ECTN and BESC by destination country
Select your target shipping country to view compliance rules, required documents, and get validated tracking notes.
How this registry is organised
Thirty destinations, eleven certificates. The acronym is set by the destination’s own customs authority, not by the carrier or the forwarder, which is why one route can be described three different ways in three different emails.
The list is grouped West, Central, East and North, and the filters search by country name or by certificate. Each country page lists the documents that authority asks for and the reasons applications are sent back.
Not sure which document your route needs?
Start with the destination, not the port of loading. The waiver checker tells you, for any African destination, whether a cargo tracking note is required and under which name; the What is ECTN? overview puts every country and its document name in one table.
ECTN requirements by country
The cargo tracking note each destination asks for, the ports it covers and when it must be validated. Each row links to the full country rules.
| Country | Document | Ports | When it must be validated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angola ARCCLA | ARCCLA (ECTN) | Luanda, Lobito, Cabinda | Before the vessel arrives at the port of discharge |
| Benin BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Cotonou | Before discharge at Cotonou; file as soon as the Bill of Lading is issued |
| Burkina Faso ECTN | ECTN | Abidjan (Ivory Coast), Lomé (Togo), Tema (Ghana) | Before the original Bill of Lading is issued (URN on the B/L) |
| Burundi BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Mombasa (Kenya), Matadi (DR Congo) | At the port of loading; final Bill of Lading within 5 working days of pre-validation |
| Cameroon BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Douala, Kribi | Validated at least 48 hours before the vessel arrives |
| Central African Republic BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Douala (Cameroon), Pointe-Noire (Congo), Matadi (DR Congo) | Issued at the port of loading, before the cargo is loaded |
| Chad BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Douala (Cameroon), Cotonou (Benin), Lagos (Nigeria) | Validated before the vessel reaches the port of discharge |
| Djibouti ECTN | ECTN | Djibouti | Before the vessel arrives at the port of discharge |
| DR Congo FERI | FERI | Matadi, Boma | Validated before the vessel arrives (agents ask about 5 days ahead) |
| Egypt ACID | ACID | Alexandria, Port Said, Damietta | Confirmed for each Bill of Lading |
| Equatorial Guinea ECTN | ECTN | Malabo, Bata | Before the vessel arrives at the port of discharge |
| Gabon BIETC | BIETC (ECTN) | Libreville, Port Gentil | Prior visa before loading; final visa within 5 (Africa), 10 (Europe) or 15 (Asia, Americas) days of departure |
| Gambia CTN | CTN | Banjul | Before the vessel arrives at Banjul; file once the booking is confirmed |
| Ghana SPN | SPN | Tema, Takoradi | Confirmed for each Bill of Lading |
| Guinea Bissau CEE | CEE (ECTN) | Bissau | At the port of loading; signed original Bill of Lading within 5 days of pre-validation |
| Guinea Conakry BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Conakry | Validated at least 5 days before the vessel arrives |
| Ivory Coast BSC | BSC (ECTN) | Abidjan, San Pedro | Validated at least 5 days before the vessel arrives |
| Kenya ACD | ACD | Mombasa, Lamu, Kisumu | At the point of loading |
| Liberia CTN | CTN (ECTN) | Monrovia | Before the vessel sails (14-day grace from the sailing date since 16 May 2026) |
| Madagascar BSC | BSC (ECTN) | Toamasina, Majunga, Tulear | At loading: the carrier needs the BSC number for the final Bill of Lading |
| Mali BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Dakar (Senegal), Abidjan (Ivory Coast), Conakry (Guinea) | Validated before the vessel reaches the port of discharge |
| Niger BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Cotonou (Benin), Lomé (Togo), Tema (Ghana) | Validated before the vessel arrives; needs the final, dated B/L |
| Republic of Congo ECTN | ECTN | Pointe-Noire | Before the vessel sails from the port of loading |
| Senegal BSC | BSC (ECTN) | Dakar | Before the vessel arrives at the port of discharge |
| Sierra Leone CTN | CTN (ECTN) | Freetown | Before the vessel arrives at the port of discharge |
| Somalia ECTN | ECTN | Mogadishu, Berbera, Kismayo | Before arrival, ideally before the vessel leaves the port of loading |
| South Sudan ECTN | ECTN | Mombasa (Kenya), Djibouti, Port Sudan (Sudan) | Validated before the vessel reaches the port of discharge |
| Sudan ACD | ACD | Port Sudan | At least 24 hours before arrival at the destination port |
| Togo BESC | BESC (ECTN) | Lome | Final B/L within 5 days of pre-validation |
| Yemen ACD | ACD | Aden, Hodeidah, Mukalla | At the port of loading, before the cargo is loaded |
Customs Compliance Notice: Shippers are legally responsible for submitting cargo tracking entries by the destination's filing deadline. Unvalidated shipments face automatic vessel discharge rejection or impoundment at the port of destination.