Freight, customs and logistics questions answered

Send us the origin and destination, the commodity, gross weight and either volume or container type, how the cargo is packed, and the date you need it to move. Email info@cargoking.in or call the enquiries line on +91 8454002489.

Where the information is complete, a quotation usually comes back the same working day.

Route, commodity description and HS code if you have it, gross weight, dimensions or volume, number and type of packages, Incoterm, and the required delivery window. For hazardous or temperature-controlled cargo we also need the safety data sheet or the required temperature range.

Air and ocean rates move with carrier tariffs, fuel surcharges and seasonal capacity, so every quotation carries its own validity period. Confirm the booking inside that window, or ask us to revalidate before you commit to your buyer.

Both. We move full container loads, part loads and LCL consolidations by sea, and both express and consolidated cargo by air. Small consignments are usually consolidated so that the rate stays workable.

There is no fixed minimum. What changes with a smaller consignment is the most economical mode and whether consolidation makes sense, which is part of what the quotation explains.

Yes. A significant share of our documentation work is with businesses shipping internationally for the first time, including IEC registration and getting the first set of export documents right.

Air suits urgent, high-value, low-volume or perishable cargo where the delivery date decides the commercial outcome. Sea suits volume, weight and planned replenishment, and is substantially cheaper per kilogram.

The honest test is landed cost against the cost of being late. We will price both when the choice is genuinely open.

FCL means you book a full container for your cargo alone. LCL means your cargo shares a container with other shippers, so you pay for the space you use but accept consolidation and deconsolidation handling at each end. FCL is usually better once your volume approaches a container; LCL is better below that.

Airlines charge on the higher of actual gross weight and volumetric weight. Volumetric weight is length x width x height in centimetres divided by 6000. Light but bulky cargo is therefore priced on its volume, which is why accurate dimensions matter at quotation stage.

We do. As a freight forwarder and licensed Multimodal Transport Operator we contract carriage with the carrier, issue the transport document and stay accountable for the shipment file through to delivery.

Yes. Pickup, export handling, main carriage, customs at both ends and final delivery can be run as one file under one coordinator, by any combination of air, sea, road and rail.

Yes, containerised and bulk rail movement, which is usually the better option for long domestic trunk legs where road cost or transit reliability becomes a problem.

Yes. Customs and DGFT work is prepared by our own team in Mumbai rather than passed to a third-party agent. That is deliberate: when the documentation and the freight sit with the same people, queries get resolved without a handoff.

Typically a commercial invoice, packing list, shipping bill, your Importer Exporter Code, correct HS classification, the transport document (bill of lading or air waybill), and where applicable a certificate of origin, insurance certificate and any product-specific licence or regulatory clearance.

The exact set depends on the commodity and the destination, which we confirm before the cargo is booked.

The Importer Exporter Code is issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade and is mandatory for commercial import and export from India. We handle IEC registration and amendments as part of our documentation service.

Yes. We prepare and file DGFT applications, advise on which foreign trade policy schemes a consignment or business may be eligible for, and maintain the supporting documentation those schemes require.

Incomplete or inconsistent documentation, incorrect HS classification, a mismatch between the invoice and the physical cargo, and missing product-specific permits. Almost all of it is avoidable if the paperwork is checked before the cargo is handed over, which is why we review it first.

Yes, both. Import clearance, duty assessment support and onward delivery are handled by the same documentation team.

Yes. We offer secure warehousing with inventory control and onward distribution, which is often used as a buffer between production and shipping schedules or as a distribution point close to the port.

Our third-party logistics service covers receiving, storage, stock control, pick and pack, and dispatch, run against your order flow so your team does not have to operate a warehouse directly.

Inventory is recorded against your account and reconciled on an agreed reporting cycle, so stock on hand, inward receipts and dispatches are visible to you rather than reconstructed after the fact.

Yes. Cargo can be received and held under our handling while documentation is completed, which avoids demurrage pressure at the port and keeps the consignment under one accountable party.

Yes, including export packing, crating and palletisation. Where solid wood packaging is used for an international movement, ISPM-15 treated and marked material is required, and we account for that at packing stage.

Yes. We handle classification, compliant packing, labelling, declarations and carrier acceptance for dangerous goods under the IMDG Code by sea and the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations by air.

The UN number, proper shipping name, hazard class and division, packing group, net quantity per package and total, the packaging type, and the safety data sheet. Carrier and port acceptance depend on those details, so we cannot shortcut them.

By agreeing the required temperature range up front, pre-cooling the equipment, setting and verifying the setpoint, and controlling the handover points where cold chain breaks usually happen rather than during the main carriage itself.

Mainly pharmaceutical, food and perishable exporters, and chemical consignments that have a stability range rather than a simple ambient tolerance.

Each account is assigned a named coordinator who owns the shipment file from booking through to delivery. You are not routed through a general queue for updates on your own cargo.

The operations desk is available 24/7, because cargo, carriers and customs do not keep office hours. Function-specific lines for accounts, exports and overseas work are answered during business hours.

Carrier liability is limited by the international conventions and the carrier's own terms, and it is not the same as insuring the value of your goods. A separate marine or cargo insurance policy covers the goods themselves, and we will advise on the cover appropriate to the consignment before it moves.

We move cargo between India and all six inhabited continents through a worldwide agent network, alongside domestic movement across India. Established markets include the UAE, United Kingdom, Poland, United States, Brazil, Kenya, Uganda, China, Singapore and Indonesia.

Your coordinator confirms the milestones that matter: pickup, export clearance, loading, departure, arrival, import clearance and delivery. You also receive the carrier reference, the air waybill or bill of lading number, so you can follow the main carriage with the carrier directly.

No. We are a freight forwarder and licensed Multimodal Transport Operator handling commercial cargo, customs clearance and warehousing, not parcel courier services.