Voyage Charter

A voyage charter hires a ship to carry a cargo from a loading port to a discharging port for an agreed freight.

The idea

The charterer pays freight, quoted per tonne of cargo or as a lump sum. The ship operator runs the ship and pays the costs of the voyage, including fuel and port costs, unless the contract says otherwise.

Key terms

Laycan is the range of dates in which the ship must be ready to load. Laytime is the time allowed for loading and discharging. If the charterer takes longer, demurrage is paid to the ship operator; if the charterer finishes early, despatch may be paid back.

When it is used

For a single cargo or a few shipments between known ports, especially in the dry bulk and tanker trades. For a ship for a period see time charter, and for the differences see time charter vs voyage charter.

Freight, laytime and costs

The charterer pays a freight for the voyage, per tonne of cargo or as a lump sum. The charter party sets the laytime for loading and discharging and the demurrage if it is exceeded. Who pays for loading, stowing and discharging depends on the terms: with FIO the charterer pays for them, and with liner terms the ship operator does. Port costs are usually for the ship operator in a voyage charter, but the contract states it.

Who controls the ship

In a voyage charter the ship operator keeps control of the ship, the crew and the route. The charterer controls the cargo and the loading and discharging dates. This is the main difference from a time charter, where the charterer also decides where the ship goes.

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Shipfixing connects charterers and ship operators. We scan for suitable ships. Voyage requests for ships below 10,000 DWT need no signup and no membership.

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Related guides

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