Regulation & compliance
IMDG, CTU and the rules cargo ships under.
-
InsightChoosing CFS, CY, FTZ, or Bonded Warehouse
Bonded warehouse, foreign trade zone, container freight station or container yard: what each does with your cargo, when duty is paid, and which fits a shipment.
-
NewsEU Customs Duty on Small Parcels: The Same Parcel Costs €3 or €9
EU customs duty on small parcels is charged per declaration line, so H7, H6 and H1 change the bill. What the €3 duty and the €2 Union handling fee add.
-
InsightImporter of Record: The Missing Layer in Tech Shipping
What an importer of record signs for on servers and telecom gear: US and EU rules, encryption and certificate checks, published fees and penalty ceilings.
-
NewsSection 301 Exclusions Expire November 9 Unless USTR Acts
178 China Section 301 exclusions end at 11:59 p.m. ET on November 9 unless USTR extends them. What the notices say and what the truce date leaves out.
-
NewsFMC Spain Import Restrictions Reach Cargo on Any Flag
FMC Spain import restrictions would cover five HTS chapters on any vessel, while the $200,000 fee hits only Spanish-flagged ships. Comments close 14 December.
-
InsightTypes of Bills of Lading: Which One Fits Your Shipment
Types of bills of lading by situation: what a bank accepts under a letter of credit, selling cargo at sea, telex release, sea waybill, house and through B/L.
-
InsightCargo Manifest: Deadlines, Penalties and What a Wrong Entry Costs
Cargo manifest rules in the US, EU and Canada: 24-hour deadlines, published penalties, do-not-load holds and carrier fees for filing and correcting.
-
InsightLetter of Credit and Bill of Lading in Sea Trade
Under UCP 600 a letter of credit pays against the bill of lading. How the clean test, the on board date and the bank's five banking days decide payment.
-
InsightCommercial Invoice vs Packing List vs Pro Forma: Who Reads Which
Commercial invoice vs packing list vs pro forma invoice: what each document does, when you need it, what customs checks, plus a consistency checklist.
-
InsightCustoms Release vs Carrier Release: Who Signs Off on the Box
Customs release vs carrier release: customs admits the goods, the line lets the box go, the terminal hands it over. Who decides each, and who bills the wait.
-
NewsDemurrage vs Detention: Two Clocks and a US Billing Rule That Changed
Demurrage vs detention explained: where each clock runs, what a US invoice must show under 46 CFR 541, and which part of the FMC billing rule was removed.
-
InsightHazmat Shipping: What Actually Keeps Cargo Safe
Dangerous goods need more than careful packing. The IMDG, 49 CFR and IATA rules, the six key documents and the training every handler in the chain needs.
-
InsightContainer, Cargo, and Chargeable: How Weight Rules Every Freight Quote
Container gross weight explained: net, tare and gross, SOLAS VGM rules, container limits and air freight chargeable weight, plus a checklist before you quote.
-
NewsWashington Says the Truce Runs to January. The Port Fee Pause Ends 9 November
US-China port fees: Washington says the truce runs to January, but the written Section 301 fee pause still ends 9 November. What shippers should check.
-
InsightThe container packing checklist a weighbridge can't argue with
A loader's field checklist for packing to the CTU Code: VGM, weight distribution, centre of gravity, segregation and securing, with the two diagrams that stop a legally-stuffed box becoming an illegal truck.
-
NewsNew IMDG amendments: what actually changes on the dock
IMDG updates land on a cycle, and most of the text never touches your day. The parts that do are segregation and what goes on the box: get those into the plan.
-
NewsVGM mismatches still bump boxes: get the verified weight right
The SOLAS verified gross mass rule is old news, but a wrong or missing VGM still rolls containers at the gate. It’s a planning problem, not a paperwork one.
-
InsightPacking to the CTU Code, not by eye
Most container loading is done from experience and a tape measure. The rules cargo actually ships under, CTU, IMDG, axle and CoG, belong in the plan, before the doors close.