As important parts of the port collection and distribution system，port railways are independent in design and generally follow a complete set of standards. The full adoption of Chinese standards is unlikely to satisfy local requirements and operating practices during the design of overseas port railways. Due to the particularity of port railways，the design ideas of the main line or ordinary station track cannot be replicated，while the port operation，general layout，and requirements for collection and distribution should be considered. For design tasks of overseas port railways，domestic design companies should adopt measures suiting local conditions including operating practices and signal systems. Meanwhile，they must also consider the design as a whole to meet special port needs. The Pakistan container port that integrates Chinese and Pakistan standards is utilized to illustrate the determination of design principles and standards，as well as the design of the general layout，cross-section，signal，and level crossing，providing a reference for similar projects.