The number of pilot cities for the 2026 Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Special Action has increased to 45.

The high-quality development of foreign trade is inseparable from the continuous improvement of trade facilitation. In response to the latest changes in the international trade environment, the General Administration of Customs, together with 24 departments (units) including the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Transport, and the Ministry of Commerce, jointly launched a six-month cross-border trade facilitation special action for 2026 on the 16th.

At the deployment meeting for the 2026 Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Special Action held that day, Sun Meijun, the head of the General Administration of Customs, stated that compared to last year, the pilot cities for this year's special action have further expanded, adding 20 cities including Hohhot, Changchun, Suzhou, Jinhua, Quanzhou, Nanchang, Yantai, Wuhan, Changsha, Zhuhai, Nanning, Kunming, and Xi'an, bringing the total number of participating cities to 45.

Specifically, focusing on key tasks such as optimizing and upgrading goods trade, vigorously developing service trade, and innovating digital trade and green trade, this year's special action has introduced a new round of 29 policy measures to help improve the quality and efficiency of foreign trade. These mainly include deepening innovation in import and export clearance supervision models, optimizing supervision services for new forms of foreign trade, enhancing the efficiency of cross-border logistics and transportation, strengthening the construction of smart and digital ports, promoting the interconnection of standards and rules, and improving comprehensive services for enterprises.

A relevant official from the National Port Administration Office of the General Administration of Customs explained that promoting cross-border trade facilitation is an inevitable requirement for expanding openness and enhancing cooperation, as well as for smoothing domestic and international dual circulation. It is also an effective measure to actively respond to changes in the international situation, helping enterprises stabilize orders, expand markets, and increase benefits. Furthermore, it is a concrete action to uphold the World Trade Organization's Trade Facilitation Agreement and support the multilateral trading system.

Since 2018, the General Administration of Customs, in collaboration with relevant departments, has organized cross-border trade facilitation special actions annually. By 2025, a total of 144 facilitation measures had been introduced, with 110 mature measures being replicated and promoted nationwide.