The legislation actually commences on 1st July, however all containers loaded on that date must have the Verified Gross Mass (VGM), otherwise the stevedores can’t load. Hence the decision to start the process on 22nd June, as this will cover all containers held at terminals to be loaded from July 1st onwards. No container will be shipped without a VGM validated prior to arrival at the terminal as part of the Pre-Receival Advice (PRA) process.
Once a container has entered into the Terminal the stevedores are not in a position to alter the status of weight or VGM. And once a PRA has been submitted, the existing verification process will still be undertaken, including verification of the new mandatory fields. If any of the mandatory fields are missing information or cannot be verified, then the PRA will be rejected. Export shippers can alter the PRA prior to arrival at the terminal; however the PRA will have to be re-submitted with the Verified Gross Mass weight.
These procedures result from the implementation of revisions to the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).
