Characteristics of containers base on range, weight and total volume by type of equipment are:

CONTAINER:20 FEET
WEIGHT: 18-22 TON
VOLUME: 33.2-33.7 M3
INTERNAL DIMENSIONS
LONG X WIDE X HEIGHT: 2.352 X 5.900 X 2.390 METERS

CONTAINER:40 FEET
WEIGHT: 26-27 TON
VOLUME: 63.4-68.6 M3
INTERNAL DIMENSIONS
LONG X WIDE X HEIGHT: 2.352 X 13.030 X 2.390 METERS

CONTAINER:20 FEET
WEIGHT: 27-21 TON
VOLUME: 27-28 M3
INTERNAL DIMENSIONS
LONG X WIDE X HEIGHT: 2.285 x 5450 X 2260 METERS

CONTAINER:40 FEET
WEIGHT: 26-29 TON
VOLUME: 58-64 M3
INTERNAL DIMENSIONS
LONG X WIDE X HEIGHT: 2.285 X 11.570 X 2.250 METERS

CONTAINER:40 FEET
WEIGHT: 126.4 TON
VOLUME: 76 M3
INTERNAL DIMENSIONS
LONG X WIDE X HEIGHT: 2.352 X 12.030 X 2.695 METERS

CONTENEDOR: 40 PIES HIGH CUBE
PESO 26.4 TON (RANGO)
VOLUMEN: 76 M3 (RANGO)
DIMENSIONES INTERNAS
LARGO x ANCHO x ALTO: 2.352x12.030x2.695  METROS

The answer depends on various factors such as size, characteristics of the shipment, custom norms in orgigin and destiny.
With the purpose of reducing the cost of sending samples, it is recommended that the exporter analyzes the possibility of sending them under the modality of courier or cargo.
The value of every shipment caries according to its destination, weight an volume.

a) PROTECTION
b) APPEARANCE
c) COMPLIMENT OF   TECHNICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL NORMATIVITY

Before sketching the package, it is necessary to investigate in the marketplace of destination, as well as technical and environmental restrictions

First of all, you should establish if the selling terms (Inconterm) negotiates include international transportation.

Basic factors with the selected agent are:

• Selection of the mode and company more suitable. Conditions of the service offered: date, route, costs, time, etc.
• Previous filling of the transport contract
• Payment of the freights by the transporters and/or agent
• Preparation of the cargo for transportation (packaging, market, labelling, insurance, etc.)
• Preparation of the support documents which are required for exportation, by the transporters and/or importation.
• Delivery of the cargo to the transporters in the agreed place, along with the documents required and the improvement of the contract.

The following are responsible for customs impositions:

- The importer
- The exporter
- The owner
- The possessor
- The holder of the merchandise
- The transporters
- The customs broker agent
- The trustee
- The intermediary - The declarante

The transporters, the customs broker agent, the trustee, the intermediary and the declarante are responsible for the obligations that derive from their intervention, according to the terms foreseen by the law.

Import Modalities:

- Ordinary - With a franchise
- Re-importing due to passive improvement
- Re-importing of merchandise on the same condition
- Importation for compliment of provider warranty
- Temporal importation for active improvement (capital goods, special importation and exportation systems, as well as industrial processing)
- Importation for transformation or assembly - Importation for postal traffic and urgent dispatches
- Importation of merchandise under the modality of urgent dispatches (such as assistance for people affected by natural catastrophes or disasters, or for attending compelling needs)
- Travellers (importation on luggage and personal belongings)

The stages for the importation of merchandise are as follows.


1. Arrival of merchandise: stage that includes the entering of merchandise of foreign origin to national territory, in which the transporters must fulfil a series of formalities before the customs authority, with the purpose of presenting the cargo with the requisites.

2. Storage: period in which the merchandise that were not nationalized in the point of arrival remain stored in qualified warehouses, while its trustee performs all procedures to obtain its release. Merchandise can also be introduced in to industrial duty free zone of goods and services or in to a transitory duty free zone.

3. Processing of the import declaration: in this stage, the importer or the customs broker agent declares the merchandise, under the modality of importation that corresponds to the nature or conditions of importations of it.

Whenever the customs inspection official finds errors or omissions in the description of the merchandise in the imports declaration, a complete analysis must proceed of the declaration of importation and the support documents of the merchandise to establish if such errors or omissions do not lead to the declaration covering different merchandises. In this last case an apprehension of the merchandise in order; the declarante may amend this with the presentation of a legalization declaration with out paying ransom.

Merchandise that does not comply with the provisions for its legal entry to national territory or exit abroad may go through the following legal situations: apprehension, seizure or abandonment.

It is a cautious measure that consists of the retaining of merchandise that is subject to any of the events consecrated in the customs legislation for the imports, exports or transit regimes.

Imports declaration has to be presented to customs administration with jurisdiction in the place where the merchandise is at, through customs information system.
In those administrations that do not have an information system, de imports declaration has to be filled out in the printed form, and has to be presented in the habilitated warehouses of the jurisdiction or in customs administration, depending on each case, where the presentation and acceptance process take place.

The declarante is obligated to obtain and keep (for a period of no less than 5 years) the original of the following documents. They must be obtained before the presentation and acceptance of the declaration:

• Licence of importation given by the The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism. The importer that appears on the license has to be the same that’s on the import declaration.
• Commercial receipt (factura commercial) whenever it may apply
• Andine declaration of value (Declaración andina del valor) and its support documents which it total FOB value declared and content in the receipt or contract is equal or superior to five thousand US dollars (US$5.000)
• Transport document (acknowledgement of the shipment, or air way bill, depending on the mode of transportation used).
• Origin certification, whenever it is needed for the application of special dispositions.
• Sanitary certificate an other documents demanded by special norms.
• Shipping list, whenever it may be necessary.
• Power of attorney , when the declaration is presented through a Customs Broker Agent

In Colombia, The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism is the competent entity to emit the origin certificates of the national products subject to exportation, and that want to submit to preferential treatment in the importing country. This is only possible when our nation and the country of destination have signed commercial agreements on that matter and the product complies with origin norms established on such agreement.

A product may take advantage of preferences of the agreement when it is accompanied by the “Origin Certificate”, were the norms and criteria that the product has to fulfil are indicated; it must be signed and sealed by The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism.

The process starts with the presentation and acceptance of a request for authorization of shipment through the customs information system, when this is followed by the subsequent steps, it is transformed in to an exports declaration.

The process ends with the shipping of the merchandise.

Different forms of declaring the merchandise subject to exportation; it indicates if the declarante is obligated to fulfil a responsibility after a given period with regards to the merchandise being exported. The modalities are:

a. Definite Exportation: it regulates the exit of national or nationalized merchandise from the national customs territory with destination to other countries of industrial duty free zone for goods and services for its definite use or consumption.
b. Temporal exportation for passive improvement: it regulates the exit of national or nationalized merchandise from the national customs territory, to be submitted to transformation, elaboration or repair in another country or industrial duty free zone for goods and services and which permanence abroad is regulated by the term of permanence authorized by customs at the moment of accepting the request of authorization of shipment. Before the term end the merchandise must be re-imported.
Termination of the modality: this modality must end within the period stipulated by customs, in one of the following situations:

• Re-importation for passive improvement
• Definite exportation
• Re-importation in the same state
• Destruction of the merchandise abroad
• Endorsement of merchandise
• Temporal exportation for re-importation in the same state: this modality allows the temporal exit of national or nationalized merchandise from the national customs territory, to attend a specific objective in a determined period, established by the declarante, which has to be less than a year (1). Before the term end the merchandise must be re-imported with out it having suffered modifications abroad, with the exception of normal deterioration due to use.

The merchandise exported under this modality has to exit the country in a single shipment and with definite data of the operation. It has to be completely identified by its permanent characteristics that differentiated from others in its genera.
The declarante has to preserve its power for a term of 5 years that star counting from the moment of presentation and acceptance of the request of the authorization of shipment, the document that accredits the contract that originated the exportation.
Termination of the modality: this modality must end within the period stipulated by customs, in one of the following situations:

• Re-importation in the same state
• Definite exportation
• Destruction of the merchandise properly accredited by customs.

 d. Re-exportation: This modality proceeds exclusively for imported merchandise that has been declared under the modality of temporary importation for re-exportation in the same state, as well as the modality of importation for the transformation or assembly. It also proceeds for capital goods or their parts, imported temporarily and that have to exit the country or a industrial duty free zone for goods and services to be prepared or replaced.
The declaration of importation that covers merchandise in the national territory constitutes a support document for this modality.
e. Re-embarking: This modality regulates the exit of merchandise from the national customs territory, coming from abroad and that are being kept in an authorized warehouse; an exception is generated when the merchandise has not been legally abandoned or has been exposed to any modality of importation. Prior
The declarante must present a warranty for a period of one (1) month to guarantee that in the next fifteen (15) days subsequent to the shipping of the merchandise, certification discharged by the transport company will be delivered to the customs authority to prove the exit of the merchandise from national customs territory.
f. Exportación por tráfico postal y envíos urgentes: Esta modalidad regula la salida de envíos de correspondencia, paquetes postales y envíos urgentes, siempre que su valor no exceda de US $1.000 de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica y requieran ágil entrega a su destinatario en el exterior.
Las labores de recepción, presentación de la declaración y embarque de los paquetes postales, los adelanta la Administración Postal Nacional y las empresas legalmente autorizadas para realizar esta actividad,
Las actividades relativas a los envíos urgentes, las realiza directamente las empresas de transporte internacional con licencia del Ministerio de Comunicaciones con empresas de mensajería especializada e inscritas ante la DIAN, y deberán estar amparados con una declaración simplificada de exportación.
g. Exportación de muestras sin valor comercial: Bajo esta modalidad se pueden exportar mercancías nacionales en calidad de muestras sin valor comercial, cuyo valor anual no exceda de diez mil dólares (US $10.000) de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica.
La exportación de muestras sin valor comercial realizada por la Federación Nacional de Cafeteros o Proexport, no está sujeta a este monto.
El trámite de la exportación se debe surtir mediante el diligenciamiento de la declaración de exportación simplificada, la cual debe contener los datos definitivos de la mercancía y enviarse al exterior en embarque único; así mismo, debe estar acompañada para su aceptación de los vistos buenos, autorizaciones o licencias que se requieran para su salida del territorio aduanero nacional.
h. Exportación temporal de viajeros: Al amparo de esta modalidad, pueden salir del país mercancías nacionales o nacionalizadas que lleve consigo el viajero y desee reimportarlas a su regreso, sin el pago de tributos aduaneros.
Para el efecto, el viajero deberá presentar en la oficina de la aduana del puerto o aeropuerto de salida, la mercancía, acompañada de la declaración simplificada de exportación, pasaporte y tiquete de viaje. En la declaración debe quedar claramente identificada la mercancía objeto de salida, por sus características, número o serie que la identifica o individualiza de las demás de su género.
No hacen parte del equipaje los efectos personales del viajero y por lo tanto no serán objeto de declaración.
Los bienes así exportados, podrán ser reimportados al territorio aduanero nacional, sin el pago de tributos aduaneros.
i. Exportación de menajes: Con esta modalidad se permite a los residentes en el país, que deseen fijar su residencia en el exterior, exportar los bienes que constituyen el menaje doméstico, presentando ante la aduana las mercancías acompañadas de una relación donde indique la cantidad y descripción de las mismas.
La declaración debe suscribirse y presentarse por el propietario del menaje o la persona debidamente autorizada por éste, ante la dependencia de la aduana competente, del puerto o aeropuerto de salida, del territorio aduanero nacional.
La declaración debe presentarse dentro de los treinta (30) días calendario anterior a la salida del viajero del país o dentro de los ciento veinte (120) días calendario a la fecha de salida del mismo.
Los bienes así exportados podrán ser reimportados al territorio aduanero nacional, sin el pago de tributos aduaneros.
j. Programas especiales de exportación: Los programas especiales de exportación –PEX- permite a los productores nacionales y a sus proveedores de insumos, exportar bienes producidos o elaborados en el territorio aduanero nacional, a partir de materias primas nacionales entregadas por un tercero ubicado en país extranjero.
k. Exportación de energía eléctrica: Mediante esta operación, se permite a las empresas exportadoras interesadas en realizar esta actividad, exportar energía eléctrica, a través de los puntos habilitados para tal fin.
l. Despacho o Envíos Urgentes: Para el trámite de la exportación, es suficiente la presentación por parte de la entidad, de una relación escrita donde indique la clase y cantidad de mercancías objeto de despacho y expresar que se trata de una donación. Esta relación será considerada como una declaración simplificada de exportación. El trámite se surte ante la administración de Aduanas de la jurisdicción aduanera de salida de las mercancías.
m. Exportación de joyas, esmeraldas y demás piedras preciosas: Permite exportar joyas, esmeraldas y demás piedras preciosas debiendo tramitar la solicitud de autorización de embarque, bajo la modalidad de exportación definitiva, no obstante podrá realizarse la operación como mercancía transportada a la mano con el viajero.
Cuando la exportación sea realizada por un viajero, la certificación de embarque se entiende surtida ante la dependencia competente de la aduana donde se tramitará la exportación, mediante la presentación de la fotocopia legible del pasaporte, tiquete y pasabordo. El tiquete hace las veces de manifiesto de carga.
n. Exportación de café: Solamente se puede exportar el café que cumpla los requisitos de calidad establecidos por el Comité Nacional de Cafeteros. La Federación Nacional de Cafeteros es la entidad encargada de vigilar el cumplimiento de este último requisito.