Ocean Bill of Lading Audit Under UCP 600 Article 20 & ISBP 745: Avoid Rejection Traps

1. Carrier Identification & Signing Standards (UCP 600 Article 20(a)(i))

• The Requirement: The Bill of Lading must indicate the name of the carrier and be signed by the carrier, the master, or a named agent acting for or on behalf of the carrier/master.
• Common Rejection: Signed merely as “Agent” without explicitly stating whether they are acting for the carrier or for the master.

2. Dated “Shipped on Board” Endorsement (UCP 600 Article 20(a)(ii))

• The Requirement: If the B/L contains a pre-printed “Received for Shipment” clause, it must feature an explicit, dated “Shipped on Board” notation.
• Common Rejection: The “Shipped on Board” stamp is present, but lacks a date or initial/signature by the issuing party. Under ISBP 745 E6, the date of the “Shipped on Board” notation is deemed to be the official date of shipment.

3. Port of Loading & Port of Discharge Consistency (UCP 600 Article 20(a)(iii))

• The Requirement: Goods must be shipped from the Port of Loading to the Port of Discharge specified in the credit.
• Common Rejection: If the credit specifies “Hong Kong Port” as the Port of Loading, but the B/L states “Shenzhen” under Port of Loading and “Hong Kong” under Place of Receipt, this constitutes a discrepancy unless multimodal transport (Article 19) is explicitly permitted.

4. Clean Transport Document (UCP 600 Article 27)

• The Requirement: A bank will only accept a clean transport document — one bearing no clause or notation expressly declaring a defective condition of the goods or packaging.
• Common Rejection: Carrier notations such as “bags torn,” “rust-stained drums,” or “used packaging.” Words like “clean” do not need to appear on the B/L, but negative clauses must be absent.

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