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Ports, Terminals & Transit

Manifest

Also known as: Cargo Manifest

A manifest is the comprehensive list a carrier files describing all the cargo aboard a conveyance — each shipment's shipper, consignee, description, quantity, and weight — submitted to the customs authority before or upon arrival. It is the master inventory against which customs assesses risk, reconciles entries, and controls what physically comes off a vessel, aircraft, or truck. Advance manifest rules require much of this data to be transmitted before the cargo is even loaded at origin, giving authorities time to screen shipments for security and compliance long before they reach the border.

The JFS takeLicensed customs broker · Filer 82G

The carrier's declaration of what is aboard, and the record your entry is matched against. When they disagree the entry rejects. Mail is the awkward case: postal shipments do carry advance electronic data — ITMATT and PREDES under the UPU message set — but there is no ACE bill of lading for the entry to match to, so the filing goes against an assigned facility control number instead.

Where it matters for compliance

  • Advance manifest data is the carrier's obligation, but a mismatch is the importer's delay.
  • Non-manifested shipments are filed without a manifest match, using the assigned control number.

Related terms

Advance Manifest / 24-Hour RuleThe advance manifest requirement, often called the twenty-four-hour rule for ocean cargo, obliges carriers to transmit detailed cargo information to the destination customs authority a set time before the goods are loaded onto the vessel at the foreign port.Bill of LadingA bill of lading is the foundational document of ocean freight, issued by a carrier to a shipper, that serves three distinct functions at once: a receipt confirming the carrier has taken the described goods into its custody, evidence of the contract of carriage setting out the terms of transport, and — when issued in negotiable form — a document of title whose holder controls delivery of the cargo.

Reviewed by a licensed customs broker. Definitions are general information, not legal or customs advice for a particular shipment. Duty rates, tariff programs and agency requirements change frequently.