This post assumes you already know the basics. We cover the definitions in NVOCC vs freight forwarder, and the licence, bond and insurance steps in how to start a freight forwarding company and freight forwarder insurance. What those posts do not cover is the narrower question this one answers: once you are a licensed US NVOCC, how do you actually publish your ocean rates, and how do you legally contract a rate with a particular shipper?
Everything below is based on the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) regulations at 46 CFR Parts 520, 531, 532, 515 and 506 as they read in the eCFR on 30 September 2026, and on the Shipping Act provisions they implement. It describes United States ocean trades only. It is explanation, not legal advice, and some of what circulates in the trade is out of date, so we flag the corrections as we go.
The short answer
A US NVOCC must publish a tariff in an automated system open to the public free of charge. It can then do one of three things with a rate: charge the published tariff rate, agree a negotiated rate with a shipper under a Negotiated Rate Arrangement (NRA), or sign a volume contract with a shipper under an NVOCC Service Arrangement (NSA). NRAs and NSAs are exemptions from the requirement to publish rates, but not from the requirement to publish the rules tariff, and not from the duty to charge exactly what the tariff, NRA or NSA says.
Two common beliefs are wrong as of October 2026. First, an NRA is not a way to quote "a different rate from your tariff if conditions are met". For a qualifying NVOCC it replaces public rate publication altogether. Second, NSAs are no longer filed with the FMC. The filing and publication requirement was removed in a final rule effective 22 August 2018.
What the tariff requirement says
The statute is 46 U.S.C. 40501, and Part 520 implements it. Common carriers must keep tariffs open for public inspection in automated tariff systems, showing all rates, charges, classifications, rules and practices. An NVOCC counts as a common carrier for this purpose because it holds itself out to carry cargo it does not move on its own vessels. Part 520 was substantially rewritten in a final rule published on 2 January 2024 (89 FR 29), so older summaries of it are worth checking against the current text. The points that matter most to an NVOCC:
- Free, unrestricted public access. Tariffs must be available over the internet to any person without time, quantity or other limitations, and access to the tariff system must be free (520.9). Charging the public to view your tariff is no longer permitted.
- Notice to the FMC before you start. Before commencing common carrier service under a tariff, a carrier must submit Form FMC-1 electronically, including the location of its tariffs and any publisher it uses (520.3(d)). The FMC lists tariff locations on its website.
- A tariff is mandatory to operate. The regulation states that failure to maintain a tariff results in revocation of an NVOCC's licence (520.3(f)). A common carrier that knowingly and willfully accepts cargo from an NVOCC without a published tariff and a bond can itself be in breach (515.27).
- Thirty days for increases. A new rate or change that raises a shipper's cost cannot take effect earlier than 30 calendar days after publication. Decreases can take effect on publication (520.8, mirroring the statute).
- The rate in force when cargo is received applies. The rates, charges and rules applicable to a shipment are those in effect on the date the cargo is received by the carrier or its agent (520.7(c)).
- History must be kept. Data that appeared in your tariff system must be kept for 5 years from the date it is superseded, cancelled or withdrawn, with online access for 2 years (520.10).
What a tariff has to contain
At a plain level, Part 520.4 asks for the following. This is a summary of the structure, not a drafting checklist.
- Places and classifications: the places between which cargo will be carried and each classification of cargo in use.
- Charges and rules: each terminal or other charge, privilege or facility under the carrier's control, and any rule that changes or determines any part of a rate or charge. Any rule that affects how the tariff applies must itself be published.
- Documents: sample copies of any bill of lading or other document evidencing the transportation agreement, with legible terms and conditions. Our guide to bill of lading types explains why that house bill matters to your shipper.
- Records: an organisation record (name, FMC organisation number, address, publisher), a tariff record (tariff number, title, contact, currency, origin and destination scope) and a statement certifying that all information in the tariff is true and accurate.
- Commodity tariffs: a retrievable commodity index, commodity descriptions and tariff rate items, each carrying a publication date, effective date, origin and destination, rate and rate basis.
- NVOCC-specific statements (520.11): proof of financial responsibility furnished to the FMC and how it is held (bond, insurance, guaranty, surety name and number), and how the NVOCC treats co-loading arrangements with other NVOCCs.
Two rules shape pricing practice. A tariff must be clear and definite and must not cross-reference other carriers' rate tariffs, with one NVOCC exception: it may cross-reference an ocean carrier's published surcharges, assessorial charges and general rate increases, provided the NVOCC clearly lists the named charges and does not mark them up above cost (520.7(a)(3)(iv)). The same no-markup rule applies to pass-through charges such as terminal services and canal tolls (520.7(h)). This is the rule behind clean surcharge lines on an NVOCC invoice, and it pairs with our guide to freight surcharges. These provisions sit in the text as amended in 2024, so check any older tariff template you inherited against them.
NRA versus NSA: the real differences
Parts 531 and 532 exist because publishing every deal in a public tariff is unworkable for negotiated freight. Both are exemptions made under the Shipping Act's exemption authority (46 U.S.C. 40103), and both are available only to NVOCCs that hold their licence (or registration, for foreign-based unlicensed NVOCCs) and bond, and whose tariff has not been suspended or cancelled (531.2, 532.2).
| Point | NRA (Part 532) | NSA (Part 531) |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A written, binding arrangement to provide specific transportation for a stated cargo quantity, from origin to destination | A written contract in which the shipper commits to a minimum quantity or share of cargo or freight revenue over a fixed period, and the NVOCC commits to a rate or rate schedule and a defined service level |
| Volume commitment | None required | Yes, a minimum quantity or portion |
| Acceptance | Signed agreement, written acceptance (an email is enough), or booking after receiving the terms if the NRA carries the prescribed bold, all-uppercase booking-acceptance sentence (532.5(c)) | A written contract between the parties; the required content list is in 531.6(a) |
| Typical scope | Specific shipments and rates | Port ranges or geographic areas, commodities, service commitments, line-haul rate, duration |
| Liquidated damages | Non-rate economic terms are allowed since 2018 | May be included for non-performance |
| Amendment | Prospective only, for shipments not yet received | By mutual agreement, with consecutive amendment numbers and an effective date |
| Filing with the FMC | None | None since the 2018 rule |
| Records | Originals kept 5 years from completion of performance | Originals and associated records kept 5 years from termination, produced within 30 days of a written request |
Both require the NVOCC to give the public free electronic access to its rules tariff before entering into the arrangement, and to put a prominent notice in that rules tariff saying it is invoking the exemption (531.4, 532.4, 532.6). An NRA that is not "all-in" must say whether surcharges, assessorial charges or general rate increases will apply. Where those are listed in the rules tariff, the amounts are fixed from the first shipment received until the last shipment is delivered, unless the NRA is amended. A pass-through charge with no specified amount can only be invoiced at the NVOCC's actual cost with no markup (532.5(d)).
Part 531 also sets a drafting standard: NSA terms may not be uncertain, vague or ambiguous, and may not refer to terms outside the NSA unless they are readily available to the parties and the Commission. It also says an NVOCC may not knowingly and willfully enter into an NSA with an ocean transportation intermediary that lacks a tariff and bond (531.6). One housekeeping oddity: section 531.2 still contains the words "offer and file NSAs", a leftover from the filing era. The 2018 final rule's own summary table says there is no NSA filing requirement, and nothing in the current text of Part 531 describes a filing procedure.
The adherence rule: charge what you published or contracted
The Shipping Act at 46 U.S.C. 41104(a) is where the "no side deals" principle sits. Two paragraphs matter here, quoted from the statute:
- 41104(a)(1): a common carrier may not "allow a person to obtain transportation for property at less than the rates or charges established by the carrier in its tariff or service contract by means of false billing, false classification, false weighing, false measurement, or any other unjust or unfair device or means".
- 41104(a)(2)(A): a common carrier may not provide service in the liner trade that is "not in accordance with the rates, charges, classifications, rules, and practices contained in a tariff published or a service contract entered into under chapter 405 of this title, unless excepted or exempted".
The word "rebate" does not appear in the passages above, and it would overstate the text to say these provisions are only about rebates. What they do cover is the practical result of a rebate or kickback arrangement: a shipper ends up moving cargo at something other than the rate the carrier has published or lawfully contracted, whether through a mislabelled commodity, a falsified weight, or a concession nobody recorded. The NSA rule says the same for contracted service: no NVOCC may provide liner-trade service that is not in accordance with the rates, charges, classifications, rules and practices in the NSA (531.6(c)(1)).
The exemptions change the reference point, not the discipline. Part 532 exempts a qualifying NVOCC from the (a)(2)(A) prohibition in so far as the rate is in an NRA instead of a tariff, and the regulation then holds you to the NRA. Failing to keep or produce original NRAs when asked disqualifies the NVOCC from the exemption, whether or not it invoked it, and may result in a finding of a violation of 41104(a)(1), 41104(a)(2)(A) or other prohibited acts (532.7(c)).
What a violation can cost
Do not rely on the penalty figures printed in Part 515. Section 515.1 still shows older amounts of $9,000 and $45,000. Penalties are indexed for inflation each year in 46 CFR 506.4. As of 30 September 2026, the FMC table there lists a maximum of $14,988 for a violation of the Act or the FMC's regulations that is not knowing and willful, and $74,943 for a knowing and willful violation (46 U.S.C. 41107(a)), with a separate maximum of $149,887 for operating in foreign commerce after tariff suspension (46 U.S.C. 41108(b)). The table's most recent entry is a Federal Register amendment dated 2 June 2026, and the figures are re-adjusted periodically, so read the current table before quoting them. Each day of a continuing violation can count separately, and the FMC can also deny, suspend or revoke a licence.
Record-keeping: the duty that catches people out
Different records have different clocks, which is where small NVOCCs slip:
- NRAs: original NRAs, organised and easy to produce, for 5 years from completion of performance (532.7(a)). Records produced must be in English or come with a certified English translation.
- NSAs: original signed NSAs, amendments and associated records for 5 years from termination of each NSA, produced within 30 days of a written request from the FMC (531.12).
- Tariff data: 5 years from supersession, with 2 years accessible online (520.10).
- General OTI books: a licensed or registered NVOCC must keep records and books of account for its OTI business in an orderly and systematic way, in paper or electronic form, readily available to the Commission (515.33). Section 515.31(g) requires an OTI to make records available promptly on a Commission request.
NVOCC or ocean freight forwarder: an honest comparison
This is the practical fork. An ocean freight forwarder (OFF) in the FMC's terms dispatches shipments from the United States via a common carrier and books or arranges space on behalf of shippers, handling the related documentation. An NVOCC is a common carrier that does not operate the vessels and is a shipper in its relationship with the ocean carrier. In the US both need an FMC licence, a qualifying individual with at least three years of OTI experience, and financial responsibility, but the consequences differ:
| Question | Ocean freight forwarder | NVOCC |
|---|---|---|
| Role | Books space on the shipper's behalf | Carrier to the shipper under its own bill of lading |
| FMC financial responsibility (515.21) | $50,000 | $75,000 (a registered foreign-based NVOCC: $150,000) |
| Published tariff | Not required for forwarding services | Required, at minimum a rules tariff open to the public free of charge |
| Rate agreements with shippers | Fees are agreed as an agent | Tariff rate, NRA or NSA, each with its own rules and records |
| Rate-adherence exposure | Lower, because there is no carrier rate to adhere to | Direct: the published or contracted rate is the rate |
| Admin load | Forwarder duties and 5-year records (515.32, 515.33) | Tariff upkeep, NRA/NSA drafting and retention, plus the liability of a carrier |
Staying an OFF suits a business that earns a fee for arranging and documenting shipments and does not want to resell ocean space. Becoming an NVOCC suits a business that wants to buy capacity in volume, issue its own bills and negotiate rates and commitments with shippers, with the extra compliance that implies. The right answer depends on your volumes, claims appetite and capital, and a US maritime lawyer should look at your specific structure before you commit. If you operate outside the US, your own jurisdiction's rules may differ entirely.
What to do next
- Read the primary text. The current rules are on the eCFR for Part 532 (NRAs) and Part 531 (NSAs), and the FMC explains the licensing basics on its ocean transportation intermediaries page.
- Audit your tariff against the 2024 rewrite if you have not touched it since before the January 2024 rewrite: free access, FMC-1 contact details, pass-through wording and the no-markup rule.
- Build an NRA template with the booking-acceptance sentence if you want booking to count as acceptance, and decide whether each quote is all-in.
- Set a retention calendar that tracks the 5-year clocks from the right trigger date for each record type.
- Check an NVOCC's status before you rely on it. If you are a shipper, confirm a provider's licence and tariff on the FMC's site rather than on a quote's say-so, and keep your quotes' validity dates in mind (see our note on freight quote validity).
If you are a shipper comparing providers, you can browse the CargoLinked directory by country and service, where listings are self-published, so check each company's credentials yourself. If you want forwarders to come to you, you can post a freight request on the requests board, where eligible forwarders quote and each quote carries a validity date.
Rules and penalty amounts are stated as they appear in the eCFR as of 30 September 2026 and may be amended. Confirm current text with the FMC or counsel before acting.
