What is a container yard?

The part of a port terminal or inland depot where full and empty containers are stored before they are loaded onto a ship or after they are discharged.

What does CY/CY mean?

That the carrier's responsibility starts when the packed container is delivered to its yard at origin and ends when the consignee collects it from the yard at destination.

What is the CY cut-off?

The last time a full export container can be delivered to the terminal yard to make a sailing. It is set per vessel; a box that arrives later waits for the next one.

Term

Container yard (CY)

A container yard (CY) is the area of a port terminal or inland depot where full and empty containers are stored before loading and after discharge. On a booking, CY is also a service term: Maersk's CY means its responsibility starts and ends at a container yard, and the customer arranges transport for the rest of the journey.

Also called CY, CY/CY, container terminal yardUpdated 13 October 2026

The place and the term

Port Houston's tariff defines a container yard as any area where wheeled, loaded or empty containers are stored on the terminal. Used on a booking, the term says where the carrier's job ends: under CY/CY, Maersk explains, the shipping line's responsibility begins and ends at the container yard — the shipper delivers a packed box to the origin yard and the consignee collects it from the destination yard.

Term	Origin	Destination
CY/CY	Shipper delivers a packed container to the yard	Consignee collects the container from the yard
CY/CFS	Packed container delivered to the yard	Unpacked at a CFS, cargo collected loose
CFS/CY	Cargo delivered loose to a CFS and packed there	Container collected from the yard
CFS/CFS	Consolidated at a CFS	Deconsolidated at a CFS

Service terms Maersk sets out

Worked example: an export receiving window

The Northwest Seaport Alliance publishes receiving windows by vessel. For one sailing at Seattle's Terminal 5 in October 2026, the terminal opened for export receiving on 7 October, cut off on 13 October and the vessel started work on 15 October — and the alliance tells truckers not to deliver until the vessel is listed as authorized for receiving.

Who answers for the cut-off

The shipper, under the CTU Code: it must make sure the container arrives at the terminal before the stated cargo cut-off time. A box that misses the cut-off waits for the next sailing.

The mistake people make

Delivering too early, or too late. Terminals receive export boxes only inside the vessel's window; early arrivals are turned away or charged storage, and late ones miss the ship. Book the truck against the terminal's published dates, not the vessel's sailing day.

FAQ