UAE Advance Cargo Manifest Implementation - Shipping Instruction Guidelines

We would like to inform you that Maersk will be implementing the new regulatory framework, as required by the National Advance Information Centre (NAIC) in UAE to declare the Advance Manifest Cargo information through the “Maritime Preload Cargo Information” (MPCI) portal.

Based on the new regulations, there are necessary changes to the Shipping Instructions (SI) submission process for cargo destined or transiting through UAE and the responsibilities for shippers and forwarding agents. The effective date for this new process is August 1, 2025.

The NAIC has categorized all submissions into two levels, defined as below:

Direct Bill of Lading - This is a direct consignment between Shipper & Consignee, in which no Forwarders are involved. It will be the Ocean Carrier’s responsibility to secure all necessary information from customers and submit it to NAIC in accordance with the required timeline.

Master Bill of Lading – Forwarders are involved in this transaction, and the Ocean Carrier will still be responsible to secure all necessary information from the customer and submit to NAIC in accordance with the required timeline. In addition, the forwarder will be responsible for providing the MPCI code to the Ocean Carrier and the House Bill information to NAIC.

Applicability of “Direct” or “Master Bill of Lading” Declaration in Shipping Instructions, as guided by NAIC:

• Imports into UAE - MUST mandatorily declare either “Direct” or “Master Bill of Lading”
• Transshipment and FROB (Freight Remaining On Board) through UAE – All bills of lading transshipping or transiting through UAE ports will be declared as “Direct Bill of Lading”.

Please refer to the guidelines below outlining how to declare the type of submission and MPIC, if required, based on the channel via which the SI is submitted to Maersk.

For Shipping Instructions submitted via Maersk.com

During the SI submission process, the following question will be presented:

Question: Does this shipment have a House Bill of Lading (Is this a Master Bill of Lading)? Yes/No

• No – For BCOs where there is no House Bill of Lading (HBL) involved.
  Maersk will declare the shipment to NAIC as “Direct Bill of Lading”.
• Yes – For Forwarders/NVOCC/SCAC/HBL customers where there is a House Bill of Lading (HBL) involved.
  Subsequently you will be required to specify the 7-digit Alpha numeric code, e.g.: MPCI123 Maritime Preload Cargo Information (MPCI) code.
  Maersk will declare the shipment to NAIC as “Master Bill of Lading”.

For Shipping Instructions submitted via INTTRA:

We are expecting INTTRA to develop the feature for UAE Advance manifest by mid-August. Once the feature is ready, more detailed guidance will be shared. In the interim, all customers using INTTRA should provide the required information in their shipping instructions as follows:

In the ‘Shipper’s memoranda’ or ‘B/l comment’ section:

• For BCO where there is no House Bill of Lading (HBL) involved – specify ‘No HBL’, ‘Non SCAC’ or
  ‘House Bill included (N)’.
  Maersk will declare the shipment to NAIC as “Direct Bill of Lading”.
• For Forwarders where there is a House Bill of Lading (HBL) involved – specify ‘HBL’, ‘SCAC’, ‘NVOCC’ or ‘House Bill included (Y)’. In addition, provide the required 7-digit Alpha numeric MPCI code.
  Maersk will declare the shipment to NAIC as “Master Bill of Lading”.

Please note, in absence of the required key word/s, the bill of lading will be declared as ‘Direct Bill of Lading’ to NAIC.

For Shipping Instructions submitted via EDI

In the ‘Notes to Carriers’ or ‘Shipper’s memoranda’ or similar specific free text field:

• For BCO where there is no House Bill of Lading (HBL) involved – specify ‘No HBL’, ‘Non SCAC’ or
  ‘House Bill included (N)’.
  Maersk will declare the shipment to NAIC as “Direct Bill of Lading”.
• For Forwarders where there is a House Bill of Lading (HBL) involved – specify ‘HBL’, ‘SCAC’, ‘NVOCC’ or ‘House Bill included (Y)’. In addition, provide the required 7-digit Alpha numeric MPCI code.
  Maersk will declare the shipment to NAIC as “Master Bill of Lading”.

Forwarders responsibilities:

Forwarders/filing party shall to do a onetime registration with NAIC NAIC Website and receive the MPCI code, which must be provided to the Ocean carrier as outlined above.

Maersk will declare this to NAIC as “Master Bill of Lading” and share the MPCI code during the advance cargo manifest filing.

In addition, the Forwarders/Filing party MUST submit the HBL filing directly with NAIC or through Accredited Service Provider following the prescribed timeline. For more information on how to do this please refer to the official NAIC Website.

NOTE: Maersk as a Shipping Agent is not authorized to do HBL filing to NAIC on behalf of customers.

Timeline to Submit SI:

The Shipping Instruction Deadline can be found on maersk.com for the respective shipment under Shipment Details, in theTask list or under Schedules for the applicable vessel/voyage.

Soft launch period implementation date:

The new shipping instruction requirements should be followed from August 1, 2025. Maersk will perform testing to ensure compliance from all customers and will commence “live” Advance Cargo information submission to NAIC effective September 1, 2025.

During this initial phase, non-compliant cargo is not expected to be denied loading, rolled, or Retained on Board (ROB).

The “No Doc No load” policy is expected to be implemented by the first quarter of 2026 by NAIC, and we will keep you informed on the policy implementation date.