Logistics Glossary
A plain-language glossary of the freight forwarding, shipping, transport and customs terms you'll encounter when moving goods through the Port of Koper and across Europe.
A
- ADR
- European agreement governing the international road transport of dangerous goods, covering classification, packaging, labelling and documentation.
- Air Waybill (AWB)
- The transport document and contract of carriage for air freight, issued by or on behalf of the airline.
B
- Bill of Lading (B/L)
- The key sea freight document — it is the contract of carriage, a receipt for the goods and a document of title.
- Bonded warehouse
- A customs-supervised warehouse where non-EU goods are stored without immediate payment of import duties and VAT until released for free circulation.
C
- Certificate of origin
- A document certifying the country in which goods were produced; preferential forms such as EUR.1 can reduce or remove customs duties.
- CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight)
- An Incoterm where the seller pays cost, insurance and freight to the destination port; risk passes to the buyer once goods are on board.
- CMR
- The international consignment note for road transport, serving as proof of the carriage contract between sender, carrier and receiver.
- Consignee
- The party to whom the goods are shipped — the receiver named in the transport documents.
- Cross-docking
- Unloading goods from an inbound vehicle and loading them directly onto an outbound vehicle with little or no storage in between.
- Customs clearance
- The process of getting goods approved by customs for import, export or transit, including declarations, duties and VAT.
D
- DDP (Delivered Duty Paid)
- An Incoterm where the seller delivers the goods cleared for import and pays all costs, including duties and taxes, to the named destination.
- Demurrage
- A charge that applies when a container stays at the port or terminal beyond the agreed free time.
- Detention
- A charge that applies when a container is kept outside the terminal (e.g. at your premises) longer than the permitted free period.
E
- EORI number
- Economic Operators Registration and Identification number — a unique ID required for businesses carrying out customs activities in the EU.
- ETA / ETD
- Estimated Time of Arrival / Estimated Time of Departure of a vessel, vehicle or shipment.
- EUR.1
- A movement certificate proving preferential origin under EU trade agreements, allowing reduced or zero customs duty.
- EXW (Ex Works)
- An Incoterm where the buyer takes on all transport, risk and cost from the seller's premises onward.
F
- FCL (Full Container Load)
- A shipment that fills a dedicated container for a single consignee — faster handling and lower risk than shared loads.
- FOB (Free On Board)
- An Incoterm where the seller delivers the goods on board the vessel; the buyer controls and pays for the main sea freight onward.
- Free time
- The number of days a container may stay at the terminal or with the customer before demurrage or detention charges begin.
- Freight forwarder
- A company that organises and coordinates the shipment of goods on behalf of shippers, arranging transport, customs and documentation.
- FTL / LTL
- Full Truck Load (a whole truck for one consignment) versus Less than Truck Load / groupage (space shared with other consignments).
G
- Groupage (LCL)
- Consolidating cargo from several shippers into one container — cost-effective for shipments that do not fill a container.
H
- HS code
- The Harmonised System commodity code used worldwide to classify goods for customs, tariffs and statistics.
I
- Incoterms
- Internationally recognised trade terms (e.g. EXW, FOB, CIF, DAP, DDP) defining who pays for and bears the risk of each part of the shipment.
- Intermodal transport
- Moving goods using two or more modes (e.g. sea + rail + road) in the same loading unit without handling the goods themselves.
- Intrastat
- The statistical reporting system for the movement of goods between EU member states.
M
- MRN (Movement Reference Number)
- The unique reference assigned to a customs declaration or transit document, used to track the procedure.
P
- Packing list
- A document detailing the contents, weight and dimensions of each package in a shipment.
- Phytosanitary certificate
- An official certificate confirming that plants or plant products meet import health requirements.
- Project cargo
- Oversized, heavy or complex shipments (e.g. machinery, industrial equipment) requiring special handling and planning.
R
- Reefer
- A refrigerated container used to transport temperature-controlled cargo such as food or pharmaceuticals.
- Ro-Ro (Roll-on/Roll-off)
- Vessels and terminals designed for wheeled cargo that is driven on and off, such as cars, trucks and trailers.
T
- T1 transit
- A customs transit procedure allowing non-EU goods to move under customs control within the EU without immediately paying duties and VAT.
- TEU
- Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit — the standard measure of container capacity; a 40-foot container equals two TEU.
- Transhipment
- Transferring cargo from one vessel or vehicle to another en route to the final destination.
V
- VAT deferment
- An arrangement allowing import VAT to be accounted for later (e.g. on a VAT return) rather than paid at the point of import.
W
- Warehousing
- Storage of goods, including short- and long-term storage, inventory management, order picking and distribution.
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