Household Goods and

Personal Effects Shipping

IMPORTANT: Pre-Booking and payment of your shipment is required prior to delivery of empty container to your location.

Please contact our Customer Service Department at (866) 826-2276 to request a Booking Number or to obtain a Rate Quote.

To avoid delays in shipping your household goods or personal effects please review the following instructions, and have all necessary forms completed prior to delivery of empty container to your location.

Forms and Documents

Forms must be filled out completely. Please be prepared to provide the following:

Shipper’s Letter of Instruction Form - Required – Form must be filled out completely for all shipments. (Note: Universal Cargo Management can accept the following forms of payment only: Direct Deposit or Bank Wire Transfer-ACH)

Household Goods Descriptive Inventory (Packing Lst)-Required - You are required to prepare a packing list with estimated value of your items. General information about your household goods and personal effects can be easily filled into our form. Who is shipping to whom, What are you shipping, how many of them are you shipping, how are they packed, and do you want insurance will all be answered on 1 easy form.


EIN Application Form - Required – If you would like Universal Cargo Management  to prepare and submit the Electronic Export Information (EEI -- formerly SED) on your behalf, the EIN Application form must be completed.


Export Power of Attorney - Shipments to USVI Excluded. Required for all others. - If you would like Universal Cargo Management to handle your Shipment and/or clear Customs on your behalf, an original notarized copy of this form must be completed and signed by the owner(s) of the goods. Otherwise, the owner of the goods is responsible for clearing U.S.Customs or giving another party (besides UCM) an original notarized Power of Attorney. (Note: Vehicles belonging to the U.S. Embassy are exempt.)

Name, mailing address, and phone number of the shipper and consignee. The consignee is the person to whom the household goods or personal effects are being shipped. Sometimes, the shipper and consignee is the same person.

If you are shipping an automobile or vehicle with your household goods or personal effects please also read our Guide for Shipping Autos and Vehicles.

The Basics

For shipping household goods and personal effects, Universal Cargo Management can handle FCL (full container load) or LCL (less than container load) ocean freight shipments.  Shipping by air is faster but also more expensive.

While shipping your cargo by sea may take longer, it can often be the most economical way to ship your goods.   Shipment by Air is available, however for personal effects and household goods it is almost never economical.

Common required documents for international shipping include the Bill of Lading and a Valued Packing List:

The Bill of Lading is a document providing a binding contract between a shipper and a carrier for the transportation of freight, specifying the obligations of both parties. It includes a general commodity description, cargo routing, consigner, and consignee contact information.

The Valued Packing List is an inventory list with a value assigned to each item being shipped.

There are often additional required documents and these may vary by country. Please use the links the left side of the page for more detailed information.  UCM can advise you on the documents that are required for your shipment.

Tips for Shipping by Sea

When shipping your personal effects by sea your may choose to ship your cargo FCL (full container load) or LCL (less than container load) depending on the quantity and volume that you plan to ship. Shipping a full container-load is when the shipper contracts for the transportation of an entire container. Common container sizes include 20’, 40’ and 40HQ. This is useful for when you have a very large quantity of goods to ship.

Container Dimension:

20’ :  Length: 19' 2" x Width: 7' 6"x Height: 7' 8" (1,164 cu. ft.)

40’ : Length: 39' 1" x Width: 7' 6" x Height: 7' 8" (2,376 cu. ft.)

40HQ : Length: 44' 6" x Width: 7' 6" x Height: 8' 10" (3,037 cu. ft.)

If your shipment cannot fill an entire container than you may ship your goods LCL (less than container load). For this type of shipment your cost will depend on the volume that you will be shipping.

Cargo must fit into a 40' sea freight container and must be boxed, crated or palletized. Palletized refers to cargo that is stacked together on a pallet and shrink-wrapped. Palletized ocean freight has a higher probability of reaching the destination without damages is better protected from potential theft.

A container can be delivered by truck to your home

When shipping your personal effects through freight forwarding company like UCM it is your responsibility to safely and securely pack your goods. For LCL shipments, your items must be boxed, crated and/or palletized and labeled in order to be accepted by the carrier.

For shipping FCL it is your responsibility for loading and securing cargo and vehicles (if any) in a sea freight container. It is possible to hire a professional service to assist in these steps. Goods may be packed and picked up from your place of residence or self-delivered to nearest shipping terminal.

At the destination, your goods can be delivered to your new place of residence or picked up from the nearest shipping terminal.

Tips for Shipping by Air

Shipping by Air is usually not recommended for Household Goods or Personal Effects as it is too expensive.  However, the same packaging and crating requirements may apply.  Contact us for additional information if you need Air Service.

Key Terminology

Below are some basic terms that you should be familiar with when shipping international Cargo. For a more comprehensive list of terms please download our Logistics Glossary.

Shipper/consignor

An individual or firm that sends freight. A freight originator.

Consignee

An individual or firm to who freight is shipped. A freight receiver.

Note: For shipping Personal Effects, the Shipper/consignor may be the same as the Consignee

Carrier

A firm that provides transportation services, typically owning and operating transportation equipment. Examples include: trucking company, railroad, airline, steamship line, parcel/express company.

Freight bill-of-lading

A document providing a binding contract between a shipper and a carrier for the transportation of freight, specifying the obligations of both parties. Serves as a receipt of freight by the carrier for the shipper. Usually designates the consignee, and the FOB point (point at which ownership of freight changes hands from shipper to consignee.)

FCL (full container-load)

An ocean-shipping and intermodal industry term; a full container-load shipment is when a shipper contracts for the transportation of an entire container. Common container sizes include 20’, 40’ and 40HQ.

LCL (less-than-container-load)

Less than Container Load Sea freight; commonly used to describe an international ocean freight that cannot fill an entire 20’ or 40’ sea freight container. Cargo must be boxed, crated or palletized cargo.