SOMALIA
Are you shipping cargo to Somalia via Mogadishu, Berbera, or Kismayo?
With CLEARFAST, you can create the mandatory Electronic Cargo Tracking Note (ECTN/CTN/BESC) quickly and easily.
Requested documents for Somalia ECTN issuance are:
- Dated Bill of Lading (draft accepted for pre-validation; final BL required for validation)
- Commercial invoice
- Packing list
- Shipper and consignee details
It’s important to issue an ECTN before the vessel sails, as cargoes arriving without a valid ECTN will be blocked for delivery by local customs and the ECTN number must appear on the Bill of Lading itself.
Somalia has enforced the ECTN requirement for all ports since February 2023, with a further directive from the Ministry of Ports and Marine Transport in October 2025 reaffirming it specifically for containerized cargo. So this is an active, currently enforced requirement, not a legacy rule.