Guides, checklists and a glossary
Things we find ourselves explaining often, written down. Free to use and share.
One-page checklists
PDF checklists we give to new clients. Ask and we'll email them to you.
New supplier onboarding
What to confirm with a new Chinese supplier before the first PO ships: documents, marks, packaging, Incoterms and contacts.
Email me thisCommercial invoice for customs
Every field US and Canadian customs expect, with examples of good and bad product descriptions.
Email me thisMoving assembly to North America
Twelve customs and logistics questions to answer before you import parts instead of finished goods.
Email me thisImporting into Canada as a US company
NRI registration, CARM, GST/HST basics and what changes on your paperwork.
Email me thisWho pays for what, in one screen
Incoterms decide where the supplier's responsibility ends and yours begins. For production freight, we usually suggest FCA or FOB, so you control the main freight and the timing.
Ex Works
You collect from the supplier's premises and handle everything, including export clearance. Least work for the supplier.
Free Carrier
The supplier clears export and hands goods to your carrier at an agreed place. Our usual recommendation for container freight.
Free On Board
The supplier delivers goods on board the vessel at the origin port. Sea freight only. Very common from China.
Free Alongside Ship
The supplier delivers alongside the vessel at the port. Mostly used for bulk or oversized cargo.
Cost and Freight
The supplier pays ocean freight to your port, but risk passes to you once goods are on board at origin.
Cost, Insurance & Freight
Like CFR, plus minimum insurance paid by the supplier. You don't control the forwarder or schedule.
Carriage Paid To
The supplier pays carriage to a named place; risk passes when goods are handed to the first carrier.
Carriage & Insurance Paid
Like CPT, plus insurance, which under the 2020 rules must be all-risk level cover.
Delivered at Place
The supplier delivers to your named place, ready for unloading. You handle import clearance and duty.
Delivered at Place Unloaded
Like DAP, but the supplier also unloads. Replaced DAT in the 2020 rules.
Delivered Duty Paid
The supplier handles everything including import duty. Convenient, but you lose visibility and it can create customs compliance risk.
Incoterms® is a trademark of the International Chamber of Commerce. This is a simplified summary; check the full ICC rules for contracts.
Freight and customs terms, in plain English
- Bill of lading (B/L, HBL, MBL)
- The shipping document and receipt for ocean cargo. The master B/L is issued by the carrier to us; the house B/L is issued by us to you.
- Bonded warehouse
- A warehouse licensed by customs where imported goods can be stored before duty is paid.
- CARM
- CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management, Canada's system for customs declarations and duty payment.
- CBP / CBSA
- US Customs and Border Protection / Canada Border Services Agency.
- CFS
- Container freight station. A warehouse near a port where LCL cargo is consolidated or broken down.
- Chargeable weight
- For air freight, the greater of actual weight and volumetric weight (L × W × H in cm ÷ 6,000).
- CUSMA / USMCA
- The trade agreement between Canada, the US and Mexico. Goods that qualify can move between the three with reduced or no duty.
- Demurrage
- Charges for a container left at the terminal beyond its free time.
- Detention
- Charges for keeping the carrier's container outside the terminal beyond its free time.
- Drayage
- Short-distance trucking of containers, usually between a port or rail ramp and a warehouse.
- FCL / LCL
- Full container load (one shipper, one container) / less than container load (shared container).
- HTS / HS code
- The tariff classification number that determines duty rate and rules for a product.
- In-bond
- Moving goods under customs control, before they've been formally cleared, for example from a port to an inland city.
- ISF (10+2)
- Importer Security Filing. Data US Customs requires before ocean cargo is loaded abroad.
- Kitting
- Grouping parts into sets matched to a bill of materials, so each set has everything to build a unit or batch.
- NVOCC
- Non-vessel operating common carrier. A company (like us) that issues its own bills of lading but doesn't operate ships.
- PARS / PAPS
- Pre-arrival processing for trucks entering Canada (PARS) or the US (PAPS).
- Periodic monthly statement
- A CBP program that lets importers pay a month's duty in one payment, instead of per entry.
- Rolled cargo
- Cargo bumped from its booked sailing to a later one, usually because the vessel is overbooked.
- Section 301
- US trade actions that add tariffs to many goods of Chinese origin, on top of normal duty.
- TEU
- Twenty-foot equivalent unit. A 20' container is 1 TEU; a 40' is 2 TEU.
- Transload
- Moving cargo from an ocean container into a domestic trailer, usually near the port.
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