Glossary

A shipper is a person who consigns goods and signs a contract of carriage with a carrier in one‘s name or on one‘s behalf on the freight documents.

A house bill of lading (HBL) is an acknowledgment of the receipt of goods issued by a freight forwarder or a non-vessel operating company (NVOCC).

An original bill of lading (OBL) is a contract of carriage, which doubles as a title of the cargo and a carrier’s receipt of the cargo.

An express bill of lading is a type of bill of lading with no original bill of lading issued and the cargo is automatically released at the destination.

A master air waybill (MAWB) is a transport document for air cargo with details of delivery terms issued by the air cargo carrier or its agent.

A house air waybill (HAWB) is a transport document for air cargo issued by the freight forwarders in natural air waybill format with delivery details.

An arrival notice is a document sent to the notify party to inform them of the cargo’s arrival date. It is issued by the ocean freight forwarder, freight carrier, or agent.

A packing list is a customs declaration document with each shipment’s list of packages detailed individually by weight, dimension, and quantity.

A CFS (container freight station) is a warehouse where cargo consolidation and deconsolidation takes place.

Incoterms® are trade terms developed by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) to specify details in trade contracts for global freight delivery.

Carriage Paid To (CPT) is an incoterm that refers to the delivery of the goods at the seller’s expense to a carrier or anyone the seller designates.

Carriage and Insurance Paid To (CIP) is an incoterm in which the seller covers the freight and insurance costs up to a designated party’s location.

A commercial invoice is a document specifying the amount and quantity of the sent goods for customs declaration purposes along with a packing list.

The importer of record (IOR) is an individual or entity in charge of filing paperwork and making payments to customs.

An exporter of record (EOR) is responsible for correct documentation preparation to comply with the required export specifications.