ACI eManifesting Document Requirements

To ensure shipments are not needlessly delayed, it is imperative to check that the commercial invoice and Bill of Lading are legible, accurate and complete. Missing or incomplete information will result in rejections by Canada Border Services Agency.

A detailed commodity description is a clear and concise description of the item being shipped. The description should be in plain language and detailed enough to allow the CBSA to easily identify the size, shape, and quantity of the goods being shipped. Both the Bill of Lading ( BOL) and Customs Invoice should have a common sense and descriptive commodity identification. On the BOL, the NMFC will generally provide the level of detail necessary as long as it is not overly abbreviated.

However, descriptions on the BOL and Invoice such as “Freight All Kinds“, “General Merchandise”, “ X # of Skids of Product”, “STC or Said to Contain”, “Misc Cargo”, “X # of Cartons“, “Listing the NMFC Item # only” or other vague commodity descriptions will result in CBSA stopping the clearance process and earmark the shipment as Hold for Examination or Hold for More Information. This will mean the shipment is delayed and we will have to contact the shipper for the necessary additional information in order to get the shipment properly cleared.