleki Trade coordinates the last mile from the port or airport to your warehouse in any city: Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca, Manta, Ambato, Machala. Inland transport within Ecuador costs USD 50 to USD 220 depending on the city and the volume.

You do not need a company, but to import commercially into Ecuador you must be registered as an importer in ECUAPASS, the SENAE system, and that requires a RUC (Ecuador's taxpayer ID) and an electronic signature. An individual with a RUC can import for personal use or for their own small business; a company does it for its regular commercial operation. Imports under the 4x4 regime (courier packages up to USD 400 and 4 kg) have a simplified process and require no prior registration. Daleki Trade advises you on the initial registration and operates under your RUC. We never import under a RUC other than the end client's.

The most common Incoterms for importing to Ecuador are FOB and EXW. FOB works when you trust the supplier's logistics up to the origin port and prefer to book freight directly with a freight forwarder. EXW (Ex Works) works when you also need to control inland transport from the factory to the Chinese port, usually because your supplier is in a remote city. Avoid DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) unless you fully trust the supplier: under DDP the supplier commits to paying the taxes and delivering to your warehouse in Ecuador, but clearance is often handled badly or the goods never arrive.

Every commercial import to Ecuador requires at least six documents: the Declaración Aduanera de Importación (DAI, the import customs declaration), the signed commercial invoice with a 10-digit HS code, the packing list, the transport document (a Bill of Lading for sea or an Air Waybill for air), the insurance policy and, when applicable, the certificate of origin to access tariff preferences under CAN or ALADI. Some categories require additional documents: ARCSA for food and cosmetics, ARCOTEL for electronics with radio, INEN for textiles and toys, ANT for vehicles and AGROCALIDAD for agricultural products. Daleki Trade gathers the documentation with the customs broker and checks that it complies before clearance.

Yes, if you are a company registered as a regular taxpayer: you can offset the IVA paid on imports (tax credit) against the IVA you charge on your sales, under current regulations from the SRI, Ecuador's tax authority. Individuals with a RUC who import for resale can also use the tax credit if they sell the goods with an invoice. If the import is for personal use or for a non-taxable activity, it generates no tax credit and the IVA is a cost. Daleki Trade issues an itemized invoice with the IVA shown so your accountant or accounting system can record the credit. Direct IVA refunds apply only to specific cases (exporters, the public sector) and are not the usual route for importers.

With Daleki Trade's 50/50 model you pay 50% of the agreed total cost when you place the order and the remaining 50% before customs clearance in Ecuador. The first half covers the supplier's FOB and international freight. The second covers SENAE taxes, the customs broker's fees and local delivery. Daleki Trade does not advance its own capital: those two payments fund the operation, and you know the exact amount of each one before you commit. We do not offer financing or credit.

Daleki Trade's commission for managed importing ranges from 8% to 15% of the order's FOB value, depending on size and complexity. Small orders (FOB under USD 3,000) pay in the upper range, 12% to 15%. Midsize orders (USD 3,000 to 15,000) pay between 10% and 12%. Large and recurring orders (FOB over USD 15,000, or clients with more than three imports a year) get preferential rates starting at 8%. The commission is included in the ATLAS calculation and appears itemized in the quote; there are no hidden commissions or last-minute surcharges. Complementary services, such as supplier validation and pre-shipment inspection, are quoted separately. ATLAS, the AI advisor, is free and requires no subscription.

If you import under a personal RUC, you can pay from a personal or business account with no operational restriction. If you import under a company's RUC, we recommend paying from the business account to keep your accounting traceable and to support the deductible expense. Daleki Trade issues a formal invoice with IVA (VAT) at 15% and accepts domestic bank transfers (Pichincha, Pacífico, Produbanco, Internacional, Guayaquil), credit cards through a payment gateway and USD payments from abroad. Daleki Trade never accepts cash or payments into personal accounts of partners or employees: all payments go to the corporate account of the corresponding legal entity (D-Legacy SAS or D-Legacy USA LLC, depending on the operation).

ATLAS classifies each product under its Harmonized System (HS) code by cross-referencing the current Ecuador COMEX tariff database, product identification from an image or description, and SENAE classification rules. When a product sits between subheadings, which is common with composite products such as kitchen sets or electronic equipment with accessories, ATLAS shows the two or three most likely options with their tariffs. The final decision belongs to the client and their customs broker, who signs the Declaración Aduanera de Importación (DAI, the import customs declaration). ATLAS does not replace the customs broker; it supports the broker with the upfront calculation and cross-validation.

ATLAS delivers the full cost breakdown in about 30 seconds on average, from the moment you paste the product link or describe the goods. It ranges from 15 to 60 seconds depending on the case: products with an obvious tariff line (standard apparel, consumer electronics) come out faster, while composite products or ones with ambiguous classification need an extra validation. ATLAS is available 24/7 at dalekitrade.com, free and with no sign-up, with unlimited calculations and an air versus sea freight comparison.

No. ATLAS is free at dalekitrade.com, with no sign-up, no card and no limit within reasonable use. It works as a 24/7 digital foreign trade consultant: it answers questions about importing to and exporting from Ecuador, identifies the tariff line, calculates the landed cost and explains the rules of SENAE, ECUAPASS, COMEX, ARCSA, ARCOTEL, INEN and AGROCALIDAD, as well as customs regimes, Incoterms and rules of origin. Daleki Trade charges only for professional services (managed importing, exporting from Ecuador, supplier validation and customs advisory), always with a final quote before the first payment.

Yes. ATLAS identifies products from an image, combining computer vision with Ecuador's tariff line database. You upload a product photo (or paste an Alibaba, Amazon or 1688 link that includes an image) and ATLAS extracts the description, suggests the most likely tariff line, estimates the volumetric weight and projects the landed cost. If the visual identification is ambiguous (generic boxes, unlabeled products, composite sets), ATLAS asks specific follow-up questions before estimating. Accuracy is high for electronics, apparel, footwear and accessories, and low for industrial inputs or specialized components; for those cases we recommend a detailed technical description in text.

Ecuador prohibits importing weapons, explosives, narcotic substances, hazardous waste, used vehicles more than five years old, unauthorized fireworks and counterfeit goods. Other categories can be imported with a prior permit: food and cosmetics need ARCSA registration, medicines need a health registration, equipment with radio or wifi needs ARCOTEL type approval, vehicles require a COMEX quota and ANT type approval, agricultural products need an AGROCALIDAD certificate, and textiles must meet the RTE INEN 013 labeling standard. ATLAS checks the restrictions from the product description before estimating costs.

1688.com prices run 20% to 40% below Alibaba for the same products, because it serves the domestic Chinese market and does not carry the exporter's margin. In exchange, it operates entirely in Chinese, its suppliers rarely speak English, they do not accept Trade Assurance or direct international payments, and MOQs may differ. To buy on 1688 from Ecuador you need a sourcing agent in China to handle communication, payment in RMB and consolidation to the port. Daleki Trade works with agents in Yiwu and Guangzhou who source products on 1688 when the savings justify the agent's margin. For small or irregular orders, Alibaba is still the simpler route.

If SENAE assigns you the red channel, an officer physically checks the cargo against the customs declaration and clearance takes one to three extra days. Every import gets a channel during the aforo, the customs assessment: green (free release), yellow (document review) or red (physical inspection). Daleki Trade covers the customs broker's attendance during the inspection and resolves minor differences in the declaration. If the inspection finds a material difference between what was declared and what was shipped, the additional costs (fines, tax adjustments, repacking) are the client's responsibility, because the declaration is based on the supplier's information. That is why ATLAS asks you to verify the description and the tariff line before any payment.

If the goods arrive defective or do not match what was quoted, the claim runs on two fronts: against the supplier at origin (through Alibaba Trade Assurance or the commercial contract) and against the cargo insurance if the damage happened in transit. Daleki Trade documents the incident with a signed receiving report at the moment of delivery, photographs and a report to the freight forwarder, and supports you through the claim. Returning goods to China is rarely economically viable; the usual path is to negotiate a replacement in the next shipment, a discount on the next order or a credit note. For orders over USD 5,000 we always recommend a pre-shipment inspection (USD 150 to 300), which greatly reduces this risk.

Daleki Trade has active routes and local agents in China (Yiwu, Shenzhen, Guangzhou), the United States (Miami, Los Angeles), Panama (Colón Free Zone), Peru and Mexico. For other origins (Europe, Brazil, India, Turkey, Vietnam, Thailand) we work with verified partners and handle each case individually. ATLAS calculates for more than 15 origin countries and has referential rates for about 100 more. If your origin is not covered, write to us at trade@dalekitrade.com with the product details and volume.

For now, Daleki Trade does not operate its own warehouses in Ecuador: the model is managed door-to-door importing up to your warehouse or delivery point. If you need fulfillment or storage, we recommend verified logistics operators with whom we have preferential rate agreements. If your operation requires consolidating inventory before final dispatch, for example to distribute to several cities, Daleki Trade can coordinate temporary storage with the operator and bill it as an additional service. Write to us at trade@dalekitrade.com with your case.

Supplier validation is a standalone service in which Daleki Trade finds, contacts and vets three to five factories for a specific product, comparing FOB, MOQ, lead time, certifications, years in operation and export references. It costs between USD 300 and USD 800 depending on product complexity and origin, and delivers a report with quotes, factory photos, physical samples (when the client covers shipping) and a recommended supplier. On orders over USD 3,000 it greatly reduces the risk of fraud and poor quality. It is optional: many clients arrive with their supplier already chosen and we handle only the import.

Panama matters to Ecuadorian importers because of the Colón Free Zone (Zona Libre de Colón), the second largest free zone in the world, which works as a regional hub for goods from China, the United States and Europe. Buying in the Colón Free Zone has three advantages over importing directly from Asia: a short lead time (3 to 5 days by sea to Guayaquil, against 30 to 45 from China), low MOQs (you can buy one box instead of a pallet) and regional consolidation (you combine products from several origins in one shipment). The downside is a unit cost 10% to 20% higher than buying directly in China, offset by less tied-up capital and faster restocking. If you are just starting out or testing new categories, Panama is usually the best place to begin.

Yes. Every import Daleki Trade manages has tracking visible to the client: the order status at the factory, the Bill of Lading or Air Waybill number at shipment, the cargo's position in the freight forwarder's system, the projected and actual arrival date at the Ecuadorian port or airport, the DAI number once clearance begins, the assigned customs channel (green, yellow or red) and the confirmed local delivery date. We keep you informed by email and by direct message with your account executive.

Daleki Trade works mainly in Ecuadorian Spanish, with a team in Quito and Guayaquil. ATLAS answers in the language you write in: in English on this site, and in Spanish if you write in Spanish. Our origin team communicates with Chinese suppliers in Mandarin or English, and with freight forwarders and customs brokers we use each one's language. You do not need to speak English or Chinese to work with Daleki Trade: we translate quotes, contracts and documentation into Spanish.

Your first import with Daleki Trade usually takes 24 to 48 hours to reach a final quote. First, open dalekitrade.com and tell ATLAS which product you want to import (or paste the Alibaba, Amazon or 1688 link); ATLAS gives you a preliminary cost breakdown. Second, if the numbers interest you, book a 15-minute call with the team at trade@dalekitrade.com to validate the regulatory requirements, adjust the tariff line and confirm logistics. Third, you receive a formal quote with Daleki Trade's commission included, the 50/50 payment model and confirmed timelines. If you approve it, you pay the initial 50% and we start the operation. A second import of the same product usually closes in under two hours, because all the information is already in the system.