Document Processing & Customs clearance
Overview
Via Charon offers the service of dealing completely with customs clearance, document submission and regulation conformity, understanding that the complexity of the process is often overwhelming . Under Via Charon all our customers need to do is let us handle the matter whilst being able to track the movement of the goods. Below is a process flow of what needs to be done for imports and exports if importing from the UK.
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Shipping routes worldwide
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Ocean volume annually
Cargo Types
Step 1:
After the contract between buyer and seller is formed:
After the contract between buyer and seller is formed:
The letter of credit or LC is created which is a bank’s guarantee to pay a seller on behalf of the consignee. Banks charge for issuing letters of credit. This is not a mandatory part of the process as it is common for a purchaser to pay straight to an exporter. There are multiple types of LC. One type is the Transferrable letter of credit. These are LC which allows the seller as beneficiary of the credit to transfer all or part of the credit to another party. This may be necessary in international trade deals where middlemen or suppliers are picking up for most of the transaction
Step 2:
After the Commercial Letter of Credit is produced:
After the Commercial Letter of Credit is produced:
After the shipper books cargo space with the carrier, they submit the shipping instructions. This document is known as the Shipper’s Letter of Instruction or SLI. The SLI is required for the OBL to be created. It is the instruction manual for the carrier.
Step 3:
After the Shipper’s Letter of Instruction or SLI is produced:
After the Shipper’s Letter of Instruction or SLI is produced:
The Commercial Invoice acts as a customs declaration on the details of the good being shipped and as a formal request of payment from the seller to the buyer. The commercial invoice requires the Shipper’s Letter of Instruction to be produced by Via Charon or a forwarding agent as it contains core information for the Commercial invoice to be generated.
Step 4:
After the Commercial invoice is produced:
After the Commercial invoice is produced:
The Bill of Lading is the proof of an agreement between individuals, groups or companies. It contains information on the shipper, the consignee and the notify party which is the party that must be notified by the carrier when the cargo arrives at its destination. It also dictates from where and to where the cargo is to be shipped. The Bill of Lading or OBL requires documents such as the Commercial Invoice to be created, so must come afterwards in the steps of procedure for documentation submission.
Step 5:
After the Bill of Lading is produced:
After the Bill of Lading is produced:
The Certificate of Origin is a crucial document which officially declares the country where goods were grown, manufactured or produced. The COO is, due to it connecting goods to a place of origin, important information for the customs to determine tariffs and check trade compliance and imposition of duties or to claim preferential duties under trade agreements. The Certificate of Origin requires the Bill of Lading to be produced, so it must follow the OBL in the process flow.
Step 6:
Potentially 24 hours before leaving port:
Potentially 24 hours before leaving port:
The Export Declaration must be submitted and must receive clearance from customs before goods can leave the country. When cargo is being transported by sea and going via the Mediterranean, Baltic and Black seas in the UK a declaration must be made at least 2 hours before leaving the port and at least 24 hours before, for most other types of cargo. For air freight, the declaration must be made at least 30 minutes before departure.
There are multiple interstitial steps in the form of document generation, application or submission that are not included in the process flow including creating the Export Packing List, arranging the insurance and generating an insurance certificate and the creation and use of Customs Guarantee accounts. Via Charon will simplify this entire process, taking control of each step, so our exporters don’t have to worry about the minutiae
Container type
20" General Purpose
Specification Description
Cubic Capacity
33.2 m3
Max Payload
28,300 Kgs
Tare Weight
2,180 Kgs
Max Gross
30,480 Kgs
40" General Purpose
Specification Description
Cubic Capacity
67.7 m3
Max Payload
26,690 Kgs
Tare Weight
3,790 Kgs
Max Gross
30,480 Kgs