Glossary of Terms Used in Sea Container Transportation
ITT (Internal Customs Transit) – a customs procedure under which foreign goods are transported between temporary storage warehouses (TSW) and customs warehouses within the territory of the Russian Federation without payment of customs duties and taxes. As a rule, ITT is applied when transporting goods from the place of arrival (seaport) to the location of the destination customs authority for the purpose of further customs clearance. Transportation of goods under the ITT regime may only be carried out by a licensed customs carrier.
General Act – a document drawn up by the port terminal (NMTP) on the day the unloading of containers from the vessel is completed. The date of the General Act is the first day of container storage at the NMTP port and the beginning of the demurrage period (for container lines operating at NMTP).
CCD / Cargo Customs Declaration – a document issued when goods cross the customs border of a state (export, import). The CCD is prepared by the cargo handler and certified by a customs inspector, and subsequently serves as the basis for border clearance. The declaration contains information about the cargo and its customs value, the vehicle carrying the delivery, the sender and the consignee. The term CCD is also used in relation to the transportation of goods within the Russian Federation that have already been customs-cleared prior to the start of transportation.
Demurrage – a charge for the excess use of a container from the moment of its discharge at the terminal until the moment of its removal from the terminal.
Detention – a charge for the excess use of a container from the moment of its removal from the terminal until the return of the empty container to a location agreed upon with the container owner.
Accounting Document / Reporting Document – a document opened by the port terminal (stevedoring company) upon accepting a bill-of-lading cargo lot for storage at the port. In most cases, the date of opening this document is the first day of container storage at the port and the beginning of the demurrage period. The exception is the NMTP port, which considers the first day of storage to be the date of the General Act (see General Act).
ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) – the estimated date of arrival of the vessel/cargo at the port of destination.
ETS / ETD (Estimated Time of Sailing/Departure) – the estimated date of departure of the vessel/cargo from the port of loading.
Bill of Lading (B/L) – a document issued to the cargo owner by the carrier (line agent) at the port of loading. It certifies the ownership of the shipped goods and is surrendered by the consignee to the carrier (line agent) at the port of discharge in order to receive the cargo. An exception to this rule is the simplified procedure that does not require issuance and surrender of original B/Ls (see Telex Release).
Line / Container Line – a carrier that provides sea container transportation (freight) and offers services at ports through its agents. (Examples of lines: ARKAS, CMA-CGM, MAERSK, MSC, NORASIA, ZIM).
Local Charges – charges levied by the container line for services related to container handling at the port, which are not included in the ocean freight rate. These include: terminal handling, documentation fee, container inspection/weighing/MIDC, container storage at the port, demurrage, and detention.
MIDC (Mobile Inspection and Detection Complex) – a form of customs inspection conducted without opening the container and without the involvement of a freight forwarder, by means of X-ray scanning of the container to detect undeclared goods.
Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) – a document issued by the manufacturer of a substance containing information about its properties, components, physical characteristics, toxicity, health effects, storage and transportation conditions. Section 14 contains information about the transportation conditions of the substance and its classification as dangerous or non-dangerous cargo (DG or non-DG cargo) in accordance with the IMDG Code.
POD (Port of Discharge) – the port of unloading/destination.
POL (Port of Loading) – the port of loading.
Telex Release – an instruction from the agent at the port of loading given to the agent at the port of discharge to release the cargo to the consignee without presenting original bills of lading (see B/L). This simplified form of cargo release by the line is only applicable if the original B/Ls were not issued at the port of loading or were returned by the shipper back to the line.
Terminal Handling – a set of services provided by the port terminal (stevedoring company) for unloading a container from the vessel, accepting it for safekeeping, and subsequently loading it onto a road or rail vehicle (for imports), or a set of services for unloading a container from a road or rail vehicle at the port and subsequently loading it onto the vessel (for exports).
TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) – a standard unit of measurement in container shipping equivalent to the dimensions of a 20-foot ISO container (6.1 m). A forty-foot equivalent (FEU), based on the dimensions of a 40-foot container and equal to 2 TEU, is also used.
Transit Time – the time for delivering cargo from port A to port B. Calculated from the moment of departure of the vessel from the port of loading to the moment of arrival at the port of destination.
Transshipment – the process of transferring containers at an intermediate port from one vessel to another. This is a common occurrence when a container line does not have a direct service connecting the port of loading with the port of discharge. For example: cargo destined for Novorossiysk departs from the port of Shanghai on an ocean vessel that does not call at Novorossiysk. At the port of Istanbul, the cargo is transferred to another (feeder) vessel that has Novorossiysk on its schedule. The port of Istanbul in this case is the transshipment port.
CMR / Consignment Note – a document prepared by the consignor for the transportation of goods by road. The document is issued in three copies to the driver and accompanies the cargo until it reaches the consignee. It is intended for tracking the movement of goods and for payment for transportation. Since July 25, 2011, a new form has been introduced (Appendix No. 4 to the Rules for the Carriage of Goods by Road) replacing the previous Form 1-T.
THC (Terminal Handling Charge) – a charge levied by the container line for Terminal Handling (see Terminal Handling). See also OTHC.
Storage at Port – for imports, this is the period during which a container belonging to the line remains at the port from the moment of its discharge from the vessel until the moment the cargo owner removes the container from the port (or removes the cargo inside the container). The first day of storage is determined by the date of the Accounting Document opening. The free demurrage period for dry, non-hazardous, standard-sized cargo is 7 days.
FREIGHT TERMS:
Pre-paid – freight is paid by the shipper. Applicable to delivery terms CFR, CIF, CIP, CPT, DAT, DAP, DDP.
Collect – freight is paid by the consignee. Applicable to delivery terms FOB, FAS, FCA, EXW.
FIFO (Free In / Free Out) – a freight rate that does not include either the cost of loading onto the vessel or the cost of unloading from the vessel (terminal handling at the ports of loading/discharge).
LIFO (Liner In / Free Out) – a freight rate that includes the cost of loading onto the vessel (terminal handling at the port of loading). I.e., LIFO = FIFO + OTHC.
LILO (Liner In / Liner Out) – a freight rate that includes both the cost of loading onto the vessel and the cost of unloading from the vessel (terminal handling at the ports of loading/discharge). I.e., LILO = FIFO + OTHC + DTHC.
FREIGHT RATE COMPONENTS:
All-In – a rate that includes all surcharges listed below.
BAF (Bunker Adjustment Factor) – an adjustment for changes in fuel prices.
CAF (Currency Adjustment Factor) – an adjustment for currency exchange rate fluctuations.
Congestion Surcharge – a surcharge levied to compensate for costs associated with vessel delays at congested ports.
EBS (Emergency Bunker Surcharge) – a temporary surcharge related to an increase in fuel prices.
DTHC (Destination Terminal Handling Charge) – a charge levied by the container line for Terminal Handling at the port of discharge (see Terminal Handling).
GRI (General Rate Increase) – a general rate increase applied by the line compared to the previous period.
GAC (Gulf of Aden Surcharge) – a surcharge for transportation along a route passing through the Gulf of Aden.
HWS (Heavy-Weight Surcharge) – a surcharge for cargo exceeding a specified weight limit (equivalent to OWS).
IMO Surcharge – a surcharge for the transportation of hazardous cargo.
OTHC (Origin Terminal Handling Charge) – a charge levied by the container line for Terminal Handling at the port of loading (see Terminal Handling).
OWS (Over-Weight Surcharge) – a surcharge for cargo exceeding a specified weight limit (equivalent to HWS).
PCS (Panama Canal Surcharge) – a charge for passage through the Panama Canal.
PSS (Peak Season Surcharge) – seasonal surcharges.
SCS (Suez Canal Surcharge) – a charge for passage through the Suez Canal.
WS (Winter Surcharge) – a surcharge during winter.
