A manifest, customs manifest or cargo document is a

document A document is a writing, written, drawing, drawn, presented, or memorialized representation of thought, often the manifestation of nonfiction, non-fictional, as well as fictional, content. The word originates from the Latin ', which denotes ...

listing the cargo, passengers, and crew of a

ship A ship is a large watercraft, vessel that travels the world's oceans and other Waterway, navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally disti ...

aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...

, or

vehicle A vehicle () is a machine designed for self-propulsion, usually to transport people, cargo, or both. The term "vehicle" typically refers to land vehicles such as human-powered land vehicle, human-powered vehicles (e.g. bicycles, tricycles, velo ...

, for the use of

customs Customs is an authority or Government agency, agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling International trade, the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out ...

and other officials. Where such a list is limited to identifying passengers, it is a passenger manifest or passenger list or bag manifest; conversely, a list limited to identifying cargo is a cargo manifest or cargo list, or a container manifest for cargo in a container. The manifest may be used by people having an interest in the transport to ensure that passengers and cargo listed as having been placed on board the transport at the beginning of its passage continue to be on board when it arrives at its destination.

This document, made up generally by the ship's broker, from the contents of the bills of lading, contains a specification of the nature and quantity of the cargo laden, and is generally attested officially, and in some countries notarially. The prize laws seldom mention this paper; nor is it general; but yet of essential importance in case of search, as well for belligerents, as for neutrals in procuring a speedy dismissal. It is usual to require it at the custom house. (p301)

In this way, a cargo manifest is like a

passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that certifies a person's identity and nationality for international travel. A passport allows its bearer to enter and temporarily reside in a foreign country, access local aid ...

except that it is used for

goods In economics, goods are anything that is good, usually in the sense that it provides welfare or utility to someone. Alan V. Deardorff, 2006. ''Terms Of Trade: Glossary of International Economics'', World Scientific. Online version: Deardorffs ...

instead of (or in addition to)

person A person (: people or persons, depending on context) is a being who has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations suc ...

s; the manifest is evidence to the

nationality Nationality is the legal status of belonging to a particular nation, defined as a group of people organized in one country, under one legal jurisdiction, or as a group of people who are united on the basis of culture. In international law, n ...

of the goods, the absence of

contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") is any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It comprises goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes of the leg ...

, and that property belonging to belligerents is not laden on board of the vessel. Vessels are under no legal obligation to carry a manifest, and indeed is only necessary for neutral vessels in times of war.

Cargo manifest versus bill of lading

A cargo manifest and a bill of lading may carry similar information and the concepts are not always clearly distinguished. In some cases, a single document may serve both purposes. In general, a bill of lading serves as a

legal instrument Legal instrument is a law, legal term of art that is used for any formally executed written document that can be formally attributed to its author, records and formally expresses a legally enforceable act, process, or contractual duty, obligation ...

focusing on and documenting such issues as

ownership Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as '' title'', which may be separated and held by dif ...

, whereas a cargo manifest is often more concerned with physical aspects of the cargo, such as

weight In science and engineering, the weight of an object is a quantity associated with the gravitational force exerted on the object by other objects in its environment, although there is some variation and debate as to the exact definition. Some sta ...

and

size Size in general is the Magnitude (mathematics), magnitude or dimensions of a thing. More specifically, ''geometrical size'' (or ''spatial size'') can refer to three geometrical measures: length, area, or volume. Length can be generalized ...

. When the cargo is being shipped by several different shipping companies on the same vessel, there will usually be separate bills of lading for each company, but only a single consolidated cargo manifest. On the other hand, if the cargo contains dangerous goods, there may be a separate dangerous cargo manifest. A manifest can be exchanged for commercial purposes, for example the freight manifest exchanged between two liner agents in the departure and the arrival ports. The manifest can also be prepared for regulatory purposes, specifically the customs manifest which needs to be sent to customs when arriving in the first port in a country. The difference in information on the customs manifest and the freight manifest is usually marginal, but the legal status of the two documents is completely different.

Uses

Customs and excise

Customs authorities may require cargo-carrying vessels or vehicles to provide information on the cargo manifest such as its consignor, consignee, quantity of goods, origin, destination and value.Business Dictionary.com,
Manifest
", retrieved 23 May 2013.

International travel

Immigration authorities may require passenger-carrying vessels or vehicles to provide a passenger manifest listing information such as names and ports of embarkation and disembarkation.

Disasters

In case of

disaster A disaster is an event that causes serious harm to people, buildings, economies, or the environment, and the affected community cannot handle it alone. '' Natural disasters'' like avalanches, floods, earthquakes, and wildfires are caused by na ...

s, passenger manifests may be helpful in identifying casualties and notifying families of passengers. Cargo manifests can support insurance claims for lost goods.

Archaeology

Manifests can be useful tools for

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

. For example, researchers used old ship's manifests to recreate the available amenities in their restoration of the historic Custom House Plaza in

Monterey, California Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, California, Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a popu ...

,Maxine Cass, ''Northern California Off the Beaten Path, 8th: A Guide to Unique Places'' (2009), p. 78. which was built in 1821 and remains the oldest public building in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

References

{{Authority control Aircraft operations Documents