Documentation

You are viewing articles linked/relating to the category “DOCUMENTATION” published in this Shipping and Freight Resource..

Another shipping line goes electronic with their bills of lading, this time Hapag Lloyd


Categories Bill of Lading, Digitalisation, Documentation, Information, News, Technology Tags , , 2 Comments  2 minutes
electronic bill of lading - mletr

Global trade rebounded in Q1 2021, increasing by about 10% YoY and 4% QoQ. It is expected to further rebound in Q2 and projected to grow by 16%. However the outlook remains uncertain as per UNCTAD.

While global trade grows and shipments crisscross across the globe, the documentation for these shipments are still in paper mode even in this digital age.

Dealing with physical printing of paper is a practice that the shipping industry continues to depend on and these paper documents includes insurance policies, invoices and some very important documents like bills of lading.

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How many original bills of lading must I surrender to get release of cargo..??


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation, FAQ, Questions and Answers Tags , , 42 Comments  6 minutes
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How many original bills of lading must I surrender to get release of cargo..??

This question popped up on my comments and emails quite a few times since the beginning of this year and therefore I decided to write this short note to answer it..

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Liability of the shipper on the bill of lading


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation, FAQ, Legal, Liability, Opinion Tags , , Leave a comment  9 minutes
Opinion Piece

There have been several questions about the “liability of a shipper on a bill of lading”.. As we have discussed, any one can be a shipper on the bill of lading and may not necessarily be the actual exporter or seller of the goods that are covered in the bill of lading..

It is not uncommon for a Seller to be pursued by the Carrier for unpaid charges incurred in relation to the cargo, say, due to the Consignee failing to come forth and take delivery.

More often, this comes as a shock to the Seller given that they may have received payment under their contract for sale of goods and subsequently transferred the negotiable Bill of Lading by endorsement (either to a named party or in blank).

The Seller generally presumes that they do not bear any liability and instead believe that the Carrier only has a right to pursue the Consignee.

The below article by Muthu Jagannath explains the liability of the entity who is listed as a Shipper in the Bill of Lading (“BL”)..

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Letter of Credit requires IMO Number to be shown on Bill of Lading


Categories Bill of Lading, Case Studies, Documentation, Letter of Credit, Questions and Answers Tags , , 11 Comments  4 minutes
release of cargo without bill of lading

A case study on the obligations of a shipping line in terms of clauses/notations to be mentioned in a bill of lading.. Based on a real life question from a reader..

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Checking of Bill of Lading against Customs documents


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation, Education, Information, Questions and Answers, Shipping Knowledge Tags , 23 Comments  5 minutes
bill of lading vs customs documents

Why does a shipping line or agent check or have to check a Bill of Lading against customs documents.. What are they checking for and what should they be checking for..??

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Which is the most important function of a bill of lading and why..??


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation, FAQ, Questions and Answers Tags , , 4 Comments  5 minutes
functions of bill of lading

A Bill of Lading (B/L) is one of the most commonly used commercial documents in the history of shipping and freight.. This document is issued in one form or the other for all shipments whether container, bulk, break bulk, RoRo or in other forms of carriage..

A Bill of Lading has 3 basic functions.. But which is the most important function of the bill of lading..??

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What are the main causes of Demurrage and Detention


Categories Bill of Lading, Demurrage and Detention, Documentation, Education, Freight Container, Letter of Credit, Trade Tags , , , 26 Comments  8 minutes
causes of demurrage and detention

In one my previous articles, I explained the Difference between Demurrage and Detention..

After reading this, a few of my readers have asked me to explain the causes of demurrage and detention..

There are several reasons a container(s) can incur demurrage and/or detention or combined demurrage and detention.. Here are some of the major reasons..

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Cargo Tracking Note – what is it and where is it used in shipping?


Categories Documentation, Trade Tags , , , , , , , 103 Comments  3 minutes
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The Electronic Cargo Tracking Note (ECTN), also known as Bordereau de Suivi Cargaison (BSC) and other names depending on the country, is an official marine document that contains information relating to the cargo and its movement between ports.

This document is required to be submitted to the shippers’ councils in most countries of Africa. Every cargo exported to these countries, whether it is commercial, personal or charity, must have this ECTN certificate.

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What is a Delivery Order and who issues it..??


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation, Education Tags , , , , 57 Comments  4 minutes
Image for Delivery Order post

If you are in the shipping and freight industry, you would have no doubt heard about a Delivery Order..

This article explains in detail all about a Delivery Order – what is it, who issues it, who should it be issued to and its importance..

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Is your country ready for Advance Cargo Information..?? Egypt is..


Categories Customs, Digitalisation, Documentation, Trade Tags , , , , , 3 Comments  4 minutes
Customs Release

Global trade volume in 2019 was 11.08 billion tons amounting to around $19 trillion in value.. Seaborne trade accounts for around 90% of global trade..

Currently, various cargoes are transported in 24 million+ containers around the world on over 6,218 container vessels..

As you can imagine this leads to a lot of documentation especially with Customs authorities around the world.. When we speak of Customs authorities around the world, you can also imagine the different rules and regulations each country has for the import and export of cargo to/from their country..

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When can a bank guarantee against a lost bill of lading be cancelled..??


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation, Shipping Tags , Leave a comment  4 minutes

In cases where an original bill of lading is lost, there are several steps that need to be taken to carry on business and secure release without an original.. I previously wrote about What to do when an Original Bill of lading is lost so I am not discussing it again here..

One of the solutions for release without original bill of lading is a Bank Guarantee..

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Is a Delivery Order a legal document..??


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation Tags , , , 13 Comments  4 minutes

By definition, “A Delivery Order is a release document issued by the carrier releasing the cargo to the consignee mentioned in the bill of lading” It is issued by the carrier … Read more here..

How to safeguard cargo release using the correct type of bill of lading


Categories Bill of Lading, Case Studies, Documentation, Education Tags , , 12 Comments  7 minutes
Safeguard Cargo Release

An article on how to safeguard cargo release using the correct type of bill of lading.. This article is based on a case study information received from one of the readers..

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DCSA publishes data and process standards for bill of lading preparation and issuance


Categories Bill of Lading, Digitalisation, Documentation, News Tags , , Leave a comment  4 minutes
shipping and freight news - shipping and freight resource

DCSA has published data and process standards for the submission of shipping instructions and issuance of the bill of lading (B/L).

DCSA B/L standards are aligned with the UN/CEFACT (United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business) multimodal transport reference data model to ensure a global industry framework that accelerates digitalisation through a unified industry effort.

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Can a negotiable bill of lading be telex released..??


Categories Bill of Lading, Documentation, Education Tags , , , , , 18 Comments  8 minutes
telex release - shipping and freight resource

Maybe because it is one of the most important documents in global trade, there always seems to be a degree of uncertainty around a bill of lading and questions such as this..

Many people have doubts regarding which bill of lading to issue, how many to issue..

There are also questions such as what is a Telex Release, how it works and under what circumstances a Telex Release maybe issued..

In this particular post, I will cover the circumstances under which a Telex Release maybe issued and whether a telex release can be actioned on a negotiable bill of lading..

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