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Resources · Glossary

Freight and Mexico customs glossary

The terms you will find in a freight quote, an air waybill or a Mexican customs entry, explained briefly and with what they mean for your shipment.

General information on logistics and trade; not legal or tax advice. Kold Gold has no customs license of its own: clearance is handled by the partner customs broker on each shipment.

A

ATA Carnet

Also: Cuaderno ATA · merchandise passport

An international customs document that lets professional equipment, commercial samples and exhibition goods enter a country temporarily without paying duties or posting a bond at each border. It is issued by the chamber of commerce in the country of departure under the ATA system and is valid in member countries. It is presented at every crossing and closed on return.

In practice: For a tour or trade show, get the carnet weeks ahead and check that the equipment list matches the cases.

AWB (air waybill)

Also: air waybill · e-AWB · guía aérea

The transport document for air cargo. It is the contract between shipper and airline, the receipt for the goods and the basis for the freight charge. Its 11-digit number starts with the airline's three-digit prefix. Unlike an ocean bill of lading, an air waybill is not a document of title: it cannot be endorsed to transfer ownership of the cargo.

In practice: The AWB number is what you use to track the shipment on the airline's site and to present the cargo to customs at destination.

B

BAF (bunker adjustment factor)

Also: bunker adjustment factor · bunker surcharge · fuel surcharge

A surcharge carriers add to ocean freight to reflect the cost of ship fuel, or bunker. It is reviewed periodically based on fuel prices and, since 2020, on the IMO low-sulphur rule. It may be listed separately or folded into an all-in rate. Because it floats, a quote with BAF listed separately can change between booking and sailing.

In practice: Ask whether the quote includes BAF and until what sailing date it is valid.

Bill of lading (B/L)

Also: B/L · BL · ocean bill of lading · conocimiento de embarque

The document a carrier or forwarder issues on receiving goods for ocean transport. It serves as a receipt for the cargo, evidence of the contract of carriage and, when negotiable, a document of title that is endorsed to transfer the goods. It can be a master (carrier) or house (forwarder) bill, an original or an electronic release.

In practice: Without the original B/L or its release (telex release or sea waybill), the carrier will not hand over the container at destination.

Bonded facility (recinto fiscalizado)

Also: recinto fiscalizado · bonded warehouse · customs-controlled terminal

A facility inside or next to a Mexican customs office where a private operator, under concession or authorization, receives, stores, guards and releases foreign-trade goods while they are cleared. At ports and airports these are usually the terminals themselves. They charge storage for the days cargo stays, with abandonment deadlines set by law.

In practice: Ask which facility your cargo will sit in and from what day it charges storage: it does not always match the carrier's free time.

C

Cargo insurance

Also: marine cargo insurance · Institute Cargo Clauses · ICC (A)

A policy covering loss of or damage to goods in transit. In international trade it is usually based on the Institute Cargo Clauses: clause A covers all risks except exclusions, while B and C cover named perils only. Insurance is separate from freight: a carrier's legal liability is capped at low amounts and is no substitute for a policy.

In practice: Take out cover before the goods leave and keep photos and delivery documents: without evidence, a claim gets harder.

Carta Porte

Also: Carta Porte complement · bill of lading complement (Mexico)

A complement to Mexico's electronic tax invoice (CFDI) that covers the movement of goods within Mexican territory. It describes the goods, origin, destination, route, vehicle and driver. The carrier issues it when it charges for the haul, or the cargo owner does when moving goods in its own vehicles. Trucks running without it risk fines and detention of the vehicle.

In practice: Even if you do not issue it, give the carrier exact cargo data: errors in the complement come back to the cargo owner.

Chargeable weight

Also: dimensional weight · volumetric weight · DIM weight

The weight the freight rate is applied to: the greater of the actual gross weight and the volumetric weight. For air cargo, the industry standard divides length × width × height in centimeters by 6,000. A large, light box can therefore cost as much as a small, heavy one. Ocean LCL applies the same logic per cubic meter or metric ton.

In practice: Measure cartons after packing and before quoting: a few extra centimeters can raise the weight you are billed for.

CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight)

Also: Cost, Insurance and Freight

A sea-only Incoterm in which the seller books and pays freight and minimum insurance to the destination port. Risk, however, passes to the buyer once the goods are on board at origin. The buyer therefore bears losses during the voyage and claims under the seller's policy, which only covers the most basic clause.

In practice: If you buy CIF, ask for a copy of the policy and consider your own cover: the minimum is often not enough.

Cold chain

Also: temperature-controlled logistics · cadena de frío

The sequence of steps — storage, transport, handovers and delivery — that keeps a product within a defined temperature range from origin to final destination. It is used for medicines, vaccines, food and biological samples. A single excursion outside the range can make the product unusable, so every link is logged and can be audited.

In practice: Agree the temperature range and who is responsible at each handover before shipping; that is where most cold chains break.

Cross-border transfer

Also: transfer · cross-border drayage · drayage

A short-haul move that takes a trailer across the Mexico–US border from one side's yard to the other's. It exists because long-haul trucks generally do not cross: a transfer carrier with permits on both sides shuttles the trailer while customs documents are filed. It is routine at Laredo–Nuevo Laredo, El Paso–Juárez and San Diego–Tijuana.

In practice: On a cross-border truck quote, confirm whether the transfer and its waiting time are included.

Customs traffic light (semáforo fiscal)

Also: semáforo fiscal · automated selection mechanism · red light · green light

The common name for Mexican customs' automated selection mechanism. After the pedimento is paid, the cargo is presented and the system decides whether it leaves without inspection (green) or undergoes a customs examination (red). A red light is not an accusation, and a green light does not stop the authority from auditing later.

In practice: Assume any entry can go red: tidy documents and well-labeled goods shorten the examination.

D

DAP (Delivered At Place)

Also: Delivered At Place

The Incoterm in which the seller bears costs and risks until the goods are at the agreed destination, ready for unloading. The buyer handles unloading, import clearance and duties. It works for any mode of transport and is common in door-to-door shipments without duties paid.

In practice: Under DAP into Mexico, the customs entry and import taxes are yours: line up the customs broker before the cargo arrives.

DDP (Delivered Duty Paid)

Also: Delivered Duty Paid

The Incoterm with the most obligation for the seller: it delivers the goods to the agreed destination with import clearance done and duties paid. Into Mexico, that means someone registered in the Padrón de Importadores must appear as importer before customs, which a foreign seller cannot do on its own. It needs a Mexican importer of record.

In practice: Before accepting DDP to Mexico, ask who will appear as importer on the pedimento: that answer decides whether it is workable.

Demurrage

Also: container demurrage · demoras

A daily charge the carrier bills when a full container stays at the terminal after the free time has run out. It is usually caused by incomplete customs clearance, missing documents or unscheduled inland trucking. Rates normally rise in day bands and come on top of the terminal's own storage charges.

In practice: Have the customs entry, permits and trucking ready before the vessel arrives: every day the box sits in port adds demurrage.

Detention

Also: container detention · per diem

A daily charge the carrier bills when a container, already picked up from the terminal, is not returned empty to the designated depot within the free time. It runs while the equipment sits at the importer's warehouse or on the road. It is different from demurrage, which accrues while the full container is still in port.

In practice: Schedule unloading at your warehouse and the empty return for the same day you pull the container from port.

DGR (dangerous goods by air)

Also: Dangerous Goods Regulations · dangerous goods · hazmat

IATA's regulations setting how dangerous goods are classified, packed, marked, labeled and documented for air transport. They are based on the ICAO Technical Instructions and are updated every year. They cover lithium batteries, perfumes, chemicals and dry ice, among much else. Whoever prepares the shipment must be trained and sign the shipper's declaration.

In practice: If your product has a UN number, the airline will ask for a shipper's declaration and check the packaging before accepting it.

Dry ice (UN1845)

Also: solid carbon dioxide · UN 1845 · hielo seco

Solid carbon dioxide at about −78.5 °C, used to keep biological products, samples and food frozen in transit. By air it is a Class 9 dangerous good, UN1845: packaging must let the gas escape, each package is marked with the net quantity in kilograms and the airline caps the total per aircraft. It sublimates, so it loses mass during the trip.

In practice: Size the dry ice to the real door-to-door time plus a delay margin, and declare the quantity on the air waybill.

DTA (customs processing fee)

Also: derecho de trámite aduanero · customs processing fee

The fee paid on customs operations carried out with a pedimento. For most definitive imports it equals 8 per thousand of the customs value, under article 49 of Mexico's Federal Duties Law; other regimes pay a fixed amount. It is declared and paid on the same pedimento as the import duty and VAT.

In practice: The DTA applies even when a trade agreement zeroes the duty: keep it in your landed-cost estimate.

E

EXW (Ex Works)

Also: Ex Works

The Incoterm in which the seller only makes the goods available at its premises or another agreed place, not loaded and not cleared for export. Everything else — loading, freight, export and import clearance and risk from that point — falls on the buyer. It is the term with the least obligation for the seller.

In practice: If you buy EXW, your forwarder needs someone to file the export at origin: confirm that before paying the supplier.

F

FCL (full container load)

Also: full container load · full container

Ocean shipping mode in which one shipper uses an entire 20- or 40-foot container, whether or not it is full. It is priced per container rather than by weight or volume. The box is stuffed and sealed at origin and opened at destination unless customs inspects it. It cuts handling and usually pays off above a certain volume.

In practice: If your cargo fills more than half a 20-foot container, price FCL against LCL before deciding.

Flat rack

Also: flat rack container · FR

A container with no roof or side walls, only a floor and two end walls that sometimes fold down. It carries oversized or heavy cargo that will not fit through a standard container's doors: machinery, vehicles, boats, transformers. The cargo is lashed to the floor and may exceed the width or height, which carries a surcharge and special stowage.

In practice: With a flat rack, send the carrier the lashing plan and exact out-of-gauge dimensions before the booking is confirmed.

FOB (Free On Board)

Also: Free On Board

A sea-only Incoterm in which the seller clears the goods for export and delivers them on board the vessel nominated by the buyer at the agreed port of loading. From then on, risk and international freight are for the buyer. It was designed for bulk or breakbulk cargo; for containers, the ICC recommends FCA instead.

In practice: Under FOB, origin charges up to the vessel belong to the seller; check your supplier is not billing them to you separately.

H

HAWB (house air waybill)

Also: house air waybill · house AWB

The air waybill a freight forwarder issues to each customer inside a consolidated shipment. It names the actual shipper and consignee, describes that customer's goods and is tied to a master air waybill. At destination the forwarder's agent breaks down the consolidation and releases each consignment against its house waybill.

In practice: Customs entry and delivery at destination are done against your house number, not just the master.

I

IGI (general import duty)

Also: Mexican import duty · tariff · impuesto general de importación

The duty paid when importing goods into Mexico. Its rate depends on the tariff item in the LIGIE schedule and on the origin of the goods: a trade agreement can lower or remove it if origin is proven. In most cases it is calculated as a percentage of the customs value.

In practice: Before buying, confirm the current rate for your tariff item and whether your supplier can certify origin.

IMDG Code

Also: International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code · dangerous goods by sea

The International Maritime Organization's code for carrying dangerous goods by sea. It sets classes, packaging, labels, segregation on board and the documents that travel with the cargo. It is mandatory for SOLAS states and is the maritime counterpart of IATA's Dangerous Goods Regulations for air transport.

In practice: To ship chemicals or paints by sea, the carrier asks for the safety data sheet and the IMDG declaration before accepting the booking.

IMMEX

Also: IMMEX program · maquiladora program

A Mexican Ministry of Economy program that lets exporters import inputs, components and machinery temporarily without paying import duty or VAT on entry, provided they process or repair them and return them abroad within the legal deadlines. In exchange, the company keeps inventory controls and reports its operations to the authorities.

In practice: An IMMEX company has to reconcile what it imports temporarily with what it exports: any gap is paid with taxes and surcharges.

Import VAT (Mexico)

Also: IVA · value added tax on imports

Value added tax paid at Mexican customs on imports. The general rate is 16%, applied to the customs value plus the import duty, the DTA and any other taxes or fees paid on the import. For a registered company it is generally creditable on its tax return, but it must be paid before the goods are released.

In practice: Plan import VAT into your cash flow: it is paid on the pedimento weeks before you can credit it.

Incoterms

Also: Incoterms® 2020 · international commercial terms

The International Chamber of Commerce's rules that split costs, risks and formalities between seller and buyer in an international sale. Each is a three-letter code (EXW, FOB, CIF, DAP, DDP and others) followed by a named place. The current version dates from 2020. They do not define who owns the goods or the price: the sales contract does.

In practice: Always write the Incoterm with its exact place and version, for example "FOB Shanghai, Incoterms 2020".

IOR (importer of record)

Also: importer of record · importador registrado

The person or company named as importer on the customs entry, liable to the authorities for duties, regulatory compliance and the accuracy of what is declared. In Mexico the IOR must be listed in the Padrón de Importadores and, depending on the goods, in sector-specific registries. A foreign seller with no Mexican presence needs a local IOR.

In practice: If you have no Mexican importer registration, settle who your importer of record will be before you buy; without one, the cargo cannot clear.

L

LCL (less than container load)

Also: less than container load · consolidated ocean freight · groupage

Ocean shipping mode in which several shippers' cargo shares one container. It is charged per cubic meter or metric ton, whichever is greater (W/M). The consolidator receives the goods at an origin warehouse, stuffs the container and, at destination, devans it before releasing each consignment. It involves more handling and often more transit days than FCL.

In practice: In LCL, one consignment with incomplete paperwork can hold up the devanning of the whole container.

M

MAWB (master air waybill)

Also: master air waybill · master AWB

The air waybill an airline issues to a freight forwarder that consolidates several customers' shipments into one. For the airline there is a single shipper, the consolidator, and a single consignee, its agent at destination. Each customer's cargo travels under its own house air waybill, linked to the master.

In practice: If your cargo is consolidated, the airline only knows the master number; the details of your shipment are on the house.

Mexican customs broker (agente aduanal)

Also: agente aduanal · customs agent · customs license

An individual licensed by the Mexican authorities to clear goods through customs on behalf of third parties. The broker classifies the goods, calculates taxes, files the pedimento and is jointly liable for certain data declared. Kold Gold has no customs license of its own: clearance is handled by the partner customs broker on each shipment.

In practice: Ask the customs broker for an itemized statement: fees, taxes and third-party charges are billed separately.

MVE (electronic value declaration)

Also: Manifestación de Valor Electrónica · electronic value declaration

The electronic filing in which a Mexican importer reports the customs value of its goods to SAT and the items that make it up: price paid, freight, insurance, commissions and any relationship with the seller. It replaces the paper value declaration. Its mandatory date has moved several times and it is being phased in by customs regime.

In practice: Gather the invoice, contract and freight and insurance receipts before clearance: they are the basis of the MVE and the customs value.

P

Padrón de Importadores

Also: Mexican importers' registry · sector registries

The SAT registry in which anyone importing goods into Mexico must be enrolled, with limited legal exceptions. Some products — steel, textiles, footwear, chemicals and others — also require a sector-specific registry. Enrollment is filed by the taxpayer itself with SAT. Kold Gold does not file the Padrón: it checks that you are enrolled before the cargo ships.

In practice: Check on the SAT portal that your registration is active, with the right sectors, before the cargo leaves origin.

Pedimento

Also: Mexican customs entry · customs declaration (Mexico)

The electronic declaration that presents goods to Mexican customs for import or export. It states the customs regime, tariff classification, value, taxes and permits for each transaction. The Mexican customs broker files and signs it on behalf of the importer or exporter, and it is paid before the cargo goes through the customs selection system.

In practice: The pedimento number proves the goods are legally in Mexico: keep it with the commercial invoice for every import.

R

Reefer container

Also: refrigerated container · reefer

A container with its own refrigeration unit that holds a programmed temperature, or setpoint, usually between −30 °C and +30 °C. It runs on power from the ship, the terminal or a generator set during trucking. A reefer maintains temperature but does not pull it down: cargo must be loaded already pre-cooled to the carriage temperature.

In practice: Ask for the reefer's temperature download for the whole voyage: it is your evidence if you need to claim for a temperature excursion.

T

THC (terminal handling charges)

Also: terminal handling charges · OTHC · DTHC

Charges for moving the container inside the port terminal: loading it on or off the vessel and taking it to the yard. They are billed at origin (OTHC) and at destination (DTHC). Depending on the Incoterm and the deal, the seller or the buyer pays them. They are separate from the terminal's storage charges and from the carrier's demurrage.

In practice: Check whether your ocean quote includes destination THC: it is one of the most frequently forgotten charges.

Transshipment

Also: transhipment · T/S

Moving a container from one vessel to another at an intermediate port before it reaches destination. It happens when the carrier has no direct service between the two ports. It adds days to the transit and a point of risk: if the connecting vessel is full or sails early, the container waits for the next one. The cargo stays under the same bill of lading.

In practice: When comparing carriers, ask whether the route is direct or transships, and where: it changes the approximate transit time.

V

VGM (verified gross mass)

Also: verified gross mass · SOLAS VGM

The total weight of a packed container — cargo, packaging, lashing and tare — that the shipper must declare to the carrier before the box is loaded on the vessel. It has been required under the IMO's SOLAS convention since July 2016. It is obtained by weighing the packed container (method 1) or by adding the weight of all contents to the tare (method 2).

In practice: Without a VGM submitted before the cut-off, the terminal will not load the container even with a confirmed booking.

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