Sourcing
Cooked, breaded, live and chilled shrimp: sourcing checklist and import rules
Short answer: shrimp that is cooked, breaded, marinated or sold as a ready meal is a prepared product under HS heading 1605, and live or chilled shrimp has its own codes and controls — so the specification, documents and checks differ from raw frozen shrimp. State the exact form, the net shrimp content and the shelf-life or survival requirements in your request.
What this page covers
- Cooked shrimp (shell-on or peeled), cooked and frozen ring packs
- Breaded, battered, tempura, marinated and skewered shrimp, dumplings and ready meals containing shrimp
- Live, fresh and chilled shrimp and prawns, including freshwater prawns (Macrobrachium rosenbergii)
Customs codes
- HS 1605.21 / 1605.29 — prepared or preserved shrimps and prawns
- HS 0306.35 / 0306.36 — live, fresh or chilled shrimps and prawns
- HS 160520 — the older code used in the 2024 trade statistics on this site
Not on this page
Raw frozen shrimp (IQF or block) has its own page with a frozen-shrimp checklist.
Prepared, live and chilled shrimp RFQ checklist
- Exact form: cooked, breaded, battered, marinated, skewered, ready meal, live, fresh or chilled.
- Species by scientific name, and farmed or wild-caught.
- Net shrimp content: for coated products, the coating percentage and the net shrimp weight declared on the label; for cooked products, the cook and the count after cooking.
- Ingredient list and recipe ownership (supplier's recipe or your own), allergens and label language for the destination. Crustaceans are a declared allergen under EU Regulation 1169/2011.
- Temperature state and shelf life: frozen at −18 °C or colder, chilled on ice, or live; required remaining shelf life on arrival.
- For live or chilled shrimp: transport method, maximum transit time, packing density and who bears losses on arrival.
- Packing format (retail pack, food-service bag, ring tray), carton size and private label.
- Volume per shipment, frequency and programme length.
- Destination, port or airport of entry, and Incoterm.
- Documents: health certificate, establishment approval or registration number, and any animal-health certificate for live animals.
- Testing you require before shipment (for example microbiology for cooked product) and who pays.
- Programme value: FishMatch manages requests from USD 250,000 per programme or project; smaller requests are saved and pointed to free tools.
Regulations by destination
Prepared and live shrimp sit under different codes from raw frozen shrimp, and live animals can trigger animal-health rules as well as food rules. Summaries below link to the official source.
Official pages last checked 23 October 2026. General orientation, not legal or import advice; rules change.
European Union
- The exporting country must be authorised for the product, and the producing establishment must be on the EU list of authorised non-EU establishments.
- The importer pre-notifies each consignment at the border control post with a CHED-P in TRACES; documentary, identity and physical checks follow.
- The consignment travels with the official health certificate model for the product, signed by the exporting country's competent authority.
- Fresh products must be kept at a temperature approaching that of melting ice (Regulation 853/2004).
- Live crustaceans are aquatic animals: EU animal-health entry rules (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/692) apply alongside food rules — confirm the certificate model before contracting.
- Food labels must declare crustaceans as an allergen (Regulation (EU) 1169/2011).
Official sources
- EU entry conditions (European Commission)
- EU lists of authorised non-EU establishments
- TRACES (European Commission)
- Regulation (EC) 853/2004 (EUR-Lex)
- Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/692 — entry of animals, incl. aquatic animals (EUR-Lex)
- Regulation (EU) 1169/2011 on food information (EUR-Lex)
Country guides: European Union
Spain
- Spain applies the EU rules above. The importer, directly or through a customs representative, pre-notifies the consignment to the official control service at a Spanish border control post using the CHED-P in TRACES NT.
- Check that the border control post you will use is listed for your product category.
Official sources
- Spanish Ministry of Health: border control posts for products for human consumption
- Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food: import requirements for fishery and aquaculture products (Oct 2025)
Country guides: Spain
United States
- There is no EU-style list of approved foreign plants: foreign facilities register with FDA, processors must meet FDA seafood HACCP (21 CFR Part 123), and importers must verify that their suppliers comply.
- FDA Prior Notice must be submitted and confirmed before arrival — at least 8 hours before arrival by water, 4 hours by air.
- Shrimp is in NOAA's Seafood Import Monitoring Program; check that NOAA's SIMP HTS list includes your product's code before you set the documents.
- Crustaceans are on FDA's Food Traceability List; Congress directed FDA not to enforce the Food Traceability Rule before 20 July 2028.
Official sources
- 21 CFR Part 123 — fish and fishery products (eCFR)
- FDA Prior Notice of imported foods
- NOAA Seafood Import Monitoring Program
- NOAA: HTS codes subject to SIMP
- FDA Food Traceability List
Country guides: United States
China
- The overseas producer must be registered with the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) after recommendation by its own competent authority (Decree 248, in force since 1 January 2022).
- The Chinese registration number, or the number approved by the producer's own authority, must be marked on inner and outer packaging.
- An official certificate agreed between the two countries' authorities may be required; check the current bilateral requirement with your Chinese importer.
Official sources
Country guides: China
Japan
- The importer submits an import notification under the Food Sanitation Act (Article 27) to the quarantine station for the port of clearance; inspectors may sample for residues and additives.
- Whether an official certificate is needed depends on the product and origin; confirm with the quarantine station before shipping.
- Live aquatic animals for human consumption fall under Japan's aquatic-animal quarantine only when they will be kept in public waters or in facilities that drain into them; confirm with the Animal Quarantine Service.
Official sources
- Import procedure under the Food Sanitation Act (MHLW)
- Entry into Japan — aquatic animals (Animal Quarantine Service, MAFF)
Country guides: Japan
Norway
- Norway is in the European Economic Area: EU veterinary and food-safety legislation applies there through the EEA Agreement, so EU-type certificates and border checks apply to fishery products from outside the EEA.
- Controls are carried out by the Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet).
Official sources
- EFTA: agriculture, fisheries and food safety in the EEA
- Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet)
Country guides: Norway
How a request works
- You submit a structured request; it is private and free for buyers.
- A person on the FishMatch team clarifies it, replies within one business day and identifies suppliers that may fit.
- The team coordinates supplier questions and collects comparable information and quotes.
- We help you review specifications, terms, volumes, documents, logistics and risks.
- You decide; the team coordinates the next steps.
FishMatch is not the producer, seller, importer of record, inspection laboratory, customs broker or carrier, and does not guarantee supply, quality, compliance or approvals. Supplier checks are document and profile reviews, not on-site audits. Supplier communication goes through the FishMatch team.
Request offers for prepared, live or chilled shrimp
Free for buyers. Name the form in the first line of your request. A person reviews it and replies within one business day; supplier quote timing is never promised.
Frequently asked questions
- Why are cooked and breaded shrimp a separate request?
- They are prepared products under HS heading 1605, usually made in different plants from raw frozen shrimp, with recipes, coating ratios, allergens and shelf life to specify. Treating them as raw shrimp leads to offers that cannot be compared.
- What should a breaded shrimp offer state?
- The coating percentage, the net shrimp weight declared on the label, the count before or after coating, the frying or par-frying state and the ingredient list.
- Can FishMatch arrange live shrimp shipments?
- FishMatch can review a live-shrimp request and approach producers, but transport, permits and animal-health certification remain the responsibility of the seller and importer. It does not ship, import or guarantee survival.