Exporting Stone to Korea: Weight Fills the Container Before Volume, Plus Road Limits, VGM Duty, and FTA Relief for Marble and Granite
If you quarry or fabricate stone in China or Vietnam and sell into Korea, how you load the container decides whether your goods roll off the port cleanly or strand your buyer with a container that cannot legally move. Marble and granite are the textbook heavy cargo: unlike furniture, which is light and bulky, stone runs out of weight allowance long before it runs out of space. Get the loading, the VGM, and the origin paperwork right and your shipment clears without surprises.
Stone fills the container by weight, not volume
Marble and granite run about 2.6 to 2.9 tons per cubic meter. Just how heavy is baked into the tariff book: HS heading 2515, which classifies marble, is defined as stone of "an apparent specific gravity of 2.5 or more." Weight is part of the definition.
That weight changes how freight is set. Ocean freight is charged on whichever is greater, volume or weight, converting 1 CBM to 1,000 kg for the revenue ton. Because a cubic meter of stone weighs around 2,700 kg, the weight figure always wins, so stone is priced by weight. Which of the two sets the freight is explained in CBM and volumetric weight.
That weight hits a hard wall: the container's maximum payload.
| Container | Internal volume (approx.) | Max payload (approx.) | Filled with stone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20-foot | 33 CBM | 21.7 tons | Weight limit at ~8 CBM |
| 40-foot | 67 CBM | 26.5 tons | Weight limit at ~10 CBM |
Payload varies by container and carrier, but the point holds: load a 40-foot box with stone and you hit the weight limit at roughly 10 of its 67 CBM, about one-seventh full, with the rest of the box standing empty. Volumes and load ratings by container are in container types and specifications.
Load for the road, not just for the container
Because stone maxes out on weight, this is a full-container (FCL) game from the first shipment. It is heavy and prone to damage and handling risk, so consolidation does not suit it, and it fills a box on weight anyway. When to go FCL versus LCL is covered in ocean freight LCL vs FCL.
The trap that catches exporters is loading to the container's rating instead of the destination's road limit. Korea enforces an axle load of 10 tons and a gross vehicle weight of 40 tons. A 40-foot container is rated above 26 tons of cargo, but once the tractor, chassis, and container tare are added, just 24 to 25 tons of cargo reaches the 40-ton road limit. If you pack the box to its plate rating, it sails fine but cannot legally leave the Korean port by road, and your buyer is left paying to strip and re-handle it. Axle load matters too: stone shifts weight to one side easily, so a box under 40 tons total can still exceed the per-axle limit. Load stone to Korea's road limit, not the container maximum, favor 20-foot boxes, which are easier to keep within axle limits, and spread the weight evenly.
VGM is your obligation as the shipper
For heavy cargo the container weight declaration is not a formality, and it is squarely on you. Since July 2016, under the SOLAS amendment, the Verified Gross Mass (VGM) must be declared before loading, and that duty falls on the shipper, which is you as the exporter, not your buyer. Without a verified VGM the container cannot be loaded onto the vessel.
You get the figure one of two ways: weigh the packed container at an approved scale, or add up the weight of each item and the container's own tare. With stone, an inaccurate figure turns into an overload or a stability problem at sea and on the road, so weigh it, do not estimate. A VGM that does not match reality gets the box refused at loading or flagged as overweight on Korean roads, and either way the delay lands on your shipment.
Duty and FTA: help your Korean buyer pay less
Stone's HS code turns on how far it is worked. Rough natural stone, merely cut or sawn, is 2515 for marble and travertine and 2516 for granite, basalt, and sandstone. Worked building or monumental stone, ground, polished, and cut to size, moves to 6802. Which subheading applies is a classification call, so start from what an HS code is.
The duty follows that line closely. Rough stone (2515, 2516) is largely low-rate or duty-free, while worked stone products (6802) include lines that carry Korea's 8% base rate. It is on those 8% lines that the China and Vietnam FTAs earn their keep.
- The Korea-China and Korea-Vietnam FTA preferential rate requires an authority-issued certificate of origin.
- Even if it is missing at clearance, your buyer can claim the rate retroactively within one year of import.
On a worked-stone line at 8%, if you do not supply the certificate your buyer pays the full rate, which makes your price look worse than a competitor who does. Issuing a clean certificate of origin is one of the simplest ways to stay competitive in Korea. The mechanics are in certificate of origin and using FTAs.
A pre-shipment checklist for shipping stone to Korea
Before you load stone bound for Korea, line these up.
- Load plan: set the cargo weight against Korea's 40-ton road limit, not the container's plate rating.
- Container choice: favor 20-foot boxes and split across several rather than maxing one.
- VGM: weigh the packed container and file the verified figure as shipper.
- HS code and duty: rough stone (2515, 2516) versus worked (6802) sets the rate, so confirm on Korea Customs' FTA portal.
- Certificate of origin: on 8% worked-stone lines, issue the authority-certified certificate so your buyer gets the FTA rate.
Freight basis, container choice, road limits, and the weight declaration are all tied to one thing in stone: weight. Planning the load, the ocean leg, and the Korean clearance around weight from the start is what keeps your shipment from being stripped at the dock or stopped on the road.
This guide is general information as of July 2026. Container payloads vary by unit and carrier, and tariff rates by HS subheading and FTA preferential rates vary by material, degree of working, and regulatory change, so confirm with Korea Customs' FTA portal and your forwarder before shipping.
Interactive tool
CBM volume and revenue-ton calculator
Enter the length, width, height, and quantity of your stone to get the volume and weight together, and see when the load hits the container's weight limit.
Frequently asked questions
Why is stone freight charged by weight instead of volume?
Marble and granite run about 2.6 to 2.9 tons per cubic meter, so 1 CBM weighs around 2,700 kg. Ocean freight is charged on whichever is greater, volume or weight, converting 1 CBM to 1,000 kg for the revenue ton. Because stone's weight figure far exceeds its volume figure, freight is always set by weight.
How much stone can a 40-foot container hold?
A 40-foot container has about 67 CBM of internal volume, but stone hits the maximum payload at roughly 10 CBM, about one-seventh full. On top of that, Korea's 40-ton road limit means only about 24 to 25 tons of cargo can actually move by road, so you must load below the container's plate rating, not up to it.
Should stone ship in a 20-foot or 40-foot container to Korea?
Heavy cargo like stone cannot fill a 40-foot box before hitting the weight limit, and weight tends to shift to one axle. A 20-foot box is easier to keep within axle limits, so exporters favor 20-foot units and split cargo across several boxes rather than maxing one, which is better for both Korea's road rules and handling safety.
Who files the VGM for a stone shipment?
The shipper does, which is you as the exporter, not your Korean buyer. Since July 2016 the SOLAS amendment requires a Verified Gross Mass before loading, and without it the container cannot be loaded onto the vessel. Weigh the packed container at an approved scale or sum each item's weight plus the container tare. With heavy stone, weigh it rather than estimate, since an inaccurate figure risks overload and refusal.
What duty will my Korean buyer pay on stone, and can an FTA reduce it?
It depends on how far the stone is worked. Rough natural stone (HS 2515, 2516) is largely low-rate or duty-free, while worked stone products (HS 6802) include lines at Korea's 8% base rate. On those 8% lines the Korea-China or Korea-Vietnam FTA can bring the rate to zero if you supply an authority-issued certificate of origin, claimable retroactively within one year. Confirm your subheading on Korea Customs' FTA portal.
