A cut-off is a deadline attached to a sailing. The main ones: cargo or CY cut-off, when the container must be gated in; SI cut-off for shipping instructions; VGM cut-off for the verified weight; and customs cut-off for export declarations. Miss any one and the container risks rolling.
Cut-offs exist because a vessel call is a batch process: the terminal must plan stowage, the carrier must build the manifest, and customs must clear the export list before loading starts. Each deadline feeds the next, so they fall in a sequence typically one to several days before departure, with dangerous goods often earliest.
Cut-offs shift with reality: vessel delays can extend them, congestion can pull them earlier, and each terminal publishes its own times per vessel call. The operative rule: plan against the earliest applicable cut-off, not the ETD.
Tracking shows both sides of a cut-off: the vessel’s actual schedule (a delayed arrival often moves the deadline) and your container’s gate-in status against it. A box not gated in as cut-off approaches is the export alarm that matters. Vessel timing and event context live in TrackingMCP, with load-port context on pages like Shanghai or Busan.
A cut-off is a deadline attached to a sailing. The main ones: cargo or CY cut-off, when the container must be gated in; SI cut-off for shipping instructions; VGM cut-off for the verified weight; and customs cut-off for export declarations. Miss any one and the container risks rolling.
Commonly between one and several days, varying by terminal, trade, and cargo type. Documentation and VGM cut-offs usually precede the physical cargo cut-off, and DG cut-offs come earlier still. Always read the booking confirmation for the specific call.
Sometimes, at the carrier’s and terminal’s discretion, especially when the vessel itself is late. Extensions are per-call concessions, not entitlements, and requesting one early beats arguing after the gate closes.
Track vessel schedules and gate-ins →
Load-port context →
More in Booking, loads & cut-offs: Shipping instruction (SI) · Verified gross mass (VGM) · LCL (less than container load) · FCL (full container load) · LCL vs FCL · Rollover (rolled cargo) · Browse all 106 terms →