Shipping to and from South Africa

Last Updated: 25 April 2025

AMEX

LOC: Africa
Service Code: 40

EUROPE

LOC: Africa
Service Code: 278

JAPAN-CHINA

LOC: Africa

Commodity

• Hazardous classes 1, 7 and 9, are all subject to approval before acceptance.
• Used Tyres acceptance subject to legitimate ITAC permit
• No acceptance on DG charcoal
• No acceptance of Asbestos

Weight & Measurement

Specifically for 20’ Containers:

24 TONS Maximum Payload for road haulage (inclusive of container tare weight)

22 TONS Maximum payload for railed containers (exclusive of container tare weight)

Specifically for 40’ Containers:

28 TONS Maximum payload for road haulage (inclusive of container tare weight)

29.4 TONS Maximum payload for railed containers (exclusive of container tare weight)

Overweight containers are subject to a fine imposed by the Government. Requests for movement of overweight cargo can be obtained from your nearest Maersk office.

Effective 1 July 2016 the Shipper (or its representative agent) will be required to include the Verified Gross Mass(VGM) when submitting the pre-advise via NAVIS. The Navis update will update all Maersk systems and no further system updates is required from the Shipper.

Special Cargoes- No restrictions on movement of containers to inland points and are subject to rates supplied by our Intermodal Dept and can be contacted thru your nearest Maersk Customer Service Teams.

Bill of Lading Clauses- No special clauses/restrictions apply.

45' Containers- No acceptance of 45' containers in South Africa.

Customs requirements- Customs documents (Cargo Dues + Bill of entry) are mandatory for Bill of Lading issue.

After booking acceptance (Prior to container load):

After receiving the booking confirmation from Maersk and packing the container, the customer will need to submit the shipping instruction with the mandatory details along with the above-mentioned 8 documents to Maersk’s documentation team.

Approval for container load will be given if all documents are consistent and no anomaly or misdeclaration is found.

In cases where documents are found to have discrepancies or are incomplete, the container will not be loaded and all costs and consequences are to be borne by shipper and/or booking party.

More detail of the Terms of Carriage can be found here.

The list below provides links to the latest terminal stack dates on the Transnet Website:

• Cape Town Combi Terminal
• Cape Town container terminal
• Durban container terminal pier 1
• Durban container terminal pier 2
• Ngqura container terminal
• Port Elizabeth container terminal
• Multi-purpose terminal point

Please complete the registration form and send to za.export@maersk.com

Always Safe Never Sorry. While we always do our utmost to take good care of your cargo, things can go wrong. Therefore we are glad to introduce you to our new solution to keep the value of your cargo protected from logistics-related risks. Value Protect provides alternative carriage terms that offer higher recovery limits on claims. At competitive prices and all in a single place.

The Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPECB) is an independent service provider of quality certification and cold chain management services for producers and exporters of perishable food products.

Click to access PPECB

Remote Container Management (RCM) interface turns your reefer container into a digitally connected device capable of transmitting its location, power status, temperature, humidity and air supply

Click to access RCM

New Feature: ETD Change Indicator Now Available on Maersk.com

We are pleased to introduce the ETD Change Indicator on the Shipment Details page at Maersk.com. This enhancement provides customers with real-time visibility when there is a significant change to their shipment schedule.

1. A notification will appear when:
• The Estimated Time of Departure (ETD) for the first vessel (water leg) has changed by 12 hours or more, and
• A revised booking confirmation document has not yet been issued since the change.
2. The notification is accessible to all parties associated with the shipment, ensuring transparency and shared visibility across stakeholders.
3. Users have the option to subscribe to transport plan change notifications directly from this prompt - making it easier to stay up to date with any future schedule adjustments.
4. The notification will not appear if the vessel has already departed, ensuring only relevant and timely information is presented.

This feature is part of our commitment to enhancing the customer experience through timely updates and smarter digital tools.

Visit your Shipment Details page on Maersk.com to explore this functionality and take control of your cargo journey.

Introducing Revised Booking Confirmation on Maersk.com

We are pleased to announce the launch of the Revised Booking Confirmation feature on the Shipment Details page on Maersk.com. This enhancement is designed to provide greater transparency and convenience for our customers when shipment schedules change.

1. Customers can now easily click and download a revised booking confirmation document when there is a change to the Estimated Time of Departure (ETD).
2. The option to download the revised document appears:
• If the booking is confirmed and
• If the ETD of the first vessel (water leg) changes by 12 hours or more, and
• If a new booking confirmation has not already been issued since the ETD change.
3. The tooltip provides a comparison between the updated ETD and the previously confirmed ETD, giving users clear visibility into the changes as illustrated in the screenshot below.
4. The prompt and feature are only made available to the Booked by & Price owner party.
5. If the ETD changes again, the download option will reappear - provided a revised booking confirmation has not already been issued through another channel.
6. The newly generated confirmation will include key shipment tasks and deadlines to help customers stay informed and in control.
7. Each download action is logged, with an entry recorded in the action log on the shipment details as: “Revised booking confirmation downloaded.”

This feature went live on 19 May 2024 and is part of our continued efforts to enhance customer experience and drive digital efficiency.

Explore this new functionality today by visiting your Shipment Details page on Maersk.com.