Arrival notice

The carrier, or the forwarder's destination office or agent, sends the arrival notice a few days before the vessel or flight is due. It lists the bill of lading or air waybill number, vessel and voyage, container numbers, ETA and the discharge port or terminal, along with the charges payable before release, such as destination handling and documentation fees. It prompts the importer to start customs clearance and arrange payment and pickup.

The arrival notice informs; it does not release anything. The document that authorizes collection is the delivery order, issued only once charges are paid and the consignee's right to the cargo is established, by an original bill of lading, a confirmed telex release or a sea waybill. Demurrage free time usually starts when the container is discharged, not when someone reads the arrival notice, so a slow response can cost money.

Many carriers' terms state that they are not obliged to send an arrival notice, so a missing one rarely excuses storage or demurrage. That is why the notify party details on the bill of lading matter: wrong contact data means the notice goes nowhere. Forwarders compare the notice with the original quote, since unexpected destination charges usually surface here first, and they keep watching for ETA changes after it has been sent.