Documents and items needed for your Import Shipment

Thank you for selecting World Class Shipping to handle your freight. We greatly appreciate your decision to put more than 30 years of logistics expertise in charge of smoothly moving, clearing, and delivering your cargo. For us to do so effectively and easily, please prepare the following information for us such that we may take action.

Customs Clearance USA

Commercial invoice for your freight, showing date of purchase, manufacturer’s name and address, and a line item by line item cost breakdown

Packing List of your freight. If able, please provide dimensions, with units, in length x width x height for each item being imported. Also please provide weight per-piece being shipped.

Bill of Lading. These are typically clearly labeled, and have information such as item weight, volume, shipment data, and information on who the consignee, notify party, and shipper are. Note, the master bill of lading and house bill of lading are 2 separate documents.

Arrival Notice. This will be received approximately 5 days prior to shipment arrival to America, and will be visibly titled “Arrival Notice/Freight Invoice.”

• Your operations specialist may ask for documents needed for specific compliance with various government agencies. Please respond to all requests promptly, as an FDA/EPA/USDA/DOT/ other government agency hold can delay your freight and cause extra demurrage charges to be incurred by the importer of record.

 

ISF Filing

ISF data sheet-ISF data is typically provided by the shipper/forwarder who organized your shipment. If you have not received an ISF data sheet, simply ask us and we can provide a workbook to complete.

Power of Attorney. Your sales specialist will have provided you with a link to access electronically. Note, for businesses, this form must be signed by an officer of the company- i.e. President, Vice President, Treasurer, or Secretary

• Please provide backup of your importer number.

-If you have opted to use an IRS EIN/TaxID number as your importer number, we’ll need a copy of communication directly from the IRS which shows the same EIN/TaxID, business name, and address as was entered into your POA form.

-If you are an individual using your social security number as your importer number, we will need a drivers license/passport or government issued ID showing the same name and address as entered into your POA form

Commodity info– we need to know the “essential character” of your freight. For ISF, you are welcome to simply write a detailed description of what you are importing.

Importer Contact Info– please advise us of the best telephone number, email address, and mailing address to reach you at. We also need your company website if you have one, your driver’s license/passport photo, and an IRS SS-4 if able.


Truck Delivery to Destination Address

• Destination delivery address.  Availability of loading docks, fork lifts, or pallet jacks at delivery address. Whether or not a lift gate truck is required.

• Contact person & telephone number at delivery address. Note, we highly encourage ensuring the provided number is a 24/7 mobile number. Important note- standard freight deliveries are done “curbside” or “dock to dock,” meaning once the goods are out of the truck, it is the recipient’s responsibility to place them wherever they want them at the delivery site. If you have special needs for delivery, such as residential or inside delivery, please advise and we will do our best to accommodate.

Full Container Delivery

Important notice for full containers Full container moves, both 20’ and 40’, require special attention. Note, the standard full container delivery is a “live-unload.” This means the container arrives, and the clock starts ticking- you have 2 hours to unload the container fully, and after that time is billed per-hour as “detention.” We highly encourage ensuring that you have the necessary manpower to offload your freight during your delivery appointment.

Do you own your container? If so, do you have the ability to offload the container from the truck chassis? Full containers can easily weigh as much as 60,000lbs depending on the commodity loaded inside them. Empty containers are frequently 10,000-12,000lbs. A forklift with sufficient blade length and weight capacity is a must. If you do not have a forklift, or require a crane, we encourage having this arranged before the container leaves overseas.