Question 1

What is a drop shipment / cross-trade and how is it different from a normal shipment?

Accepted Answer

A drop shipment (also called cross-trade or third-country shipment) moves cargo between two foreign countries without it passing through the forwarder's home country. A common example: a trader buys electronics from China and resells them to a customer in Germany — the goods ship directly from Shenzhen to Hamburg without ever touching Israel. SIMBA-LOG handles the full chain — origin pickup, ocean or air carriage, destination customs and door delivery — using our global agent network.

Question 2

Why use an Israeli forwarder for a shipment that doesn't touch Israel?

Accepted Answer

Three reasons: (1) commercial confidentiality — your supplier never learns who your end customer is, since the B/L is consigned to a neutral SIMBA-LOG entity; (2) margin protection — using a single forwarder you trust avoids the supplier inserting their own logistics fees; (3) regulatory comfort — for traders working through an Israeli forwarder, our compliance, AML, and sanctions screening match Israeli legal requirements you need to evidence to your bank and tax authority.

Question 3

Can SIMBA-LOG keep my supplier and customer apart on the documents?

Accepted Answer

Yes — this is called 'switch B/L' and is one of the most common reasons traders choose cross-trade. We issue a House Bill of Lading (HBL) at origin showing your buying entity, then at destination we issue a fresh HBL showing the customer's name. Neither party sees the other's commercial counterpart. Switch B/L requires careful timing and only works on lanes where the discharge port allows it — we'll confirm feasibility upfront.

Question 4

Which lanes does SIMBA-LOG cover for cross-trade?

Accepted Answer

Through our global agent network we cover all major trade lanes: China → EU/US/UAE/Africa, EU → US/UAE/Asia, US → EU/Latin America, India → EU/UAE, and intra-Asia. Less common pairs (e.g., Brazil → West Africa, or Vietnam → South Africa) we still handle via partner agents — request a quote and we'll confirm feasibility, transit time and cost within 4 business hours.

Question 5

How is cross-trade pricing built up?

Accepted Answer

A cross-trade quote consists of: origin charges (pickup, export documentation, terminal handling at load port), main carriage (ocean or air freight), destination charges (terminal handling, customs clearance, last-mile delivery), and our coordination fee. Unlike a domestic Israeli import we do not pay duty/VAT on your behalf — those are paid in the destination country and depend on the local importer of record. We can quote DAP / DDP / CFR / FOB depending on which Incoterm you negotiate with your customer.

Question 6

What documents does SIMBA-LOG issue for a cross-trade shipment?

Accepted Answer

Standard documents: Commercial Invoice (your version, between you and the customer), Packing List, House Bill of Lading or Air Waybill (HBL/HAWB), Certificate of Origin (EUR.1, US-Israel CFTA, REX, Form A — depending on lane and FTA), insurance certificate, and any product-specific compliance docs (EUR1 for EU FTA, FCC for US wireless, etc.). On switch B/L lanes we issue a second HBL at destination that hides supplier and customer details from each other.

משלוחי דרופ — ממקור ליעד, בלי לעבור דרך ישראל

למה Cross-Trade דרך משלח ישראלי

הגנת זהות

שרשרת מסחרית אחת

תאימות שאפשר להציג

מה כלול ב-Cross-Trade שלנו

ים Cross-Trade (FCL ו-LCL)

אוויר Cross-Trade

מכס בארץ היעד

Switch B/L ותיעוד

הנפקת תעודות

נראות מקצה לקצה

איך זה עובד — 4 שלבים

הצעת מחיר (4 שעות)

איסוף במקור והנפקת HBL

הובלה והחלפה

שחרור ומסירה ביעד

Cross-Trade — שאלות ותשובות

צריך משלוח Cross-Trade?