You must know these things about transit ports

"Transit port" is sometimes also called "transit place", which refers to the third port in the itinerary when the goods go from the departure port to the destination port. The transportation vehicles carry out operations such as docking, loading and unloading, and replenishment, and the goods are transferred to the transportation vehicles. The port where the shipment continues to the destination is the transit port. There are both one-time transfers by shipping companies and shippers who change orders and transfer ships due to tax exemption reasons.

The status of transit port

Transit ports are generally basic ports, so the ships calling at the transit port are generally large ships from the main international shipping routes and feeder ships traveling to and from various ports in the region.

Unloading port/delivery place=transit port/destination port?

If it only refers to sea transportation, the port of discharge does refer to the transit port, and the place of delivery refers to the port of destination. When booking, you generally only need to indicate the place of delivery. Whether to transit or which transit port to go to is decided by the shipping company.

If it is multimodal transport, the port of discharge refers to the port of destination, and the place of delivery refers to the destination. Since different unloading ports will incur different transshipment fees, the unloading port must be specified when booking.

The wonderful use of transit ports

duty free

What I want to talk about here is segmented transfer. Setting the transit port as a free trade port can achieve the purpose of reducing tariffs. For example, if Hong Kong is a free trade port, if the goods are transferred to Hong Kong, goods that are not specially regulated by the country can basically achieve the purpose of export tax exemption, and even tax refund subsidies will be provided.

hold goods

What we are talking about here is shipping company transfer. In international trade, various factors cause goods to be unable to move forward and need to be held. The shipper can apply to the shipping company for detention before arriving at the transit port. The goods will be shipped to the destination port after the trade issues are resolved. This tends to be relatively easier to operate than a direct boat. But it’s also expensive.

Transit port code

A ship will call at multiple ports, so there are many entry codes registered by the ship at the same terminal, which are also the subsequent transfer port codes. If the shipping agent fills in the codes at will, if the codes do not match, the container will not be able to enter the port. If it is matched but is not the real transit port, then even if you enter the port and board the ship, it will be unloaded at the wrong port. If it is corrected before shipping, the box may be unloaded at the wrong port. Re-transshipment costs are very high and you may have to pay hefty fines.

About transshipment terms

During the international transportation of goods, due to geographical or political and economic reasons, the goods need to be transshipped at certain ports or other locations. When booking, you need to limit the transit port. But it ultimately depends on whether the shipping company accepts transit here.

If accepted, the terms and conditions for the transit port will be clear, usually added after the destination port, usually connected by "VIA (via, through)" or "W/T (with transshipment at..., transshipment at...)". Examples of terms include:

Port of Loading: Shanghai China

Port of Destination: London UK W/T Hong Kong

In actual operation, we cannot directly treat the transit port as the destination port to avoid transportation errors and unnecessary losses. Because the transit port is only a temporary port for transferring goods, not the final destination of the goods.