Reference

Freight glossary

Name: Global Cargo Spedition
Address: Strada Gheorghe Doja 49A, Oradea, Bihor, RO
Telephone: +40770108111

The terminology that turns up in quotations, transport documents and customs declarations, explained without the jargon that usually comes with it.

A

A.TR certificate: A movement certificate proving that goods are in free circulation within the EU and Turkey customs union, allowing them to move duty free. It certifies free circulation status, not origin, which is a distinction that regularly causes confusion.
ADR: The European agreement governing the international carriage of dangerous goods by road. It sets the classification, packaging, labelling and documentation rules that a truck carrying hazardous cargo must follow.
Air waybill, AWB: The transport document for air cargo. Unlike a bill of lading it is not a document of title, so it does not have to be presented to collect the goods. It acts as a receipt and as evidence of the contract of carriage.

B

Bill of lading, B/L: The ocean transport document. It is a receipt for the goods, evidence of the contract of carriage and, critically, a document of title. Whoever holds the original bill of lading controls release of the cargo at destination.

C

Cabotage: Domestic transport inside a country performed by a carrier registered elsewhere. EU rules limit how many such journeys a foreign truck may make and over what period, and enforcement is strict in France, Germany and Austria.
Chargeable weight: The figure freight is billed on, being the higher of actual gross weight and volumetric weight. Air freight uses a ratio of one cubic metre to 167 kg, road groupage typically uses 333 kg and sea LCL uses 1000 kg.
CMR: Both the convention governing international road carriage and the consignment note issued under it. The signed CMR is the proof of delivery, and for VAT purposes it is the evidence that goods left the country of dispatch.
Customs value: The value on which import duty is calculated. Normally the transaction value, being the price paid for the goods plus transport and insurance costs up to the EU border. Import VAT is then charged on the customs value plus the duty.

D

Demurrage: A daily charge applied by the terminal when a container remains in the port beyond its agreed free days. It stops accruing when the container leaves the terminal, at which point detention may start instead.
Detention: A daily charge applied by the shipping line when a container has left the terminal but has not been returned empty within the free period. Frequently confused with demurrage, which is charged by the terminal instead.

E

EORI number: The Economic Operators Registration and Identification number, required by any business that imports into or exports from the EU. Without one, no customs declaration can be filed in your name.
EUR.1 certificate: A movement certificate proving preferential origin under a free trade agreement, allowing goods to be imported at a reduced or zero duty rate. Unlike an A.TR it certifies where the goods were made, not their circulation status.
EX1 declaration: The EU export declaration, filed when goods leave the customs territory. It is what evidences the export for VAT zero rating and it must be discharged at the office of exit, otherwise the export remains formally incomplete.

F

FCL, Full Container Load: A shipment that occupies an entire container, whether or not it is physically full. The price is per container rather than per cubic metre, so it becomes cheaper than LCL somewhere around fifteen cubic metres.
Free time: The number of days a container may stay at the terminal or off hire without charge. Once free time expires, demurrage and detention begin, which is why documents being ready before arrival matters so much.
FTL, Full Truck Load: A shipment that takes a whole vehicle, moving directly from loading point to delivery point with no cross docking. Faster and safer than groupage, and cheaper above roughly twelve to fourteen loading metres.

G

Groupage: Combining consignments from several shippers into one vehicle or container, so each pays only for the space it occupies. Also called consolidation. Cheaper than a dedicated load but involves cross docking.

H

HS code, commodity code: The classification number that determines the duty rate, any restrictions and the statistical treatment of a product. The first six digits are international, with further digits added by the EU combined nomenclature.

I

IMDG Code: The International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code, governing hazardous cargo carried by sea. It sets packing, segregation and documentation rules, and it differs in detail from the road ADR and air IATA regimes.
Import duty: A tax on goods entering a customs territory, calculated as a percentage of the customs value. The rate depends on the commodity code and the country of origin, and may be reduced to zero under a trade agreement.
Incoterms: The eleven standard trade terms published by the International Chamber of Commerce, defining who arranges and pays for transport, where risk passes and who clears customs. The current version is Incoterms 2020.

L

LCL, Less than Container Load: Ocean cargo that shares a container with other shippers, priced per cubic metre with a minimum. Cheaper than a full container below roughly fifteen cubic metres, but involves consolidation at both ends.
Loading metre, LDM: One metre of trailer floor across its full width, roughly two Euro pallets side by side. Part loads are priced on loading metres rather than weight, because floor space runs out before payload does.
LTL, Less than Truck Load: Road freight that shares a vehicle with other consignments, priced per pallet space or loading metre. The road equivalent of LCL, and the usual answer for anything from one pallet up to half a trailer.

P

Preferential origin: Origin status that qualifies goods for a reduced or zero duty rate under a trade agreement. It depends on where the goods were made and how much processing happened there, not on where they were shipped from.

R

Reefer: A temperature controlled container or trailer. Used for goods with a specified range to hold, and normally accompanied by a temperature log that the receiver will want to see before unloading.

T

T1 transit document: A customs document allowing non-EU goods to move between two points under customs control without duty falling due. It must be discharged at the destination office, or the full duty eventually becomes payable.
Telex release: An instruction from the shipping line releasing cargo at destination without an original bill of lading being presented. Used when the originals would not arrive before the vessel, which is common on short sea routes.

U

UN number: A four digit identifier for a dangerous substance or article, used across all transport modes. Together with the packing group it determines how the goods must be packed, labelled and documented.

V

Volumetric weight: A calculated weight derived from the dimensions of a shipment, used when cargo takes more space than its mass justifies. Compared against actual weight, and freight is billed on whichever is higher.

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