Question & AnswerQ&A (DTI PHILIPPINE SHIPPER'S BUREAU MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 01, S. 2005)
The main purpose is to standardize freight forwarding services, rates, and charges for containerized import shipments to protect the interests of Philippine shippers and importers, and to prevent indiscriminate charging in the freight forwarding industry.
The charges include LCL Charge, Documentation, Handling Fee, Turn-Over Fee, Bill of Lading Fee, Collect Fee, Currency Adjustment Factor (CAF), Value Added Tax (VAT), and THC Charge.
The LCL charge is payable by the consignee to the breakbulk agent or freight forwarder performing the container stripping service.
The prescribed rate for Documentation service is Php600 per Bill of Lading (BL) for both LCL and FCL shipments.
The Collect Fee is the assessment on 'Freight-Collect' importations, which the principal requires its agent to collect from the consignee, including entitlements due to the agent for handling collections and recovery of bank charges and other remittance expenses.
The CAF is a surcharge of 3% of the Freight-Collect amount, applied to 'Freight-Collect' importations paid in Philippine Peso due to exchange rate fluctuations between the Philippine Peso and the U.S. Dollar.
VAT is a consumption tax levied at each stage of production or service provision, calculated at 10% or as prescribed by law, and it covers items such as LCL Charge, Documentation, Handling Fee, and Turn-Over Fee.
The Handling Fee is applicable only to Full-Container-Load (FCL) shipments and is not applicable to Less-Container-Load (LCL) shipments.
The standard Turn-Over Fee prescribed is Php600 per Bill of Lading (BL) for both LCL and FCL shipments.
The memorandum took effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in two national newspapers of general circulation.