Sea Freight for Household Goods When Moving Abroad
Sea freight is the usual way a household’s belongings cross an ocean: packed at your door, sealed in a container and cleared through customs at the other end. Here is how it works, and what to settle before you accept a quotation.
A few short questions. Nothing is sent until you check and confirm.
How a household goes by sea
Most belongings that cross an ocean travel in a steel shipping container. The partner removal company packs them, loads them into a container for your goods alone or into a share of one, seals it and takes it by road to a port. A container ship carries it across, customs clears it at the other end, and it’s delivered to your new home and unpacked. Sea is the usual choice when there is more to send than a few boxes and the destination is too far to drive.
We’re an enquiry and introduction service. We pass your move details to a partner removal company, which assesses the move, gives you a written quotation, and packs, transports and delivers. This page explains the method so you can follow what that company tells you and compare what you’re offered. It covers moves from the UK, to the UK and between other countries, and it gives no prices or sailing times, because those depend on the route and the season and your partner confirms them in writing.
Other containers, crates and barrels
For a household the container is usually a standard steel one with doors at one end. Other types exist, such as open-top containers for over-height cargo, flat racks for over-dimension cargo and refrigerated containers. A freight forwarder’s guide (opens in a new window) says availability can be limited and surcharges can apply. A household rarely needs one, but a boat or an oversized item might, which is a reason to mention anything unusual when you enquire.
A car on the same ship
A car may share your container or travel separately, and the choice depends on the route and the car. Our guide to shipping a car when moving abroad covers the options.
Wooden crates for small shipments
Some movers build wooden crates for a small shipment and load the crates into a shared container. Whether your partner removal company does this on your route is for it to confirm. Any wood in the crates is subject to the plant-health rules in the packing section below.
Barrels, on a few routes
Some destinations clear barrels of personal effects as a category of their own. Jamaica is one: the Jamaica Customs Agency (opens in a new window) charges barrels containing personal effects or non-commercial items a flat rate, and an officer can ask for a barrel to be opened and unpacked for examination.
We can’t say that every partner ships barrels, or serves every destination that uses them. If barrels are what you need, say so in your enquiry and ask the partner removal company whether it ships them on your route, because the rules and charges are set by each destination and change.
Door to door or port to port when moving overseas
These terms show how far a quotation runs. The same platform defines them (opens in a new window) this way: door to door covers collection at your address, the sea crossing and delivery to the destination address. Port to port covers only the main sea stage between two ports, and does not normally include collection from your home or delivery to the final address. Door to port and port to door sit between the two.
With anything short of door to door, someone has to deal with what the quotation leaves out. At the destination that means destination charges, import clearance, any duties and taxes, and collecting the container from the terminal, and the platform advises checking whether destination charges are included even in a door-to-door price. A door-to-door quotation puts the clearance at a foreign port and the last stretch in the removal company’s hands, which is work that takes local knowledge.
Door to door still depends on the last stretch. A full-size lorry may not reach your address, and then a smaller vehicle does the final part. Photographs of the approach and the entrance, sent with your enquiry, let the company allow for it. Where the lorry has to stop on a restricted street, the UK council rules for removal day show how several areas handle a bay suspension.
The stages of a sea shipment, from collection to delivery
The order below is the usual one, with no timings, because those come from your partner for your route.
- Assessment and quotation.
The partner removal company looks at what is going and at access at both addresses, and sets out the shipping method, what is included and what is not.
- Collection and packing.
The partner’s crew wraps and packs, and numbers the items on an inventory. Anything you pack yourself should be shown as such, because the inventory is the basis for customs and for any claim.
- Loading and sealing.
The crew loads and braces the goods so they can’t shift, closes the container and seals it. The seal number goes on the paperwork. In a shared load, your goods go first to the consolidator’s warehouse.
- UK export paperwork.
GOV.UK’s guidance on personal goods (opens in a new window) says a formal declaration is not normally needed for personal effects carried in luggage or a vehicle, and that other cases, such as restricted goods, need a full export declaration. A household shipment by sea is not carried in luggage, so what is filed for yours is for the removal company or its customs agent to confirm, along with anything it needs from you.
- The port and the loading.
Before a packed container can go on a ship, its verified weight has to be given to the ship and the terminal. The International Maritime Organization (opens in a new window) calls this a condition for loading, and puts the duty on the shipper named on the transport document, so ask who that is. The shipping line then issues a bill of lading or similar document, the carrier’s receipt for the goods and the evidence of the contract of carriage.
- The voyage.
The container may sail direct or be moved to another ship at an intermediate port. Weather and port congestion can move dates, so ask how the company will tell you if they change.
- Arrival and customs.
The container is unloaded, customs entry is made by the removal company, its agent or you, depending on your quotation, and any duty or tax due is paid. The goods are released only once customs has cleared them.
- Delivery and unpacking.
The container, or your part of a shared load, is delivered to your address. Check the goods against the inventory and note any damage on the delivery paperwork before you sign.
If your new home isn’t ready when the goods land, the partner moving them can also store them for a few months or a year, so say so when you ask for a quotation. If you need a few things in your first days, a small consignment can go by air, which our air freight page explains.
Packing and protecting belongings for a sea voyage
A container is stacked, loaded and lifted several times and then spends a long time on a moving ship, with changes of temperature on the way. Three things do most of the harm to household goods: movement, damp and handling. Our packing and crating page covers packing methods in general. This section is about what is different at sea.
Movement
The goods have to be packed tight and braced so that nothing shifts when the ship rolls. The CTU Code (opens in a new window), written jointly by the IMO, the International Labour Organization and the UN Economic Commission for Europe, is the non-mandatory code of practice for packing and securing cargo in containers, and it is addressed to the people who pack and unpack them. That is the partner’s part. Yours is to avoid overfilling boxes, which crush and burst, and to leave the heavy furniture to the crew.
Damp and humidity
A closed steel container is not a sealed, dry box, and what you put in it can carry moisture with it. When the temperature drops, that moisture can condense on the cool walls and ceiling and drip back onto the load, which is how mould, rust and musty furniture start. Ask the partner removal company how it checks that the container is clean, dry and sound before loading, and whether it adds moisture-absorbing sachets for a long crossing.
What you can do is make sure nothing damp goes in. Drain and dry the washing machine and dishwasher, defrost and dry the fridge-freezer, and air out garden furniture, bikes and anything stored in a shed or garage. Let newly painted furniture dry fully, and don’t pack towels or clothes that are even slightly damp.
Wooden crates and pallets
Wood used as packing, such as crates, boxes, pallets and the loose timber used to wedge a load, is called wood packaging material. GOV.UK says (opens in a new window) debarked wood packaging must be heat treated or fumigated and carry the international ISPM 15 mark, and that exporters should find out whether the destination requires it. The crating should meet that standard, so ask the partner to confirm it. That list is of packaging and does not mention furniture, so ask the partner what the destination’s own import and plant-health rules say about wooden pieces. For valuable or delicate pieces, our page on fine art and antiques abroad covers crating.
What can’t go in the container, and what needs a check first
Some items are left out for safety at sea, others because of the law at one end or the other. The partner removal company gives you its own list, and it’s easier to deal with these before packing day than when a box has to be opened.
- Dangerous goods.
Dangerous goods carried by sea are governed by the IMDG Code. In UK law, a shipper of packaged dangerous goods must follow the Code’s classification and consignment rules and supply the dangerous goods documents (Merchant Shipping (Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Harmful Substances) (Amendment) Regulations 2024 (opens in a new window), regulation 12). In practice a household shipment is not sent as dangerous goods, so anything that would make it one comes out. One US naval college’s list of items it won’t ship with household goods (opens in a new window) names aerosols with flammable, toxic or corrosive contents, paint, solvents, adhesives, petrol, propane tanks, fire extinguishers, fireworks and ammunition, and adds spirits and antifreeze under combustible liquids. It is one example, not the rule for your route, so follow your partner’s list.
- Firearms.
They need a certificate, and GOV.UK sets out (opens in a new window) different routes for EU and non-EU destinations. For some non-EU destinations no export licence is normally needed if they are personal effects entered on your certificate, but the certificate and the guns must be presented to HMRC at the place of export. Tell the partner early, and never pack them in a box.
- Plants, food and animal products.
Many countries restrict or ban them for biosecurity reasons, and GOV.UK lists animals and plants among goods that can need licences or certificates to leave the UK (opens in a new window). Live pets don’t travel in the container, and moving abroad with a pet explains how they go.
- Alcohol and tobacco.
Duty applies on them in many countries. For example, GOV.UK says (opens in a new window) excise duty is payable if you ship alcohol or tobacco to the UK. Declare them, and check the destination’s limits.
- Art, antiques and other controlled goods.
GOV.UK’s export guidance names art and antiques among the goods with special controls, so tell the partner about valuable pieces before they are packed.
Customs at both ends of a sea shipment
Customs deals with the shipment twice, once on the way out and once on the way in. On the UK side our UK customs documentation checklist sets out the paperwork. At the destination the rules are the destination country’s own: who qualifies for relief from duty and tax on a move of home, how long you must have lived abroad or owned the goods, what must be approved before the container sails, and what must be declared. GOV.UK’s export guidance tells exporters to check the destination’s duties and restrictions (opens in a new window) first.
If you’re moving to the UK, the order of events matters. GOV.UK’s transfer of residence guidance (opens in a new window) says relief generally needs you to have lived outside the UK for at least 12 consecutive months, to have owned the goods for at least six months and to import them within 12 months of coming to live in the UK. You must apply to HMRC with form ToR1 before the goods are shipped, and without a valid reference number you may be billed for duty. Other countries have their own deadlines, so ask the removal company what must be in place before your container sails.
Customs can examine goods, and for goods coming into the UK GOV.UK says that customs can seize them if the rules are broken (opens in a new window). An accurate inventory helps, and so does knowing in advance who attends an examination and who pays for it.
Insurance and liability at sea
Sea carriage has its own legal limits, and what your shipping document says about the goods matters if something is damaged. For carriage from a UK port under a bill of lading, UK law applies the Hague-Visby Rules (opens in a new window), which count the packages listed on the bill when goods are packed in a container. So ask how the bill of lading will describe your belongings, and whether a value can be declared on it.
Our moving insurance guide explains the liability limits, the types of cover, what cover commonly leaves out and the claims deadlines. Read it before you decide whether the company’s terms are enough.
Comparing quotations from international movers for a sea shipment
Two sea quotations can sit far apart because they cover different things. Give each company the same inventory, addresses and dates, then check:
- whether it is a container to yourself or a share, and if it is a container, its size
- how a shared load is measured, which is usually in cubic metres and often with a minimum charge
- where the quotation starts and stops: door to door, or something shorter
- the ports of loading and discharge, and whether the goods sail direct
- who is named as shipper, who arranges the weighing before loading, and who holds the bill of lading
- anything that must be approved before the container sails, and by when
- whether destination charges, customs entry and terminal collection are included
- who packs what, the crating and materials, and whether unpacking at the other end is included
- what happens if the container has to wait at the port or is held for customs, and who pays
- the insurance on offer, and the access allowed for at each address
- whether the figure is fixed or an estimate
The freight line alone can mislead. The platform’s guide to shared and full containers gives a worked example, with invented figures, in which the shared load has the lower sea freight line and the higher total once everything else is added. Our guide to what affects the cost of an international move goes through the factors behind a quotation, and our guide to comparing movers for a move out of or into the UK covers deposit cover and paperwork. The wider picture is in our international removals overview.
Documents to prepare
Start these early, as some take time to obtain and some must be in place before the container sails. Our international moving checklist puts the steps in date order.
- Passports or identity documents, with names and addresses written as your partner asks on the shipping documents.
- The inventory the company prepares: check it against what you have and keep a copy, with receipts for high-value items.
- Evidence that you are moving home, as the destination asks for relief: a residence permit or visa, a tenancy or purchase contract, a registration certificate.
- Proof of how long you have owned the goods, where relief depends on it, and any approval or reference number needed before shipping, such as the ToR1 reference for a move to the UK.
- Certificates and licences for anything controlled, such as firearms or valuable art, and vehicle papers if a car is going.
- Delivery details: the full destination address, access notes, a contact number and who will be there on the day.
- Copies of the quotation, the insurance certificate and the shipping documents once issued.
Keep passports, original certificates, money and anything irreplaceable with you rather than in the container.
Questions about sending household goods by sea
Do I have to be at the port when my belongings arrive?
Not on a door-to-door quotation, where the removal company arranges clearance and delivers to your address, although you may be asked for identity documents or a signature.
On a port-to-port or door-to-port quotation, you or an agent you appoint deal with clearance and collection at the destination port, so check exactly what is included before you accept.
Is a shared container always slower than one of my own?
Not always.
A shared load goes through extra steps at both ends and sails on the consolidator's schedule, but a full container is not automatically quicker, because the sailing timetable and the inland arrangements still count. An earlier shared sailing can suit a tight deadline better. Your partner removal company gives you the dates for your route.
Why can't I pack paint, aerosols and gas cylinders?
Dangerous goods at sea are governed by the IMDG Code and need their own documents, and a household shipment isn't sent as dangerous goods.
Flammable aerosols, paint, solvents, fuel and gas cylinders are the usual cases. Your partner gives you its list, so use these items up or dispose of them safely before packing day.
Can customs open my container?
Customs can examine goods, and GOV.UK says it can seize goods coming into the UK if the rules are broken.
An accurate inventory and the right paperwork reduce the chance of a delay. Ask the removal company who attends an examination and who pays for it.
Does my wooden furniture need treating before it goes by sea?
The ISPM 15 treatment and mark apply to wood packaging, meaning crates, pallets and the loose timber used to wedge a load.
GOV.UK's guidance does not mention furniture, so ask your partner what the destination's import and plant-health rules say about wooden pieces.
Send your move details and we’ll pass them to a partner removal company
Tell us where you’re moving from and to, a rough list of what’s going with any bulky or unusual items, if you’d rather have a container to yourself or share one, and any dates that can’t move. We’ll pass your enquiry to a partner removal company, which assesses the move and gives you a written quotation showing the shipping method and what is and isn’t included.
About International Removals Companies
International Removals Companies is an enquiry and introduction service run by DATACONTEXT (UK) LTD, in partnership with AGM Group. We don't move goods ourselves: the removal company quotes for your move and carries it out, so check its credentials and terms before you book. Our service is free. Discuss the quotation and booking terms directly with the removal company.
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- In partnership withAGM Group (agm.group)