Pre-shipment inspection in China: a guide for ecommerce and Amazon FBA sellers
A defect found in a Chinese factory costs a phone call. The same defect found in a US warehouse costs the whole batch, and found by a customer it costs the batch plus your reviews. Pre-shipment inspection is how you move the discovery to the cheap end of that chain. Here is how it works, without the jargon.
What is a pre-shipment inspection?
A pre-shipment inspection (PSI) is a check carried out in China when production is finished and most of the goods are packed, before the final payment is made and before anything ships. An inspector pulls a sample of units and verifies quantity, workmanship, function, packaging and labeling against your specification, then issues a report with photos and a pass or fail result.
The timing is the whole point: you still hold the balance payment, and the goods are still at the factory. Rework, replacement or a discount can be negotiated. After the shipment leaves, your leverage is gone.
The four types of inspection
| Inspection | When | What it catches |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-production (IPC) | Before production starts | Wrong materials or components, factory not ready |
| During production (DUPRO) | 20% to 50% produced | Systematic defects while they can still be corrected on the line |
| Pre-shipment (PSI) | 100% produced, 80%+ packed | Finished-goods defects, quantity, packaging, labeling |
| Container loading check | At loading | Wrong quantities, damaged cartons, poor loading |
AQL sampling in plain English
Nobody opens every unit of a 5,000-piece order. Inspectors use AQL (acceptance quality limit) tables, based on the ISO 2859-1 standard, to decide how many units to check and how many defects are acceptable.
Defects are sorted in three classes:
- Critical: unsafe or illegal (a sharp edge on a toy, a missing safety warning). Tolerance is zero.
- Major: the customer would return it (does not work, wrong color, visible damage).
- Minor: noticeable but most customers would keep it (a small scratch, a loose thread).
A common setting for consumer goods is 0 / 2.5 / 4.0. For an order of 3,000 units at the usual inspection level, the sample is 125 units, and the batch fails if more than 7 major or more than 10 minor defects are found. A stricter level for premium products means a lower tolerance, not necessarily a bigger sample.
What matters for you: define the three classes for your product in writing before production. "Scratches" means nothing; "scratch longer than 2 mm on the front face" is something an inspector can enforce.
Inspection checklist for ecommerce products
Amazon FBA inspection: what it adds
Amazon does not judge your product quality at receiving, but it does reject or charge for inventory that breaks its prep rules. An FBA inspection in China adds a second layer on top of product quality:
- FNSKU labels: present on every unit, scannable, covering any other barcode.
- Poly bags: correct thickness, sealed, with a suffocation warning where required.
- Sets and bundles: marked "sold as set" and packed so they cannot separate.
- Cartons: FBA box labels on each carton, weight and dimensions within Amazon’s limits (check Seller Central for the current figures before each shipment), correct unit count per carton.
- Shipping plan match: what is in the cartons is exactly what the shipment plan declares.
Doing this before the goods leave China avoids paying a US prep center to fix it later, or worse, stranded inventory. Our FBA prep center in China inspects and preps in the same step.
Who should inspect: three options
The factory’s own QC
Free and always claimed. Useful, but it is the supplier grading its own homework.
A third-party inspection company
Independent inspectors booked per man-day, who visit the factory and send a report within 24 hours. The standard choice for importers buying full production runs from a factory they do not know well.
Your sourcing agent or fulfillment partner
If your goods pass through an agent’s warehouse anyway, inspection happens at receiving, every batch, with no factory visit to schedule. For dropshipping and small-batch brands this is usually the most practical setup, because the same team that finds a defect also handles the return to the supplier. That is how our sourcing and fulfillment center teams work.
For regulated or high-value products, combining the last two (agent inspection plus an independent lab test) is worth the cost.
What a good inspection report contains
- Order reference, quantity ordered and quantity presented.
- Sample size and the AQL levels applied.
- Defects found, classified critical, major or minor, each with a photo.
- Measurements and test results against the specification.
- Packaging and labeling photos, including scanned barcodes.
- A clear overall result: pass, fail, or pending your decision.
"Everything looks fine" in a chat message is not a report.
If the inspection fails
Inspection with Apex Hub
Every batch that enters our Shenzhen warehouse is counted and inspected against your specification before it is stored, and every order is checked again before it is packed. Reports come with photos, and defective goods go back to the supplier, not to your customers. Tell us what you sell and we will explain the checks we would apply.
Frequently asked questions
What is a pre-shipment inspection?
A quality check carried out in China when production is finished and most of the goods are packed, before the balance is paid and the shipment leaves. An inspector samples units and checks quantity, workmanship, function, packaging and labeling against your specification.
When should the inspection take place?
When 100% of the order is produced and at least 80% is packed, and before you pay the final balance.
What is AQL?
A statistical sampling method. The inspector checks a sample whose size depends on the order quantity, and the batch passes or fails according to the number of defects found. Common consumer-goods settings are 0 for critical defects, 2.5 for major and 4.0 for minor.
What does an Amazon FBA inspection add?
It checks what Amazon checks at receiving: scannable FNSKU labels, poly bags with suffocation warnings, carton labels, carton weight and dimensions, and unit counts per carton.
Do I need a third-party inspector if I use a sourcing agent?
Not necessarily. An agent with its own quality control team inspects goods at receiving and reports with photos. For high-value or regulated products, an independent inspection or lab test on top can be worth the cost.
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