Cargo cut-off vs ETD: the cut-off is when the cargo and paperwork must be in, ahead of sailing; the estimated time of departure (ETD) is when the vessel is scheduled to leave.
What is a cargo cut-off?
A cargo cut-off is a deadline tied to one sailing (or one flight). The carrier needs the container in the terminal, the bill of lading data in its system and the weight declared early enough to plan the stowage, file the manifest and load the ship. Each of those has its own cut-off, and all of them are on the booking confirmation.
The cut-offs on an ocean booking
| Cut-off | What must be in | Set by |
|---|---|---|
| CY or port cut-off (gate-in) | The full container, gated into the terminal's container yard | Carrier and terminal |
| SI or documentation cut-off | The shipping instructions: the data that goes on the bill of lading and the carrier's manifest | Carrier |
| VGM cut-off | The verified gross mass required under SOLAS regulation VI/2 | Carrier |
| CFS receiving cut-off (LCL) | Loose cargo, physically at the origin CFS | Consolidator |
The CFS receiving cut-off comes before the container cut-off for the same vessel, because the consolidator still has to load, weigh and seal the box and gate it in. Terminals also publish an earliest receiving date for each vessel, before which they will not accept export containers; the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey tells truckers to check the steamship line or the terminal's website for the receiving schedule and cut-off.
The regulatory deadlines behind them
- US imports: the carrier, or an FMC-licensed NVOCC filing its own data, must transmit the cargo declaration to CBP 24 hours before the cargo is laden aboard the vessel at the foreign port (19 CFR 4.7(b)). The importer's ISF is due no later than 24 hours before the cargo is laden at the foreign port (19 CFR 149.2(b)). Carriers set the documentation cut-off early enough to meet these
- US exports: the Electronic Export Information must be filed in AES and the filing citation given to the carrier 24 hours before vessel cargo is loaded, or no later than 2 hours before an aircraft's scheduled departure (15 CFR 30.4)
- Air freight: airlines set an acceptance cut-off, typically hours before departure, by which the cargo must be tendered, screened and accepted; consolidated air shipments also wait for the consolidation's own cut-off
What happens if you miss a cut-off
A container that misses the gate-in, documentation or VGM cut-off is not loaded and is rolled to the next sailing, and the ISF deadline moves with the new loading date. LCL cargo that misses the CFS cut-off waits for the next consolidation closing, not the next day. Carriers can also roll bookings in busy periods even when everything is on time, so the earlier the cargo and documents are in, the safer the booking. The transit-time estimator shows port-to-port time from sailing, not from the cut-off.
How to keep the booked vessel
- Read the cut-off dates on the booking confirmation the day it arrives and plan the empty pickup, stuffing and export clearance back from them
- Send the shipping instructions and the VGM before the day of the cut-off, not on it
- For LCL, ask for the consolidation's receiving cut-off with the quote
Airlift sends every FCL booking with its cut-off dates and files the SI and VGM against them; the LCL page explains the consolidation cut-offs.
Related terms
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