Home / Shipping to the Falkland Islands / How to ship from China to the Falkland Islands
How to ship from China to the Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands sit in the South Atlantic, and everything that arrives there arrives by sea or through an airfield that exists primarily for defence. For a first-time importer that changes the shape of the job: you are not choosing between five carriers, you are fitting your cargo into a resupply service that sails from the United Kingdom roughly twelve times a year.
The other half of the picture is unusually kind. The territory levies no value-added tax, no sales tax and no general tariff. Customs duty lands on a short list of goods, charged by weight or volume at rates the Falkland Islands Government resets each year. Everything else comes in duty-free.
This page walks through the route, the two harbours, the duty list, and the handful of things that regularly go wrong when a Chinese supplier quotes a shipment to Port Stanley.
At a glance
Gateways: Port Stanley by sea, Mount Pleasant by air. Sea: the resupply service runs from London Gateway about twelve times a year, with Mare Harbour as the northern terminus. Duty: no VAT and no general tariff; customs duty applies to alcohol, tobacco and vaping products by weight or volume. Currency: Falkland Islands pound, at par with sterling. Population: about 3,700.
How your cargo moves: China to the Falkland Islands
Eight steps from your supplier's door to yours. The last four are the ones shaped by local rules.
- Pickup from your supplierWe collect the goods anywhere in China and bring them to our consolidation point.
- Export clearanceChina customs declaration filed and released before the goods move to the port.
- Loading and departureContainer loaded, sealed and handed to the carrier at the Chinese port.
- Main carriageOcean, air or rail movement booked on the route agreed for your cargo.
- Arrival at the gatewayDischarge at the port or airport of entry, recorded on the carrier's manifest.
- Import clearanceCustoms declaration filed locally, with duty and tax assessed on the declared value.
- Customs releaseGoods released into free circulation once duty and tax are settled.
- Final deliveryOnward movement to your delivery address, warehouse or nominated depot.
Duty rates, VAT rates and clearance times move, and the figure that applies to your goods is the one set for your commodity code on the day of clearance. We check the current position against your code before your goods sail and confirm it to you in writing — ask for that check when you request a quote.
A territory with no VAT and no general tariff, and what that does to your landed cost
Most destinations make you budget for two things at the border: duty, and a consumption tax on top of it. The Falkland Islands have neither in the usual sense. There is no VAT, no sales tax, no goods and services tax, and no tariff schedule applied across the board.
In practice the taxes-at-destination line on a Port Stanley quote is far thinner than the same line for Chile or South Africa. What remains is customs duty on a narrow list of goods, plus the port and handling charges that any small harbour charges.
Do not read that as cheap. The duty saving is real but small next to the cost of the sea leg itself, which is long, infrequent and priced in sterling. The discipline that matters here is booking space early, not shaving duty.
Where the cargo actually lands: Stanley Harbour, Mare Harbour and the new port build
Almost all commercial cargo comes through Stanley Harbour, usually called Port Stanley. It is a sheltered natural harbour with a small commercial quay, and container handling is done by mobile crane rather than a ship-to-shore gantry.
Mare Harbour, across the sound, is the deep-water support port and the northern terminus of the resupply service. Project cargo and fuel movements are sometimes worked there, but a normal importer clears in Stanley.
A new harbour facility has been under development, with a budget in the order of £109 million, roughly 400 metres of berth frontage, and an anticipated opening around 2028. If your shipment is a one-off, plan against the harbour that exists today. If you are building a long-term supply line into the islands, ask how handling will change once the new berths open.
London Gateway to Port Stanley, twelve sailings a year, and why nothing runs direct from China
There is no direct liner service from a Chinese port to Port Stanley. The resupply service sails from the United Kingdom, out of London Gateway, on a roughly monthly pattern with about twelve sailings a year. A northbound pattern runs from Mare Harbour toward Marchwood in the UK, with roughly six sailings a year.
Your container therefore travels China, to a transshipment hub, to the United Kingdom, to the Falkland Islands. That is an extra full leg, and it means the Chinese export date matters far less than the UK cut-off. Missing the London Gateway closing date costs you a month, not a week.
Quote the two legs separately. Only commit to a delivery month once you have a named sailing, not a sailing window.
Air freight through Mount Pleasant, and why the timetable is not a commercial one
RAF Mount Pleasant is the territory's main airport. It exists first for defence purposes, and the scheduled air links to the United Kingdom and to South America are limited, so commercial air freight is arranged through that capacity or through charter.
For urgent or high-value cargo the realistic routing is China to a European or South American hub, then onward to Mount Pleasant. Air freight buys you speed against a monthly ship; it does not buy you a daily schedule.
Capacity and rates on this routing move with the military timetable. Get the uplift date in writing before you promise a delivery date to a buyer.
Reading the Customs Resolution: duty charged per kilogram and per litre
The Falkland Islands Government sets duty rates by Customs Resolution, and the resolution currently in force took effect on 21 July 2026. The rates are specific rather than ad valorem: you are charged per kilogram of tobacco, per litre of spirits, per device for disposable vapes.
Specific rates are easy to calculate but unforgiving at declaration. Customs needs a weight, a volume or a unit count that matches the paperwork, not just an invoice value. If your supplier ships mixed cartons, get an itemised packing list with net weights before the goods leave China.
| Product | Rate from 21 July 2026 |
|---|---|
| Cigars and cigarettes | £643.96 per kilogram |
| Other tobacco | £513.05 per kilogram |
| Spirits | £17.42 per litre |
| Beer, cider and perry | £0.47 per litre |
| Wine | £1.16 per litre |
| Fortified wine | £1.37 per litre |
| Disposable vaping devices | £26.00 per device |
| Vaping liquid | £3.90 per 10 ml or 10 g |
These 2026 figures replaced the 2025 resolution, under which disposable vapes stood at £20.00 per device and vaping liquid at £3.00 per 10 ml. If a rate you have been quoted looks like the older figure, ask for the current resolution.
Tobacco, alcohol and vapes: the three categories that carry real money
Because the duty is specific and high, these categories dominate the customs bill whenever they appear. A single pallet of disposable vapes is a five-figure duty exposure at £26 a device, and customs counts devices, not cartons.
Alcohol behaves the same way by volume. Spirits at £17.42 a litre means a part-container of spirits can owe more duty than the goods are worth.
If you are importing in these categories, get a written duty calculation from a Falkland Islands broker before you ship, and make sure the commercial invoice carries net weight, net volume and unit count in the units the resolution uses.
FKP and GBP at parity, and how to word the currency clause
The Falkland Islands pound is issued locally and circulates at par with pound sterling; sterling is accepted everywhere. There is no exchange risk between the two, which removes one variable.
The real currency question sits between your buyer's currency and sterling, because freight, port charges and duty are all settled in sterling. If your Chinese supplier quotes in US dollars and your buyer pays in sterling, somebody carries the exchange movement across a two-month transit.
A clean way to handle it: quote the freight in sterling with a stated validity window, and list duty and port charges as estimates to be settled at the rate applying on the day of entry.
Documents, and the VHF call to Stanley Port Control before you arrive
The document set is the standard one: commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, plus any certificate of origin or permit your goods require. There is no de minimis threshold to lean on, so even small consignments are entered formally.
One local rule catches people out. Vessels calling at Stanley are expected to contact Stanley Port Control on VHF channel 10, which is monitored around the clock. That is a ship's obligation rather than an importer's, but if your carrier is unaware of it, arrival can be delayed.
Biosecurity is strict in both directions. Wood packaging must meet ISPM 15, and anything carrying soil, seeds or organic matter will be stopped.
Packing for a South Atlantic crossing and a crane at the far end
Your container will be transshipped at least once and then worked by mobile crane at a small quay. Pack for handling, not only for the voyage: strap and block anything on wheels, and do not rely on a container floor to hold a top-heavy pallet through two crane lifts.
Weather is the second packing driver. The South Atlantic passage is cold and wet and containers sit on an exposed quay. Use vapour-phase corrosion protection on machined metal parts, and keep moisture-sensitive goods in sealed barrier bags with desiccant.
Timings that survive contact with the South Atlantic
Realistic door-to-door for sea freight is in the order of 50 to 70 days from a Chinese factory to a Stanley address: roughly 30 to 40 days to a UK or European hub, then a wait for the next sailing, then the southbound passage.
Air freight, where capacity exists, compresses the whole move to roughly 10 to 20 days, but only when the uplift date lines up with the scheduled service.
The single biggest variable is the sailing calendar. Plan backwards from it rather than forwards from the factory date.
Why importers use Goodhope on this lane
Six things that are different about working with us on China to the Falkland Islands shipments.
Price the Falklands leg only after the sailing date is known
Send us the commodity, the weights and the dimensions and we will tell you which sailing your cargo can realistically make, what Port Stanley handling will cost, and whether any duty applies at all before you commit.
Get a quote Talk to usRelated pages
Frequently asked questions
Is there a direct ship from China to the Falkland Islands?
No. Commercial cargo is carried on the resupply service that runs from the United Kingdom, out of London Gateway, roughly twelve times a year. Your container goes from China to a transshipment hub, then to the UK, then south.
Do I pay VAT on goods imported into the Falkland Islands?
No. There is no VAT, no sales tax and no general tariff. Customs duty is limited to a short list, chiefly alcohol, tobacco and vaping products, charged at specific rates by weight, volume or unit count.
What duty applies to disposable vapes?
Under the Customs Resolution in force from 21 July 2026 the rate is £26.00 per device, with vaping liquid at £3.90 per 10 ml or 10 g. These figures rose from £20.00 and £3.00 in the previous year, so confirm the current resolution with a local broker.
Which port should I name on the bill of lading?
Port Stanley, meaning Stanley Harbour. Mare Harbour is the deep-water support port and northern terminus of the resupply service but is not where ordinary commercial imports are cleared.
Can I ship air freight to the Falkland Islands?
Yes, through RAF Mount Pleasant, but capacity follows a limited scheduled and charter timetable rather than a commercial daily service. Get the uplift date confirmed in writing before you quote a delivery date.
What currency is used, and is there exchange risk between FKP and GBP?
The Falkland Islands pound circulates at par with sterling and sterling is accepted everywhere, so there is no exchange risk between them. The exposure sits between your buyer's currency and sterling across a long transit.
How long does sea freight take from China to Port Stanley?
Plan on roughly 50 to 70 days door to door, made up of about 30 to 40 days to a UK or European hub, a wait for the next sailing, and the southbound passage. The sailing calendar drives the total far more than the ocean transit does.
Is there a de minimis value below which goods enter duty-free?
There is no de minimis threshold to rely on. Even small consignments are entered formally, and duty is assessed by the specific rates rather than by value for the goods that fall on the duty list.
What documents does customs want?
A commercial invoice, a packing list, a bill of lading or air waybill, and any certificate of origin or permit your goods require. For alcohol, tobacco or vaping products the packing list must carry net weights, volumes or unit counts.
Are there any special arrival procedures I should know about?
Yes. Vessels calling at Stanley contact Stanley Port Control on VHF channel 10, which is monitored continuously. Wood packaging must meet ISPM 15 and biosecurity checks on soil, seeds and organic material are strict.