Zone
A designated area with its own customs or pricing treatment, such as a free zone or a shipping rate zone.
Resources
Written guidance, beside the data.
The knowledge base is generated from official schedules. This is the part we write: guides, explainers, definitions and tools that make the data usable.
Blog
Short explainers and notes on classification, duty and documents.
Guides
Long-form walkthroughs of a corridor, a product or a process, end to end.
Glossary
Plain definitions of the terms that appear on a declaration or a dossier.
News
What changed in the product, and what changed in the rules.
Tools
Calculators, reference tables and templates built on the same data as the dossiers.
Recently published
WTO
The World Trade Organization, which administers the multilateral trade agreements and settles disputes between members.
Withdrawal from Warehouse
Removing goods from a bonded warehouse, at which point duty normally becomes payable.
Wharfinger
The operator of a wharf, responsible for goods while they are in its charge.
Wharfage
A charge for using a wharf, levied on cargo passing over it.
Wharf
A structure alongside which vessels berth to load and discharge.
Wet Lease
Leasing an aircraft together with crew, maintenance and insurance.
Weight Bracket
A weight band in a rate schedule, where the rate per unit falls as the band rises.
Waybill
A non-negotiable transport document naming the consignee, which does not have to be surrendered.
Warehouse
A building for storing goods, which may operate under customs control.
Waiver
A voluntary relinquishment of a right, or permission to depart from a requirement.
Voyage Charter
Hiring a vessel for a specific voyage, with the owner operating it and freight paid per tonne or as a lump sum.
Vessel
A ship or craft used to carry goods or passengers by water.
Valuation
Determining the value of goods for customs purposes, on which ad valorem duty is charged.
Validity Period
The period during which a licence, credit, quotation or certificate remains effective.
Unit Load Device
A container or pallet shaped to fit an aircraft hold, loaded as a single unit.
Truck Load
A shipment filling a vehicle, moved without consolidation.
Transshipment
Transferring cargo from one vessel or vehicle to another during a journey.
Trading Company
A business that buys and sells goods internationally on its own account.
Time Draft
A draft payable at a fixed future date rather than on presentation.
Through Bill of Lading
A single transport document covering carriage over successive legs, possibly by different carriers.
Third Party Logistics
Outsourcing warehousing, fulfilment and transport management to a specialist provider.
TEU
Twenty-foot equivalent unit: the standard measure of container capacity.
Tariff Classification
The tariff code assigned to goods, and the process of determining it.
Tariff
A schedule of duties applied to imported goods; also, a carrier’s published schedule of rates.
Surety Bond
An undertaking by a third party to answer for another’s obligation, often required by customs.
Stowage
The placing and securing of cargo within a vessel or container.
Sight Draft
A draft payable immediately on presentation to the drawee.
Shipping carrier
A company that transports goods, whether by sea, air, road or rail.
Shipper
The party that tenders goods for carriage and is named as such on the transport document.
Sanction
A restrictive measure against a country, entity or individual, prohibiting or limiting dealings with them.
Roll-on/Roll-off
A vessel or service where wheeled cargo is driven on and off rather than lifted.
Remittance
A transfer of funds in settlement of an obligation.
Regional Value Content
An origin test requiring a minimum proportion of a good’s value to arise within the trade agreement’s area.
Quotation
A statement of price and terms on which a supplier is prepared to sell.
Quota
A limit on the quantity of specified goods that may be imported or exported in a period.
Quarantine
Detention of goods, animals or plants pending inspection or treatment for health risks.
Proforma Invoice
A preliminary invoice issued before shipment, used for quotations, permits and payment arrangements.
Product Classification
Determining the tariff code under which goods fall, which decides duty and applicable controls.
Prepaid
Charges paid at origin by the shipper rather than at destination by the consignee.
Port of Exit
The place from which goods leave a country.
Port of Entry
A port authorised to receive imports, where customs formalities may be completed.
Port of Call
A port a vessel visits during a voyage.
Port
A place where vessels load and discharge, together with its facilities and customs administration.
Point of Origin
Where a transport movement begins — not necessarily where the goods were produced.
Place of Receipt
Where the carrier takes the goods into its charge under the transport contract.
Place of Delivery
Where the carrier’s responsibility for the goods ends under the transport contract.
Phytosanitary Inspection Certificate
An official certificate confirming that plants or plant products meet the importing country’s health requirements.
Permit
Official authorisation for an act that would otherwise be restricted.
Perishable Cargo
Goods that deteriorate over time or outside a temperature range, requiring controlled conditions.
Performance Bond
A guarantee that compensates the buyer if the seller fails to perform the contract.
Payment Terms
The agreed method and timing of payment for goods.
Payload
The weight of cargo a vehicle, container or aircraft can carry, excluding its own weight.
Payee
The party to whom a payment or instrument is to be paid.
Particular Average
A partial loss affecting one interest, borne by that party alone rather than shared.
Parcel
A small package sent by courier or post; also, a defined quantity of bulk cargo.
Panamax
The largest vessel size able to transit the Panama Canal’s original locks.
Palletization
Assembling goods onto pallets so they can be handled as single units.
Pallet
A platform on which goods are stacked so they can be moved as one unit by forklift.
Packing slip
A note accompanying goods listing what the consignment contains.
Packing List
A document itemising a shipment’s contents package by package, with weights and dimensions.
Packing
The act of preparing goods for carriage, and the manner in which they are packed.
Packaging
Material protecting goods in transit, which may itself be regulated and dutiable.
Package
A single item of packing presented for carriage, and the unit many liability limits are calculated on.
Overpack
An outer enclosure combining several packages into one handling unit.
Overage
More cargo delivered than the documents record — the opposite of a shortage.
Outward Clearance
Customs permission for a vessel to depart, granted once its formalities are complete.
Outturn
The quantity and condition of cargo as actually discharged, compared with what was shipped.
Outbound
Moving away from a location or out of a country; the export direction.
Out of Gauge
Cargo exceeding the dimensions of the container or vehicle carrying it.
Original Bill of Lading
A signed original of a bill of lading, one of which must usually be surrendered to obtain the goods.
Origin
Where goods were produced, or where a transport movement begins — two different meanings worth separating.
Open Top Container
A container with a removable roof, allowing cargo to be loaded from above.
Open Policy
A standing cargo insurance policy covering all shipments meeting its terms, without individual arrangement.
Open Account
A payment arrangement where goods are shipped and paid for later, on agreed credit terms.
On-deck Cargo
Cargo carried on the weather deck rather than in a hold, with different risk and insurance treatment.
Official Inspection Certificate
An inspection certificate issued by a government body rather than a private inspector.
Offer
A proposal to contract on stated terms, capable of being accepted to form a binding agreement.
Off Dock Terminal
A container facility outside the port, used to relieve pressure on quayside space.
Ocean Waybill
A non-negotiable sea transport document releasing goods to a named consignee.
Ocean Carrier
A company operating vessels that carry goods by sea for hire.
Ocean Bill of Lading
A bill of lading issued for carriage by sea, which may be negotiable and act as a document of title.
NVOCC
A party that acts as carrier and issues its own bills of lading without owning or operating vessels.
Number of Pieces
The count of separate handling units in a shipment, as recorded on the transport document.
Notify Party
The party a carrier informs when goods arrive, who need not be the consignee.
Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier
A carrier that issues its own transport documents and takes carrier liability without operating ships.
Nomination
Naming a vessel, carrier, agent or facility that a contract requires the other party to use.
New for Old
An insurance basis that replaces damaged property without deducting for depreciation.
Net Weight
The weight of the goods alone, excluding packaging, pallets and container.
Net Tonnage
A measure of a ship’s usable cargo volume, used for port dues and canal charges.
Negotiable
Of a document: transferable by endorsement or delivery, carrying rights to the goods with it.
Multimodal
Carriage by two or more modes under a single contract.
Motor Vessel
A ship propelled by internal combustion engines, abbreviated MV before a vessel’s name.
Motor Carrier
A company that transports goods by road for hire.
Most Favored Nation
The WTO principle that a tariff concession given to one member must be given to all members equally.
Mooring
Securing a vessel to a berth, buoy or anchorage.
Mode of Transport
The means by which goods move: sea, air, road, rail or inland waterway.
Mixed Shipment
A consignment containing goods of different classes, commodities or tariff codes.
Misclassification
Declaring goods under the wrong tariff code, whether by error or design.
Minimum Charge
The smallest amount payable for a service, applied when the rated amount falls below it.
Minimum Bill
The lowest charge a carrier will raise for a shipment regardless of its size.
Meter Ton
A measure of 1,000 kilograms; also used for a freight unit of one cubic metre or one tonne, whichever is greater.
Merchant
A party trading goods on its own account; in carrier terms, a broad definition covering everyone with an interest in the cargo.
Memo Bill of Lading
A non-negotiable copy of a bill of lading issued for information only.
Measurement Weight
A weight derived from a shipment’s volume, used where cargo is bulky relative to its mass.
MAWB
Master air waybill: the air carrier’s document covering a consolidated air shipment.
Mate
A deck officer ranking below the master; the chief mate signs for cargo received.
Master Bill of Lading
The transport document issued by the actual carrier, covering a consolidated container as a whole.
Master
The officer in command of a merchant vessel.
Marking
Identifying information applied to packages, and legally required labelling such as country of origin.
Maritime
Relating to the sea, and to the body of law and practice governing shipping.
Manifest
A list of everything carried on a conveyance, compiled from its transport documents.
Logistics
The planning and management of the movement and storage of goods through a supply chain.
Liquidation
Customs’ final determination of the duty owed on an entry, closing it.
Letter of Credit
A bank’s undertaking to pay a seller against documents that comply exactly with the credit’s terms.
Less-than-truckload
A road shipment too small to justify a whole vehicle, consolidated with other consignments.
LCL
Less than container load: a shipment too small to fill a container, consolidated with others.
Landed Cost
The total cost of getting goods to their destination: price, freight, insurance, duty, taxes and handling.
Joint Venture
A commercial arrangement in which two or more parties share an enterprise, its control and its risk.
ISPM 15
The international standard requiring wood packaging to be treated and marked against pests.
Irrevocable Letter of Credit
A letter of credit that cannot be amended or cancelled without the agreement of all parties.
Inward Foreign Manifest
The declaration of a conveyance’s cargo made to customs on arrival from abroad.
Invoice
A seller’s demand for payment, itemising goods, quantities, prices and terms.
International Chamber of Commerce
The business organisation that publishes the Incoterms rules and the UCP for documentary credits.
Intermodal
Moving goods in one loading unit across two or more modes without handling the goods themselves.
Intermediate Consignee
A party that receives goods in transit and forwards them to the ultimate consignee.
Intermediate Bulk Container
A reusable mid-sized container for liquids or granulated goods, sized between a drum and a bulk tank.
Interchange Point
Where responsibility for goods or equipment passes from one carrier to another.
Intellectual Property
Rights in trade marks, patents, designs and copyright, which customs can enforce at the border.
Insurance Certificate
Evidence that a specific shipment is covered under an existing insurance policy.
Inspection Certificate
A document recording that goods were examined and conform to what was specified.
Inland Carrier
A carrier moving goods between an inland point and a port or terminal.
Inland Bill of Lading
A transport document covering the domestic leg of a journey to or from a port.
Indirect Exporting
Selling abroad through an intermediary in the seller’s own country rather than directly to the foreign buyer.
Incoterms
ICC rules defining the delivery, cost and risk obligations of buyers and sellers — but not title, payment or governing law.
In bond
Goods moving or stored under customs control with duty suspended.
Importer of Record
The party legally responsible for a customs entry, its accuracy and the duty payable on it.
Import Restrictions
Limits on what may be imported — prohibitions, quotas, licensing or conditions of entry.
Import License
Government authorisation required before certain goods may be imported.
Import
To bring goods into a customs territory, and the goods so brought.
IMDG
The International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code, governing hazardous cargo carried by sea.
IATA
The International Air Transport Association, whose rules govern much of air cargo documentation and dangerous goods.
House Bill of Lading
A transport document issued by a forwarder or NVOCC to its customer, rather than by the actual carrier.
Hazardous Materials
Goods presenting a risk in transport, subject to classification, packing and declaration rules.
Haulage
The road or rail movement of goods, particularly the inland legs of a container journey.
Harmonised System
The WCO’s international goods nomenclature, providing the first six digits of every country’s tariff code.
Harbour
A sheltered body of water where vessels can anchor or berth.
GST
Goods and Services Tax: a consumption tax charged on imports and generally zero-rated on exports.
Gross Weight
The total weight of goods including packaging, pallets and any container.
Gross Vehicle Weight
The total permitted weight of a vehicle including its load, fuel and crew.
General order
The status of imported goods not cleared within the permitted period, moved to a designated warehouse.
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
The 1947 agreement that established multilateral tariff rules, now administered within the WTO framework.
Gateway
A point where goods enter or leave a country or transport network, or transfer between services.
Full truckload
A shipment large enough to occupy an entire vehicle, moved without consolidation.
FTA
Free trade agreement: a treaty reducing or removing tariffs between its parties for originating goods.
Freight shipment
A consignment of goods moved by a commercial carrier.
Freight Prepaid
Freight paid by the shipper at origin rather than by the consignee at destination.
Freight Forwarder
A company that arranges transport and documentation on a shipper’s behalf, often issuing its own transport document.
Freight Collect
Freight payable by the consignee on arrival.
Freight Charge
The amount payable for carriage, excluding accessorial and terminal charges.
Freight broker
An intermediary that arranges transport between shippers and carriers without operating vehicles.
Freight Bill
A carrier’s invoice for transport charges.
Freight
The charge for carrying goods; also, the goods being carried.
Free Trade Zone
A designated area where goods may be landed, handled and re-exported without customs duty.
Free Time
The period during which cargo or equipment may be held without demurrage or detention accruing.
Forty-Foot Equivalent Unit
A capacity measure equal to one forty-foot container, or two TEU.
Foreign Trade Zone
A designated area treated as outside the customs territory, where goods can be held or processed with duty deferred.
Force majeure
A contract clause excusing performance prevented by events outside a party’s control.
FOB
Incoterms rule: the seller delivers goods on board the vessel at the named port; risk passes on board.
Flat Rack Containers
A container with no sides or roof, used for cargo too large or awkward for a closed box.
FEU
Forty-foot equivalent unit: a container capacity measure equal to two TEU.
Feeder Vessel
A smaller ship carrying containers between a hub port and smaller ports on the same network.
FCA
Incoterms rule: the seller delivers goods, cleared for export, to a carrier at a named place.
FAS
Incoterms rule: the seller delivers alongside the vessel at the named port; risk passes there.
FAK
Freight All Kinds: a single rate applied to mixed cargo regardless of what it is.
EXW
Incoterms rule: the seller makes goods available at its own premises; the buyer bears everything from that point, including export clearance.
Export Trading Company
A firm that buys domestically and sells abroad on its own account, or exports for others.
Export Subsidies
Government support conditional on exporting, which can expose the goods to countervailing duty abroad.
Export Quotas
Limits on the quantity of specified goods that may be exported in a period.
Export Processing Zone
A designated area where imported inputs are processed for export under relaxed duty treatment.
Export Management Company
A firm that runs the export function on behalf of manufacturers, usually under its own agreements.
Export license
Government authorisation to export specified goods, often to a named destination and end user.
Export Controls
Rules restricting the export of specified goods, software or technology, usually by destination and end use.
Export Broker
An intermediary that brings exporters and foreign buyers together for a commission.
Export
To send goods out of a customs territory, and the goods so sent.
Explanatory Notes
The WCO’s official commentary on the Harmonized System, used to interpret headings.
Exchange Rate
The rate at which one currency converts to another, including the rate customs uses to value imports.
Exception
A noted irregularity — damage, shortage, overage — recorded against a shipment on delivery or receipt.
ETD
Estimated time of departure: the expected departure of a vessel, aircraft or vehicle.
ETA
Estimated time of arrival: the expected arrival of a vessel, aircraft or vehicle.
Equipment interchange receipt
A record of a container’s condition at the moment responsibility for it passes between parties.
Entry
The act of declaring goods to customs and placing them under a customs procedure.
Endorsement
A signature transferring rights under a negotiable document to another party.
End-User
The party that will ultimately use the goods, as distinct from any intermediary in the transaction.
End Use
What imported or exported goods will actually be used for, which can determine licensing or duty treatment.
Embargo
A prohibition on trade with a country, entity or in particular goods.
Electronic data interchange
The structured exchange of business documents between computer systems in an agreed format.
Duty Drawback
A refund of import duty where the goods, or products made from them, are exported.
Duty
A tax charged on goods crossing a customs border, determined by classification, customs value and origin.
Dutiable value
The portion of a shipment’s value on which duty is assessed.
Dumping
Exporting goods at less than their normal value in the home market, which may attract antidumping duty.
Drayage
Short-haul road movement of containers between port, rail terminal and nearby premises.
Drawer
The party that creates a draft and orders the drawee to pay.
Drawee
The party a draft is addressed to, and who is required to pay it.
Drawback
A refund of duty paid on imported goods that are later exported, often after processing.
DPU
Incoterms rule: the seller delivers and unloads at the named destination; the only rule requiring the seller to unload.
Documents Against Payment
A collection in which documents are released only when the buyer pays.
Documents against Acceptance
A collection in which documents are released once the buyer accepts a draft, with payment due later.
Documentary Credit
A bank’s undertaking to pay against compliant documents — the formal name for a letter of credit.
Documentary Collection
A payment method in which banks pass shipping documents to the buyer against payment or acceptance, without guaranteeing payment.
Dock Receipt
A receipt acknowledging that goods were delivered into the carrier’s custody at the terminal.
Dock
A structure or area where vessels are loaded and unloaded; also a loading bay at a warehouse.
Diversion
Changing a shipment’s destination or consignee after it has already been despatched.
Distributor
A party that buys goods for resale in a market, taking title and commercial risk.
Discrepancy
A mismatch between documents presented under a letter of credit and what the credit requires.
Dirty Bill of Lading
A bill of lading carrying a notation that the goods or packaging were defective when received.
Direct Exporting
Selling directly to a buyer in another country, without an intermediary in between.
Dimensional Weight
A weight derived from a shipment’s volume, used for pricing when goods are bulky relative to their mass.
Deviation
A departure from the agreed or customary route, which can affect a carrier’s liability and cargo insurance.
Devanning
Unloading cargo from a container.
Detention
A charge for holding a carrier’s container outside the terminal beyond the free time allowed.
Density
The weight of goods relative to the space they occupy, which determines how they are rated.
Demurrage
A charge for keeping equipment or cargo beyond the free time allowed, typically inside a terminal.
Delivery receipt
A signed acknowledgement that goods were delivered, and in what apparent condition.
Delivery Order
A document instructing whoever holds the goods to release them to a named party.
Delivery Instructions
Instructions telling a carrier or terminal where and how goods are to be delivered.
Deferred Rebate
A rebate paid to a shipper only after a further period of exclusive custom, historically used to secure loyalty.
Deconsolidation point
The place where a consolidated shipment is broken down into its individual consignments.
Declared Value for Carriage
A value stated to the carrier which may raise its liability limit above the standard cap, usually for a fee.
Dead Freight
Freight payable on booked space that the shipper failed to use.
DDU
A withdrawn Incoterms rule, replaced by DAP in 2010 — still widely quoted despite no longer existing.
DDP
Incoterms rule: the seller bears everything to the buyer’s door, including import clearance, duty and taxes.
Date Draft
A draft payable a fixed number of days after its own date, rather than after sight or acceptance.
DAP
Incoterms rule: the seller delivers at a named destination, ready for unloading, with import clearance left to the buyer.
Dangerous goods declaration
The shipper’s signed statement classifying hazardous cargo and confirming it is packed and marked correctly.
Dangerous goods
Goods that pose a risk in transport and are subject to classification, packing, marking and documentation rules.
Cut-off time
The deadline for delivering cargo or documents for a specific sailing or flight.
Customs Value
The value on which ad valorem duty is calculated — normally the transaction price, adjusted by prescribed additions.
Customs Invoice
An invoice on a form prescribed by the importing country, carrying the details customs requires.
Customs entry
The declaration lodged with customs to place goods under a customs procedure.
Customs Duty
A tax levied on goods when they cross a customs border, calculated from classification, value and origin.
Customs Declaration
The formal statement to customs of what is being imported or exported, its classification, value and origin.
Customs Clearance
The completion of customs formalities allowing goods to be released for import, export or transit.
Customs Broker
A licensed agent that prepares and files customs declarations on an importer or exporter’s behalf.
Customs bonded warehouse
A customs-approved warehouse where imported goods are held with duty suspended.
Customs
The government authority responsible for controlling goods crossing a border and collecting duties and taxes on them.
Customhouse
The office where customs business for a port or district is transacted.
Currency Adjustment Factor
A surcharge covering exchange-rate movement between the carrier’s pricing and cost currencies.
Cubic Capacity
The internal volume available in a container, hold or vehicle.
Cube out
To fill a container’s volume before reaching its weight limit.
CPT
Incoterms rule: the seller pays carriage to a named destination, but risk passes when goods reach the first carrier.
Country of Origin
The country where goods were produced, or last substantially transformed — not necessarily where they were shipped from.
Countervailing Duties
Duties imposed to offset a subsidy given to producers in the exporting country, where that subsidy injures a domestic industry.
Countertrade
Arrangements where payment is made wholly or partly in goods or services rather than money.
Convertible Currency
A currency that can be freely exchanged for others without official restriction.
Contraband
Goods whose import or export is prohibited, or which are moved to evade customs control.
Containerization
The shift to moving general cargo in standardised containers rather than as individually handled pieces.
Container Yard
The area where containers are received, stored and delivered; also a shorthand for full-container-load terms.
Container Terminal
The part of a port equipped to load, discharge and store containers.
Container ship
A vessel built to carry containers in cellular holds and stacked on deck.
Container Manifest
A list of everything packed inside a particular container.
Container Load
The quantity of goods filling a container; also used to distinguish full-container from less-than-container shipments.
Container Freight Station
A facility where less-than-container-load cargo is packed into, or unpacked from, containers.
Container depot
A facility where empty containers are stored, inspected and repaired between uses.
Container Chassis
A road trailer built to carry a container.
Container
A standardised steel box designed to be transferred between ship, rail and road without unpacking the goods inside.
Consumption entry
A customs entry declaring goods for use within the importing country, with duty and tax payable.
Consular Invoice
An invoice on a prescribed form certified by the destination country’s consulate before shipment.
Consul
A government official in a foreign country who may certify or legalise trade documents.
Consolidator
A party that combines multiple shippers’ cargo into full loads and issues its own transport documents.
Consolidation
Combining several shippers’ consignments into one container or load to obtain a better rate.
Consignor
The party sending the goods, named as such on the transport document.
Consignment
Goods sent together under one transport document; also, goods supplied for sale with payment due only when sold.
Consignee
The party named to receive the goods at destination.
Connecting carrier
A carrier that performs part of a journey and hands the goods to another to continue.
Confirming House
An intermediary that places orders with exporters on an overseas buyer’s behalf and guarantees payment.
Confirmed
Of a letter of credit: carrying a second bank’s independent undertaking to pay, in addition to the issuing bank’s.
Conference
An association of ocean carriers on a trade lane that historically set common rates and conditions.
Concealed Damage
Damage to goods inside packaging that appeared sound on delivery, discovered only when the packaging is opened.
Common Carrier
A carrier that offers transport to the public generally, and cannot arbitrarily refuse a lawful shipment.
Commodity Code
The tariff classification number assigned to goods, on which duty and controls depend.
Commodity
A good traded in commerce; in customs usage, the article being classified and declared.
Commercial Invoice
The seller’s bill for the goods, and the primary document customs uses to establish value.
Combined Transport
Carriage using more than one mode under a single contract and a single document.
Collect Freight
Freight payable by the consignee at destination rather than by the shipper at origin.
Clean Bill of Lading
A bill of lading with no notation recording defective goods or packaging.
Claim
A demand for compensation for loss of or damage to goods, made against a carrier or an insurer.
CIP
Incoterms rule: the seller pays carriage and insurance to a named destination, with risk passing at first-carrier handover.
CIF
Incoterms rule: the seller pays carriage and minimum insurance to the destination port, but risk still passes on board at origin.
Chassis
A wheeled frame used to carry a container by road.
Charterer
The party that hires a vessel, or space on it, from the owner under a charter party.
Charter Party
The contract under which a charterer hires a vessel or part of its capacity from its owner.
Chargeable Weight
The weight a shipment is billed on: the greater of its actual weight and its volumetric weight.
Chapter Notes
Legally binding notes at the head of each HS chapter that govern what the chapter does and does not cover.
Chamber of Commerce
A business body that, among other functions, certifies certificates of origin and commercial documents.
CFS
Container Freight Station: a facility where less-than-container loads are consolidated into, or stripped out of, containers.
CFR
Incoterms rule: the seller pays carriage to the named destination port, but risk passes when goods are on board at origin.
Certificate Of Origin
A document stating the country in which goods were produced, used for preference claims and origin-based restrictions.
Certificate of Insurance
Evidence that a shipment is covered by cargo insurance, issued under an existing open policy.
Certificate of inspection
A document confirming that goods were examined before shipment and matched what was specified.
Certificate of Free Sale
A document confirming that goods are legally sold in the exporting country, often required for food, cosmetics or medical products.
Certificate of Conformity
A document attesting that goods meet a specified standard or regulation.
CE Mark
A manufacturer’s declaration that a product meets the EU requirements that apply to it.
Cash on delivery
Payment collected at the point of delivery, usually by the carrier on the seller’s behalf.
Cash In Advance
Payment in full before shipment — the most secure term for a seller, the least for a buyer.
Cash Against Documents
A payment arrangement where shipping documents are released to the buyer only against payment.
Cartage
Short-distance road haulage, typically between a terminal and a nearby premises.
Carrier’s Lien
A carrier’s right to retain goods until freight and related charges are paid.
Carrier
The party that undertakes to transport goods under a contract of carriage.
Carnet
An international customs document allowing goods to be temporarily imported without paying duty, provided they are re-exported.
Cargo manifest
A list of all cargo carried on a conveyance, compiled from the transport documents issued for it.
Cargo Declaration
The statement of a conveyance’s cargo made to customs on arrival or departure.
Cargo
Goods carried by a vessel, aircraft or vehicle for commercial purposes.
CAF
Currency Adjustment Factor: a surcharge covering exchange-rate movement between the carrier’s pricing and settlement currencies.
Cabotage
The carriage of goods between two points within one country, often reserved by law to that country’s own carriers.
Bundling
Securing several pieces into one handling unit so they move and are counted as a single item.
Bulk cargo
Unpackaged homogeneous cargo — grain, ore, oil — loaded loose into a hold or tank.
Broker
An intermediary who arranges a transaction between two parties without taking ownership of the goods.
Broken stowage
Space in a hold or container that cannot be used because of the shape of the cargo.
Breakbulk Vessel
A ship designed to carry individually handled cargo, usually fitted with its own cranes.
Break Bulk Cargo
Goods shipped as individually handled pieces — crates, drums, bales — rather than in containers or as bulk.
Booking
A reservation of space on a specific vessel, flight or vehicle for an identified shipment.
Bonded Warehouse
A customs-approved warehouse where imported goods are stored with duty and tax suspended until removal.
Bonded Goods
Goods held under customs control with duty and tax suspended until they are cleared or re-exported.
Bond port
A port where goods may be landed and held under customs control without duty being paid.
Blanket rate
A single rate applied across a range of origins, destinations or commodities rather than priced individually.
Bill of Sale
A document transferring ownership of goods from seller to buyer.
Bill of Lading
The core sea transport document: receipt for the goods, evidence of the carriage contract, and — when negotiable — a document of title.
Bill of Exchange
A written order requiring one party to pay a specified sum to another, on demand or at a stated future date.
Bilateral
Between two parties or two countries, as in a bilateral trade agreement.
Beneficiary
The party entitled to receive payment under a letter of credit or guarantee — normally the seller.
Barter
The direct exchange of goods for goods without money changing hands.
Bank Guarantee
A bank’s undertaking to pay a beneficiary if its customer fails to perform an obligation.
Bank Draft
A payment instrument drawn by a bank on itself or on another bank, used where a buyer’s own cheque would not be accepted.
Balance of Trade
The difference between the value of a country’s exports and its imports of goods over a period.
BAF
Bunker Adjustment Factor: a surcharge that passes changes in marine fuel prices through to the freight rate.
Backhaul
The return leg of a transport movement, often priced low because the vehicle would otherwise travel empty.
Back Freight
The cost of returning or onward-carrying goods the consignee will not or cannot accept at destination.
Arrival notice
A notice from the carrier or agent telling the consignee that goods have arrived and what must happen before release.
Apparent Good Order
A carrier’s statement that goods looked undamaged externally when received — it says nothing about the contents.
Antidumping Duty
An extra duty imposed on imports found to be sold below normal value, where that pricing injures a domestic industry.
Alongside
Beside the vessel, within reach of its lifting gear — the delivery point that defines the Incoterms rule FAS.
Aircraft Container
A container built to the contours of an aircraft hold, also called a unit load device.
Air Waybill
The transport document for air cargo: a contract of carriage and receipt, but not a document of title.
Air freight
The transport of goods by aircraft, and the charge made for it.
Air Carrier
An airline that carries goods for hire, under its own air waybill and operating licence.
Air cargo
Goods carried by aircraft, typically where speed, value or perishability outweighs the higher cost per kilogram.
Aggregate shipment
Several separate consignments combined and moved as one, usually to obtain a better rate than each would earn alone.
Agent
A party authorised to act on another’s behalf — booking cargo, clearing customs or handling a vessel — without owning the goods.
Agency Fee
The fee a shipping agent charges an owner or operator for handling a vessel’s business at a port.
Advanced shipment notice
A message sent ahead of a delivery telling the receiver what is coming, in what packaging, and when.
Advance Payment
Payment made by the buyer before the goods are shipped, placing the commercial risk almost entirely on the buyer.
Ad Valorem
A duty calculated as a percentage of the goods’ customs value, rather than by weight, volume or unit.
Accessorial charges
Charges for services beyond simple carriage — waiting time, inside delivery, redelivery — that sit outside the quoted freight rate.
Acceptance
A drawee signing a time draft to confirm it will pay on the due date, turning the draft into a binding promise.
Ecommerce Exports Handbook for MSMEs in India
Exporting goods from India
Registration, policy checks, customs and the payment steps an exporter clears before goods leave.
Importing goods into India
Policy status, product approvals, the duty layers that build landed cost, and clearance.
Customs duties and import taxes
How classification, customs value and origin decide which duty and tax layers apply.
Import and export documents
A document map for both directions, and which records a specific shipment actually needs.
Find the regulator for your product
Which authority may control your goods, and what that means before you quote or ship.
Classify bed sheets before checking the rules
Four product details to collect before a tariff line can tell you anything reliable.
India–UAE home-textile guide moved into review
Three source-linked rule records now sit behind the route dossier for this corridor.