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The hard copy of the certificate isn’t necessary at all. Instead, the whole process is completed online.

A bill of lading (BL or BoL) is a legal document issued by a carrier to a shipper that details the type, quantity, and destination of the goods being carried.

Basically, it is the same document with different names.

CNCA certificate (Conselho Nacional de Carregadores) is a Loading Certificate (LC) which is a compulsory document for all commercial shipments to Angola since 28/01/1994 (Decree no. 19/94).

Yes. Angola authorities do not have a restriction on the age of heavy-duty vehicles that can be shipped into the country.

It depends on the country it has been loaded from. In certain cases, we can amend the certificate if the hard copy is not given to the courier. Even if the original hard copy has been released, we can still make an amendment at an extra cost.

The D.U. document or Documento Unico, is an Import Licence in Angola. A DU document is compulsory for all CNCA applications from 10/02/2015. A DU document must be valid regarding the Expiry date on field 25e. This document’s expiry date is 60 days from the date of DU issuance.

However, the Documento Unico or the Import Licence is exempt if a shipment will be cleared, at the destination, under a Temporary Regime. Another instance where the DU document is not an obligation is when the total FOB value is below 5000 USD.

In a Temporary shipment, the exporter must submit a letter confirming the cargo is on the temporary expedition. In this expedition, a unique format of the DU number will be entered on the validated CNCA certificate.

A sample of the DU document

Sample DU Document

DU document is not required for Temporary cargo to Angola, but it must be specified as a Temporary Shipment in the invoice or BL.

Angola is the only country whose authorities require the importer to provide the original hard copy CNCA certificate before releasing the cargo. Every other country that mandates inbound shipments to accompany waiver certificates only requires a copy of the certificate. However, if you don’t send the original certificate to the importer in Angola, they can not clear the goods.