calculating transportation costs

Air Lagos Tutorial - Calculating Transportation Costs

Properly Addressing Shipments - Receiving and Paying for Cargo - Return to Introduction

Basic Costs of a Consolidated International Shipping Rate:

Airport to Airport (ATA) or Terminal to Terminal (T2T) costs: This cost is the rate for transporting cargo from an Airport in the USA to Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, Nigeria. Air Lagos Consolidation Service is T2T in that our rate includes transport from our terminal/warehouse in Romulus, Michigan to our terminal/warehouse in Lagos. Most international air service from the USA to Nigeria is based on a 220 lb or 100 kg minimum shipment. Air Lagos offers rates starting at $3.00 for a 1 lb shipment and as little as $2.25 per lb for 1000 lbs.

Clearing Fee: clearing requires the filing of an entry form with the Nigeria Customs Service, specifying the type of goods and value being transported into Nigeria. All shipments require such a filing and the typical fee is $50.00 USD. Of that fee charged by most brokers or cargo handling agents $25.00 goes directly to Nigerian Customs Service. Air Lagos charges a $5.00 fee Clearing Fee to proportion this charge among the various shippers in each consolidated shipment.

Duty and Excise Taxes: Nigerian Customs Service considers all cargo to be subject to a minimum import duty based upon the weight of the cargo. Further, most commodities are additionally subjected to an exemplary import duty or excise tax of 5 - 20% of the commercial value of the goods. For the sake of pricing simplicity Air Lagos apportions these costs to the importer at a base rate of $1.25 USD per lb and for 220 or more lbs at a rate of 1.10 per lb.

Practical Example #1: 1 lb parcel (7 x 4 x 3 inches) containing an Blackberry valued at $95.00, received at our office in Romulus, Michigan and available for pickup from our office in Lagos, 8 days later.

• • $4.25 T2T air freight shipping, clearing and general duty

  • $.46 5% collect fee if item is shipped collect and costs paid in Lagos prior to release. Not applicable if costs paid in USA.

TOTAL: $4.46 USD

Practical Example #2: 3 suitcases @ 30 x 16 x 10 inches each totaling 105 lbs containing personal effects valued at $500.00, received at our office in Romulus, Michigan and available for pickup from our office in Lagos, 8 days later.

• $288.75 T2T air freight shipping; (105 lb x $2.75)

• $131.25 duty / excise taxes (105 lbs x $1.25)

• $24.25 5% collect fee if item is shipped collect and costs paid in Lagos prior to release. Not applicable if costs paid in USA.

TOTAL: $446.25 USD

The above information is sufficient for about half of the customers on each consolidation. But for the other half, the following discussions will apply: Discounts for shipping greater weights, Chargeable Weight; Repacking of Cargo, Trucking Rates from the the USA and Canada to the consolidation facility; Trucking Rates from the warehouse in Lagos to other cities in Nigeria.