To fill out an air waybill, work the form top to bottom in the order it’s laid out: identify the shipper and consignee, set the routing, describe the goods with accurate weights and dimensions, declare values, mark who pays, and flag any special handling. The layout is standardized across carriers under IATA Resolution 600a, so once you’ve completed one correctly, every other AWB will look familiar.1
Before you write anything, confirm which form you have. A Master Air Waybill (MAWB) is issued by the airline and covers a full consolidated shipment. A House Air Waybill (HAWB) is issued by a freight forwarder and covers your individual shipment inside that consolidation. If you booked directly with the airline, you’ll complete the MAWB. If you went through a forwarder, you’ll complete a HAWB and the forwarder handles the MAWB separately.
Every AWB carries an 11-digit tracking number: a three-digit prefix identifying the carrier (or the forwarder’s agent code on a HAWB), followed by an eight-digit serial unique to the shipment. That number links your cargo to the carrier’s manifest and to customs, so it has to be exact.
Shipper and Consignee
Enter the full legal name, street address, city, state or province, postal code, and phone number of the shipper. Do the same for the consignee at the destination. If someone other than the consignee should be notified on arrival, put their contact information in the “Also Notify” or “Accounting Information” field.
If either party has a carrier account number, enter it in the designated box. If you don’t know it, leave it blank. A guessed account number can route billing to the wrong party and create a dispute that holds the cargo.
Routing
Use the three-letter IATA airport code for the airport of departure. For the destination, most carriers want the full airport name written out, though some also accept the code. If you need the cargo routed through a specific transit point, note it in the routing field; otherwise the carrier picks the route.
Nature and Quantity of Goods
This is where most delays start. Each line matters:
- Number of pieces — the total count of packages in the shipment.
- Gross weight, including packaging. International shipments go in kilograms; U.S. domestic shipments may use pounds, but mark “K” or “L” in the unit field so there’s no ambiguity.
- Dimensions (length, width, height) for each package. The carrier calculates volumetric weight as length × width × height in centimeters divided by 6,000, and bills on whichever is higher — actual or volumetric.
- Description of goods in plain language. Vague phrases like “general merchandise” invite inspection delays.
- Commodity code, if you know it. If not, leave it blank and let the carrier classify.
For international shipments, add the Harmonized System (HS) code, the six-digit classification recognized by customs authorities worldwide. U.S. exporters use the 10-digit Schedule B number, but the first six digits are the HS code.
Charges and Payment
Mark freight charges as “Prepaid” (shipper pays before departure) or “Collect” (consignee pays on arrival). Getting this wrong creates billing disputes that can hold cargo at the destination. State the currency code (USD, EUR, GBP) so the carrier bills in the right denomination. Terminal handling and document preparation fees, typically $25 to $50 at major U.S. cargo hubs, appear as separate line items on many carriers’ invoices.
Handling Information
Use the free-text handling field for anything the carrier needs to know: temperature-controlled storage, fragile contents, livestock protocols, or references to related documents. If you have a booking confirmation number, enter it here. Onward-carriage instructions for ground transport after landing also belong in this field.
Declared Values
Two value fields sit near the top of the form and do different jobs. “Declared Value for Carriage” caps what the airline owes you if the cargo is lost or damaged. “Declared Value for Customs” tells customs authorities the commercial value for duty assessment.
If you leave the carriage value blank or enter “NVD” (No Value Declared), the carrier’s liability defaults to the Montreal Convention limit of 26 Special Drawing Rights per kilogram, which works out to roughly $35 per kilogram at recent exchange rates. On a 500-kilogram shipment, that’s about $17,500 of maximum recovery regardless of what the cargo is actually worth.
Declaring a higher value raises the carrier’s liability but adds a valuation surcharge to the freight cost. Whether it’s worth paying depends on the gap between the default and your cargo’s real value. High-value electronics or pharmaceuticals usually justify the declaration; bulk raw materials usually don’t.
Dangerous Goods
If the shipment contains lithium batteries, flammable liquids, compressed gases, corrosive chemicals, or any other hazardous material, the AWB alone is not enough. You must also prepare a Shipper’s Declaration for Dangerous Goods (DGD) certifying that the cargo has been packed, labeled, and described in accordance with the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations. The DGD travels with the AWB but is a distinct document with its own format.
Failing to declare dangerous goods properly is one of the costliest mistakes in air freight. Under 49 U.S.C. § 46312, willfully delivering hazardous material to an air carrier without proper classification is a federal crime carrying fines and up to five years in prison. The FAA also pursues civil penalties: in March 2026 the agency proposed a $70,500 penalty against a shipper for tendering lithium-ion batteries that were not properly classified, packaged, or labeled.
Submitting the Form
The traditional paper AWB comes in three color-coded originals. The green copy stays with the issuing carrier. The pink copy travels with the cargo and is handed to the consignee at the destination. The blue copy is your receipt — keep it. Present the signed copies to the carrier’s agent at the cargo warehouse, with payment for any prepaid charges, before the carrier accepts the shipment into inventory.
Most shipments now move on electronic air waybills (e-AWB) transmitted through EDI systems or a carrier’s web portal, governed by IATA Resolution 672. To use e-AWBs, your company has to be activated by each carrier individually; the carrier confirms you can send and receive electronic messages in the required format, then issues an activation notice. The data you provide is identical to the paper form; only the delivery method changes.
For cargo bound to or transiting the United States, carriers must transmit a subset of the AWB data to U.S. Customs and Border Protection under the Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS) program before loading. You don’t submit ACAS data yourself — the carrier or forwarder does — but inaccurate AWB data is the most common reason for an ACAS hold, so clean data at your end prevents problems downstream.
Fixing Mistakes After Submission
Minor corrections, such as updating a consignee phone number, adjusting an HS code, or changing handling instructions, can be made by submitting a correction request to the carrier along with the corrected and original AWB documents. Some carriers charge a correction fee.
Core shipment data — total weight, number of pieces, rate calculations, and routing — is generally locked once the AWB is executed. If a discrepancy surfaces between the AWB and the actual cargo, with pieces missing or extra items found, the carrier reports the shortage or overage to the CBP port director on Customs Form 5931 or a marked copy of the cargo manifest within 30 days of aircraft entry.
Keeping the Records
Federal rules require you to keep AWB records for five years from the date of entry if the record relates to a customs entry, or five years from the activity that created the record. Paper and electronic formats are treated the same. Carriers must retain the e-AWB shipment record for at least two years under the multilateral agreement, but the longer CBP requirement effectively controls for any shipment entering U.S. commerce.
Store your shipper’s copy with the commercial invoice, packing list, and any dangerous goods declaration for the shipment. CBP can request these during an audit, and not having them is treated the same as not having filed correctly.
Penalties for Inaccurate Information
Simple mistakes that don’t affect duties or security screening usually mean processing delays and a correction fee. Material errors on international shipments can trigger civil penalties under 19 U.S.C. § 1592, which sets three tiers based on culpability:
- Negligence: a penalty up to the lesser of the domestic value of the merchandise or two times the lost duties and taxes. If duties weren’t affected, the cap is 20 percent of dutiable value.
- Gross negligence: up to the lesser of the domestic value or four times the lost duties. If duties weren’t affected, the cap is 40 percent of dutiable value.
- Fraud: up to the full domestic value of the merchandise.
A pattern of negligent errors can be treated as a single violation rather than a string of harmless typos. Voluntary disclosure before CBP opens an investigation reduces exposure significantly: the cap drops to 100 percent of the affected duties instead of the full domestic value of the goods.