• Document Number：Order No. 588 of the State Council
• Area of Law： Contract Traffic and Transport
• Level of Authority： Administrative Regulations
• Date issued：01-08-2011
• Effective Date：07-01-1987
• Issuing Authority： State Council
• Status： Effective

Detailed Rules for the Implementation of Waterway Freight Transport Contracts
(Approved by the State Council on November 8, 1986, and issued by the Ministry of Communications on December 1, 1986; revised in accordance with the Decision of the State Council on Abolishing and Amending Some Administrative Regulations by the Order No. 588 of the State Council on January 8, 2011)
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 These Detailed Rules are developed in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Economic Contract Law of the People's Republic of China.
Article 2 For the purpose of these Detailed Rules, “waterway transport” means all for-profit cargo transport activitiesin coastal waters, rivers, lakes and other navigable waters in the People's Republic of China.
These Detailed Rules shall apply to the waterway cargo transport contracts concluded between waterway transport enterprises and other enterprises, rural economic organizations, state organs, public institutions, social groups and other legal persons.
The waterway cargo transport contracts concluded between individual (joint-household) boatmen which hold business licenses and enterprises, rural economic organizations, state organs, public institutions, social groups and other legal persons and between waterway transport enterprises and individual business operators and individuals shall be governed by reference to these Detailed Rules.
Military transport and the multimodal transport of cargo among waterway and railways, highways, aviation and pipelines shall be prescribed separately.
Chapter II Conclusion of Cargo Transport Contracts
Article 3 A waterway cargo transport contract shall be concluded in written forms except when both parties may conduct the on-the-spot settlement instantly of the sporadic cargo subject to short-distance lightering and ferrying. A cargo transport contract on bulk material transport may be concluded on a monthly basis. For the cargo for which the monthly consignment plans shall be submitted as required, the consignor and the carrier may, after reaching a consensusthrough consultation, conclude the cargo transport contract on a monthly basis or use the freight bill as the transport contract. For sporadic cargo transport and unscheduled bulk cargo transport, the freight bill shall be used as the transport contract.
Article 4 A cargo transport contract concluded on a monthly basis shall be legally formed immediately after both parities to the contract signs on the contract for confirmation. If the carrier and the consignor do not need to agree on special matters through consultation, they may use the monthly consignment schedule instead of the transport contract, and the contract shall be legally formed after both parties sign on the schedule for confirmation. When actually undergoing the formalities for cargo carriage and consignment, the consignor shall also present the freight bill in batch to the carrier to use it as an component of the transport contract.
Where a freight bill is used as a transport contract, the carrier and the consignor shall agree on through consultation the cargo consolidation time and place, and conscientiously conduct acceptance check and handover, and the contract shall be legally formed after the carrier affix its carriage date seal to the freight bill presented by the consignor. The format of a freight bill shall be prescribed uniformly by the Ministry of Communications for coastal andriverside and trans-provincial transport, and be prescribed uniformly by the competent department of communications of the province (autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government) for the transport in the province (autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government).
Article 5 A cargo transport contract concluded on a monthly basis shall include the following basic contents:
I. Cargo name.
II. The names of the consignor and the consignee.
III. Port of shipment and port of arrival. The reloading port shall be specified for the cargo subject to sea-river multimodal transport.
IV. Cargo weight. The volume of cargo shall be specified if the cargo is charged by volume.
V. Liabilities for breach of contract.
VI. Special clauses.
Article 6 A freight bill shall include the following contents:
I. Cargo name.
II. Weight, number of pieces, and volume which shall be specified if the cargo is charged by volume.
III. Packaging.
IV. Transport signs.
V. Port of shipment and port of arrival, and reloading port which shall be specified for the cargo subject to sea-river multimodal transport.
VI. Names of the consignor and the consignee and their detailed addresses.
VII. Freight charges, port charges and other relevant expenses and the settlement modes thereof.
VIII. Carriage date.
IX. Time limit of delivery (prescribed or agreed time limit).
X. Cargo value.
XI. Other matters as agreed on by both parties.
Chapter III Performance of Cargo Transport Contracts
Article 7 A consignor shall assume the following obligations:
I. The cargo consigned shall be consistent with the name of cargo as specified in the freight bill.
II. The weight or volume of cargo shall be accurately filled in the freight bill. Where the port of shipment has the measurement means which comply with the provisions of the state, the consignor shall determine the cargo weight on the basis of the data verified by the port of shipment. Where it is difficult for the consignor to determine the weight for the bulk cargo in the whole vessel, the consignor may require the carrier to offer the water gauge-based measurement data of the vessel as the weight determined by the consignor. For the cargo which is charged on the basis of the larger of weight and volume as required, the weight and volume of the cargo shall be filled in. For cumbersome, large and long cargo, the weight and volume (length, width and height) of each piece of cargo shall also be listed.
III. The cargo that needs to be packaged shall be packaged according to the standards as prescribed by the state or the competent department of the state. Where there is no uniformly prescribed packaging standard, the packaging shall be conducted under the principles of ensuring transport safety and cargo quality. Standby packages shall be supplied when it is necessary to do so.
IV. The transport signs and necessary indication signs of cargo shall be made correctly.
V. Transport costs shall be paid off through the settlement means as agreed on in a contract at the time of the cargo consignment.
VI. For insured transport of individuals' articles for daily use, a cargo manifest shall be presented to declare the prices of such articles item by item, and the prescribed insurance fees shall be paid on the basis of the declared prices.
VII. For the cargo that shall be insured in accordance with the provisions of the state, the consignor shall purchase the cargo transport insurance for the insured cargo when the cargo is consigned for delivery. For the cargo each piece of which is worth more than 700 yuan or the non-piece cargo each ton of which is valued more than 500 yuan, the compensation system combining insurance with the responsibility for transport shall be implemented, and the consignor may purchase the cargo transport insurance when cargo are consigned for delivery. The specific measures shall be prescribed separately.
VIII. For the cargo which shall be transported upon the strength of certificates as required, the relevant certificates shall be provided.
IX. Where any cargo needs to be escorted according to the properties of cargo or through consultation by both parties, relevant people shall be assigned to escort the cargo along with the vessel.
X. The consignment of dangerous goods shall be handled in accordance with the provisions on dangerous goods transport. The consigner shall not conceal information in reporting the names or natures of cargo orsecretly carry dangerous goods in common ones.
Article 8 A carrier shall assume the following obligations:
I. It shall dispatch the vessels with seaworthiness and cargo worthiness at the agreed time and place, and make good preparation of correspondingcushion and isolation materials for protecting the cargo, except when the special reinforcement and thatch mat materials which shall be resolved by the consignor itself under the relevant provisions and the manpower required.
II. It shall cautiously handle the loading and stowage, transport, handling, lightering, custody and handover of the cargo carried, and operate according to the relevant rules and regulations, so as to ensure the cargo transport quality.
III. For the cargo transported in bulk irrespective of the number of pieces to the port in a concentrated manner by other means of transport, if the measurement means is available, the carrier shall conduct random inspection or review on the basis of the weight determined by the consignor; or, if the measurement means is not available, the carrier shall be responsible for keeping the original forms of cargo in shipment, transshipment and delivery under the premise of guaranteeing quality. For cargo whose transport costs are calculated and collected by volume, the carrier shall conduct random check or review on the cargo volume determined by the consignor, and calculate charges in an accurate manner.
IV. It shall return all sweepings to the original owner of the cargo, or handle the sweepings according to the provisions on the cargo that can not be delivered where the cargo owner is unclear.
V. It shall effectively organize the safe and timely transport so as to ensure the time limit of delivery.
VI. It shall cautiously assemble deck cargo in accordance with the provisions on deck cargo transport via vessels.
VII. It shall transport cargo along the scheduled shipping lines, and, after the cargo arrives, the port of arrival shall issue a notice of arrival, and be responsible for delivering the cargo to the designated consignee.
Article 9 A consignee shall assume the following obligations:
I. It shall, after receiving the notice of cargo arrival at the port, complete the formalities for cargo handover and acceptance check within a prescribed time limit, and pick up the cargo from the port area.
II. It shall pay off in a lump sum the transport costs required to be paid by the consignee, fees underpaid by the consignor and the advances that occur during transshipment when it picks up the cargo.
III. Where the cargo shall be unloaded by the consignee itself, the consignee shall complete the vessel unloading operation within the agreed time limit, and clean up the cabins and decks; and shall be responsible for washing off and disinfecting the filthy cargo or toxic and harmful cargo, so as to make the cabins recover to the normal clean state.
Article 10 Bulk liquid cargo can only be transported in an entire vessel or an entire cabin. The cabins shall be inspected by the consignor before loading, and may be shipped only after they pass the inspection. Where the consignor requires the cargo to be loaded or unloaded at two or more places, or the cargo is received by several consignees at the same unloading site, the measurement splitting and weight differences incurred shall be handled by the consignor and consignee(s) themselves.
Article 11 Where the cargo is transported in a towed manner, the consignor shall provide the technical materials on the towed objects in accordance with the relevant provisions. The carrier shall, on the basis of the technical materials on the towed objects, shipping lanes, meteorology and other conditions, deploy appropriate tugs. On voyage, the personnel on the towed objects shall follow the commands of the tugmaster, and support the tugboats to ensure the navigation safety.
The towing transport with special technical requirements, the carrier and the consignor shall sign special clauses.
Article 12 For perishable goods and living animals and plants, the carrier and the consignor shall agree on in advance the permitted time limit of delivery. Where the cargo is shipped by a vessel with refrigeration equipment, the refrigerated storage temperature shall be agreed upon. Where any living animals or plants need to be cared for or fed during the transport, the consignor shall be responsible for it independently. The fodders carried around shall be free from freight fees, and the freshwater needed shall be provided by the carrier as required.
Article 13 Under any of the following circumstances, vessel charging, cabin chartering or shipping by chartering shall be adopted:
I. Where the cargo needs to be transported by special vessels or special cabins due to the cargo natures, which causes the deficit tons of the vessels.
II. Where the point of shipping or the point of arrival is deviate from the normal operating routes, and the carrier shall designate special vessels to transport the cargo, which causes the deficit tons or evacuation of the vessels.
III. Where the carrier and the consignor reach an agreement on transporting the cargo with chartered boats for any other reason.
Article 14 Along the waterway transport routes which have opened container transport and the sea-river multimodal transport routes, the carrier and the consignor shall transport all sophisticated, fragile, high-price and other cargo appropriate for being transported in containers through containers.
Article 15 The carrier shall conscientiously conduct acceptance check and handover when delivering the cargo to the consignee. Where the cargo which is carried by the piece is found mixed with foreign objects or inconsistent the information as specified in the cargo manifest, or the cargo sealed by the cabin or container is found abnormal in its cabin or container seals, the consignee shall raise the objection thereto to the carrier immediately. Where the consignee raises no objection at the time of acceptance check and handover, the transport contract shall be terminated after the consignee affixes its signature and seal to the bill of lading.
The termination of the transport contract does not affect the handling of the matters concerning liabilities for breach of contract that occur in the performance of the contract.
Chapter IV Modification and Rescission of a Cargo Transport Contract
Article 16 Under any of the following circumstances, a monthly cargo transport contract is allowed to be modified or rescinded:
I. The state plans based on which the transport contact is concluded has been changed or cancelled.
II. The transport contact cannot be performed due to force majeure.
III. One party to the contract truly cannot perform the contract due to its shutdown, cessation of production or switch to other production.
IV. It becomes unnecessary or impossible to perform the contract due to the breach of contract by one party to the contract.
V. The modification or rescission is agreed on by both parties through consultation under the premise of not damaging the interests of the state and not affecting the state plans.
An application for the modification or rescission of a monthly cargo transport contract shall be filed in written forms (including instruments, telegram or modification schedules, etc.) by the party requiring the modification or rescission with the other party before the delivery of cargo. A monthly cargo transport contract may be modified only once.
Article 17 Where a freight bill is used as a transport contract, the transport contract is allowed to be modified or rescinded in accordance with the following provisions:
I. Before the dispatch and shipment of the cargo, the carrier or the consignor may, with the consent of the other party, rescind the transport contract. Where the carrier proposes the rescission of the contract, the transport costs that have been collected shall be refunded, and the short-distance handling costs incurred when the cargo arrives at the port shall be paid to the consignor. Where the consignor proposes the rescission of the contract, the port charges and vessel waiting charges incurred shall be paid to the carrier.
II. After the dispatch and shipment of the cargo, the carrier or the consignor may, with the consent of the other party, modify the port of arrival and the consignee of the cargo. The relevant cargo information in the same freight bill shall be modified in an entire manner, and the freight bill may be modified only once. To request for the modification of the information on the cargo under the mandatory transport plans, one party shall, in addition to obtaining the consent of the other party, report to the competent department that issues the plans for approval.
Where the cargo cannot arrive at the port of arrival due to shipping lane, navigation lock failure, marine accident, natural disaster, execution of government order or military action, the carrier may unload the cargo at a nearby port, and notify the consignor or the consignee to put forward the handling opinions in a timely manner.
Where there is any special modification clause in the contract, the modification clauses agreed on by both parities shall prevail.
Chapter V Liabilities for Breach of a Cargo Transport Contract
Article 18 Where the carrier fails to be equipped with sufficient transport capacity when it performs the cargo transport contract concluded on a monthly basis, it shall be imposed upon a penalty of one yuan per ton of the shortage thereof. Where the consignor fails to provide enough cargo supply when performing the contract, it shall be imposed upon a penalty of one yuan per ton of the shortage thereof. Where both the transport capacity and cargo supply are in short supply, the difference of the penalties mutually offset under the reciprocity principle shall be paid.
Where a monthly cargo transport contract is modified or rescinded under the circumstance as prescribed in I, II or V in Article 17, the penalty on the consignor or the carrier shall be exempt.
Article 19 For the loss, shortage, deterioration, pollution or damage of the cargo incurred during the period from the carriage of the cargo to the delivery of the cargo to the consignee or the completion of the handling thereof in accordance with the relevant provisions, compensation shall be made in accordance with the following provisions:
I. The compensation for the cargo that has been covered by the cargo transport insurance shall be made by the carrier and the insurance company as required.
II. The compensation for the individuals' articles for daily use subject to insured transport shall be made by the carrier at the declared price or according to the actual loss when the actual loss of the cargo is lower than the declared price.
III. Except in the above I and II, compensation shall be made by the carrier according to the actual loss of the cargo. The calculation of the price of compensation shall be prescribed separately by the Ministry of Communications in consultation with the State Price Control Bureauand the State Administration of Industry and Commerce.
Article 20 Where the loss, shortage, deterioration, pollution or damage of the cargo is caused by any of the following factors, the carrier shall not assume the compensation liability:
I. Force majeure.
II. The natural properties and potential defects of the cargo.
III. The natural reductions and reasonable wear and tear of the cargo, and the incorrect measurement determined independently by the consignor.
IV. Inherent defects of packages or inconsistent contents packaged in the complete packages.
V. Errors or omissions in sign making, or unclear signs.
VI. Diseases, death, withering or weight loss of living animals or plants.
VII. Cargo losses in a non-contractualliability marine accident.
VIII. Deck cargo losses within the scope of liability exemption.
IX. Any other loss not attributable to the carrier as testified by the carrier or investigated and verified by the contract management authority or adjudication organ.
Article 21 If the carrier of the consignee can prove that any loss is truly caused by the intentional act of the carrier, the carrier shall, in addition to compensating for the actual losses in accordance with the relevant provisions, be imposed by the contract management authority a penalty of 10% to 50% of the loss incurred.
Article 22 Where the wrong shipment or delivery of cargo occurs as a result of the carrier, the carrier shall carry back free of charge the cargo to the port of arrival as agreed on in the contact, and deliver the cargo to the designated consignee. Where the carrier fails to delivery the cargo within a prescribed time limit for that reason, it shall pay the overdue penalty in accordance with the provisions of Article 24 of these Detailed Rules.
Article 23 Where the carrier fails to deliver the cargo to the port of arrival as required or at the agreed time, it shall pay penalty to the consignee as required, but the delayed time triggered by any of the following reasons shall be deducted from the actual time limit of delivery:
I. Natural disaster or meteorological or hydrological reasons.
II. Participation in water rescue or occurrence of marine accident.
III. Government order or military action.
IV. Waiting for passing through the navigation lock.
V. The time for advance collection of custodial fees at the port of shipment at the request of the consignor.
VI. Other delay which shall not be attributable to the carrier.
The amount of penalty for overdue arrival shall be 5% to 20% of the handling charges or freight charges of each freight bill of cargo according to the number of the days overdue.
The liabilities concerning the time limit of delivery of the cargo subject to sea-river multimodal transport shall be prescribed separately.
The liabilities concerning the time limit of delivery of the cargo to be transshipped by an agent shall be governed by the agreement between the carrier and the consignor.
Article 24 Where any of the following accidents occurs as a result of the consignor, resulting in the damage, pollution or erosion of the vessel, port equipment or any other cargo or the casualties, the carrier shall be liable for compensation:
I. Secretly carrying dangerous goods in common ones, concealing information in reporting the names of dangerous goods, concealing the natures of dangerous goods, or committing any other violation of the provisions on dangerous goods transport, resulting in combustion, explosion, poisoning, pollution, corrosion or any other accidents.
II. Carrying liquid or perishable goods in common ones, triggering any pollution accidents.
III. Reporting erroneous information on the weight of the cumbersome and bulky goods, trigging hull damage, crane tipping, dropping and damage of the cargo or the casualties.
IV. Consigning the cargo whose packages are made from bad materials with insufficient strength or inappropriate internal linings or other defects, or wrongly making or omitting the indication signs which shall be affixed to outer packages, triggering dropping and damage accidents.
Article 25 Where any of the following circumstances occurs as a result of the consignor, the consignor shall be responsible for handling the circumstance:
I. The loss, shortage or damage of the cargo loaded by the consignor itself occurs when hull is in good condition, cabins are sealed in an intact manner, and the loading conditions are not in abnormal condition during the unloading of the cargo.
II. The loss, shortage, damage or inconsistent content of the cargo is found during the unpacking when the cargo is carried in the containers packed and sealed by the consignor itself, with the containers and seals kept intact.
III. The loss, shortage, deterioration, pollution, damage or any other loss of the cargo escorted by the consignor itself occurs, unless it can be proved that it is attributable to the carrier.
Article 26 Where any of the following circumstances occurs as a result of the consignor or the carrier, the consignor or the carrier shall burden the relevant expenses or penalties:
I. Where, after the cargo arrives at the port of arrival, and the carrier issues the notice of cargo arrival, the consignee refuses to receive the cargo or can not find the consignee, the carrier shall notify the carrier to handle on its own such cargo within a prescribed time limit, and burden all expenses incurred. If the consignor fails to handle such cargo within the prescribed time limit, the carrier may dispose of such cargo on the spot in accordance with the provisions on the cargo that cannot be delivered.
II. Where the freight bill is used as the transport contract, and the consignor fails to provide the cargo consigned according to the prescribed schedule and requirements of the freight bill, the consignor shall pay to the carrier the penalty of one yuan per ton of the shortage thereof, except when the consignment of the cargo on schedule is affected by natural disasters or the consignor has assumed the liabilities for breach of contract for the cargo in accordance with the provisions of Article 19 of these Detailed Rules.
III. Where the consignor or the consignee fails to pay off the transport costs and other payable expenses in a timely manner, it shall pay to the carrier the overdue fine on the late payment thereof per diem in accordance with the relevant provisions.
Article 27 Where the cargo, cabins or storage yards need to be subject to quarantine, fumigation or disinfection for the reason of the cargo itself or at the request of the consignor, the consignor or the consignee shall undergo the formalities for quarantine, fumigation or disinfection and bear the relevant costs.
Article 28 The division of responsibilities for towing transport between the carrier and the consignor are as follows:
I. Where the log (bamboo) rafts are lost during the towage for the reason of the log (bamboo) rafts themselves, the consignor shall take the corresponding responsibility; where the loss is attributable to the tugboats, the carrier shall pay the rinsing fees and necessary fees for re-lashing, or be liable for compensating for the actual shortage thereof in accordance with the provisions of Article 20 of these Detailed Rules.
II. Where, when vessels or other aquatic floats are towed, any losses occur to the towed objects or third parties as a result of the towing vessels, the carrier shall be held liable; if the losses to the towed objects as a result of the towed objects themselves, the towing vessels or the third parties, the consignor shall be held liable; or if both the towing vessels and the towed objects are liable for the losses on both parties or the third parties, they shall assume the liabilities respectively according to the proportion of the liabilities that they should assume.
For the special towing of drilling platforms, floating dry dock,s engineering vessels or other large aquatic equipment, the relationship of rights and obligations and the division of responsibilities between the carrier and the consignor may be prescribed separately by both parties by signing special clauses.
Article 29 For the cargo which shall be loaded by the consignor itself or be unloaded by the consignee itself, the carrier and the consignor or the consignee shall conclude the handling contract to agree on the handling time and conditions, and implement the reward and punishment measures for the dispatch and demurrage of vessels.
Where an industrial or mining enterprise transports via its own vessels the cargo handled at the port under the jurisdiction of the transport department, both parties may conclude the reward and punishment measures for the dispatch and demurrage of vessels in accordance with provisions of the preceding paragraph.
Article 30 The time limit for compensation claim between the carrier and the consignor or the consignee shall be not more than 180 days from the next day after the freight records are delivered to the consignor or the consignee. A compensation claim shall be filed in written forms, and the other party shall handle the written compensation claim within 60 days of receipt of it.
The mutual claims of variouspenalties, overdue fines, dispatch awards and demurrage charges by the carrier and the consignor shall be handled in accordance with the relevant provisions.
Chapter VI Settlement of Disputes
Article 31 The carrier and the consignor or the consignee shall settle the disputes over the performance of a cargo transport contract through consultation. If no agreement is reached through consultation, they may apply to the contract management authority for mediation or arbitration, or may directly file a lawsuit with the people's court.
Chapter VII Supplementary Provisions
Article 32 These Detailed Rules shall not apply to the hull, rig or cargo loss or damage accidents that occur during the port operations in China involving the vessels sailed along the international routes or the routes between the Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong or Macao and the cargo carried thereon.
Article 33 The power to interpret these Detailed Rules shall remain with the Ministry of Communications.
Article 34 These Detailed Rules shall come into force on July 1, 1987.