A bill of lading is a bill of lading that is issued by the ship or its agent, certifying that the goods have been received, allowing the goods to be shipped to the destination and delivered to the shipper. It is a contractual proof between the carrier and the shipper and legally has the effect of a certificate of title.
In most cases, the ocean bill of lading is a certificate of shipment (in some cases, problems may arise due to special circumstances). After the seller (shipper) delivers the goods to the carrier (ship), the carrier issues a set of bills of lading to the seller.
A set of bills of lading may have more than one original, usually 1-3 originals. Any original copy can be used as a delivery voucher. Therefore, the buyer should ask the seller for a full set of original bills of lading.
After the consignor delivers the goods, the bill of lading can be delivered to the consignee through the bank (documentary L/C or collection and settlement), either directly by post or by the person to the consignee.
The consignee should pay attention to the notifying party on the bill of lading. After the goods listed in the bill of lading arrive at the port, the ship will notify the notifying party, and then the notifying party will notify the consignee to take the bill of lading to pick up the goods at the port. The time the sender pays is based on the agreed method of settlement. If it is an irrevocable sight letter of credit, the bill of lading and other negotiating documents are delivered to the bank, the bank can make the payment to the consignor without any error. If it is a long-term letter of credit or other means of settlement, it must be analyzed.