What is a container freight station?

A warehouse at or near a port where cargo is packed into or unpacked from containers, chiefly to consolidate and split less-than-container-load shipments.

What are CFS charges?

Handling and storage charges for cargo passing through the station, usually per freight ton — the greater of tonnes and cubic metres. At Jebel Ali in 2023's tariff, AED 26 per freight ton on imports, minimum AED 70.

What does CFS/CFS mean on a bill of lading?

That the carrier receives the cargo loose at a CFS at origin and delivers it loose from a CFS at destination, consolidating and splitting it at each end.

Term

Container freight station (CFS)

A container freight station (CFS) is a warehouse at or near a port where cargo is packed into containers or unpacked from them — above all, where less-than-container-load shipments are consolidated and split. DP World's Jebel Ali tariff defines it as a facility where cargo is consolidated or de-consolidated and staged between transport legs.

Also called CFS, CFS warehouse, container station, CFS chargesUpdated 13 October 2026

What happens at a CFS

Port Houston's tariff calls it the facility where containers are stuffed or stripped. At origin, a forwarder's LCL shipments from several shippers arrive loose and are packed into one container; at destination, the container is unpacked and each shipment waits for its consignee. In the US, customs rules treat a container station as a place cargo goes for breaking bulk and redelivery, and it must be approved by the port director and bonded.

CFS against CY

Service terms say where the carrier's job starts and ends. Under CFS/CFS, Maersk explains, cargo is consolidated and deconsolidated at both origin and destination; under CY/CY, the shipping line's responsibility begins and ends at the container yard, with the shipper delivering a packed box.

Worked example: CFS charges at Jebel Ali

Import LCL of 2.5 m³ weighing 900 kg → 2.5 freight tons (the greater of tonnes and cubic metres) × AED 26 = AED 65 → below the AED 70 minimum, so AED 70

DP World's Jebel Ali tariff, effective 1 November 2023: AED 26 per freight ton for import cargo through the port CFS, AED 24 for export and transhipment, minimum AED 70, and the first 5 days of CFS storage free.

The mistake people make

Not telling the terminal in time. At Jebel Ali, LCL containers unstuffed at the port that were not notified to the port operator before the vessel arrived pay a change-of-designation charge on top of the unstuffing — and stuffing or unstuffing done anywhere other than a CFS carries a 50% surcharge.

FAQ