Shipping & Customs Documents

The core set is a commercial invoice, a packing list, and a transport document — a bill of lading for sea or an air waybill for air. Depending on the destination and commodity you may also need a certificate of origin, an insurance certificate, an import or export licence, and product-specific certificates such as phytosanitary or fumigation documents. For containers, a VGM declaration is mandatory before loading.

A bill of lading is a document of title that must be surrendered to obtain the cargo; a sea waybill is not, so the named consignee simply identifies themselves and takes delivery. Use a bill of lading when the document must be transferable — for letters of credit or selling goods in transit. Use a sea waybill for straightforward shipments, including between related companies, to avoid courier delays and demurrage.

It makes the bill of lading negotiable. Consigning "to order" or "to order of shipper" means the document can be endorsed and transferred, so whoever holds the properly endorsed original can claim the cargo. This is what letter-of-credit transactions rely on. Naming a specific consignee instead creates a straight bill, releasable only to that party and not transferable.

A telex release is a message from the origin carrier to the destination agent confirming that the original bills of lading have been surrendered, allowing cargo release without presenting originals at destination. It solves the common problem of cargo arriving before the paperwork. It requires all originals to be surrendered at origin first, and the shipper is normally the party who authorises it.

VGM is the verified gross mass of a packed container — cargo, packaging, dunnage, and container tare combined. Under the SOLAS convention it must be declared before loading, and a container without one must not be loaded. The shipper named on the bill of lading is responsible for declaring and signing it, and it must be filed before the VGM cut-off or the box will be rolled.

Because banks pay against documents and apply the terms literally. A misspelled party name, a bill of lading dated outside the shipment window, a description that does not match the credit word for word, or a missing endorsement are all valid grounds for refusal. Review the credit terms the day it arrives, not the day you ship, and confirm you can produce exactly what it demands.

A certificate of origin states where goods were produced and is required whenever the importer wants to claim a preferential duty rate under a trade agreement, and sometimes for general import control. Origin is decided by the agreement's rules of origin — where the last substantial transformation occurred — not simply by where the goods shipped from. An incorrect certificate is a customs liability recoverable years later.