FMC Demurrage & Detention Rules 2026: What Every Importer Must Know

Why the FMC Issued New Billing Rules — and Why 5.4 Billion Makes This Urgent

From Pandemic Price Spike to Federal Rulemaking

Between April 2020 and early 2022, demurrage and detention invoices stopped being an administrative nuisance and became a significant line item for importers nationwide. According to the FMC's own detention and demurrage data, nine major ocean carriers collectively billed roughly $15.4 billion in D&D charges between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2025. The total amount billed rose approximately nine-fold between Q2 2020 and Q1 2022 alone. That is not a rounding error. That is a structural problem.

Ports seized. Equipment vanished. Appointments went dark. And yet the invoices kept coming — often without enough information for a shipper to know whether a charge was even legitimate. The Federal Maritime Commission opened formal proceedings and built a record that ultimately justified binding federal regulation.

OSRA-22 Gives the FMC Its Mandate

Congress responded with the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022 (OSRA-22), which directed the FMC to establish enforceable billing standards for demurrage and detention. The FMC delivered: the final rule codified at 46 CFR Part 541 was published in the Federal Register on February 26, 2024 (89 FR 14330) and took effect May 28, 2024. For the first time, a single missing required field on an invoice carries a legal consequence: the billed party owes nothing until a corrected invoice is issued.

The stakes are especially high here. The Port of New York and New Jersey handled approximately 8.9 million TEUs in 2025, closing the year as the nation's second-busiest gateway for loaded containers. Every one of those boxes is subject to free-time rules, and every shipment can generate a D&D invoice. Knowing your rights under Part 541 is now table stakes for any operation moving cargo through Port Newark, Elizabeth Marine Terminal, or Global Container Terminal.

Demurrage vs. Detention: Know Which Clock Is Running

Key Definitions
Demurrage: A charge assessed by an ocean common carrier or marine terminal operator (MTO) when a loaded import container remains at the terminal beyond the free-time allowance. The clock starts after vessel discharge; the container is still inside the gate.

Detention: A per-diem charge assessed by an ocean common carrier when a shipper keeps carrier-owned equipment beyond the allowed time after pulling it off the terminal. The container is outside the gate; the clock runs until it is returned empty.

These two charges come from different clocks, different parties, and different tariff provisions — but shippers routinely confuse them or receive invoices that blur the line. Understanding Port Newark freight corridor congestion and dwell times is part of knowing which clock is already running before you see the invoice.

The Demurrage Clock: Terminal Storage

Free time at Port Newark and Elizabeth terminals typically runs three to seven calendar days after vessel discharge, depending on the applicable carrier tariff or service contract. Confirm the container availability date on your documentation — day one of free time is not always the day the ship docks. Once free time expires, demurrage begins. At Newark terminals, carrier tariff data shows rates escalating from approximately $370 per day in early tiers to over $620 per day for extended dwell. Maersk increased Newark terminal demurrage and detention rates by $20 per day across all dry-container tiers effective January 1, 2026 (Operating Reefers went up $40/day). The math compounds fast.

The Detention Clock: Equipment Outside the Gate

Once your trucker pulls the container through the terminal gate, the detention clock starts. The carrier allows a period — often four to five days — to unload and return the empty box. Miss that window and per-diem detention charges begin. 46 CFR Part 541 governs billing requirements for both charge types when issued by VOCCs, NVOCCs, or MTOs. Trucking companies acting as billing parties on their own equipment are not covered. If a trucker's invoice arrives citing Part 541, that warrants scrutiny.

The 2026 Rule Landscape: What Survived the Court Challenge

What the D.C. Circuit Set Aside in September 2025

On September 23, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued its decision in World Shipping Council v. FMC, No. 24-1088. The court vacated only §541.4 — the provision restricting which parties a carrier could invoice for D&D charges — finding that the FMC had not adequately justified its exclusion of motor carriers from the billable-party definition. The FMC issued a conforming rule formally removing §541.4 from the Code of Federal Regulations, effective January 2, 2026. See the FMC's official statement on the World Shipping Council v. FMC decision for the full background.

Carriers and some industry groups quickly characterized this ruling as a broader invalidation of the D&D rule. It is not.

What Remains Fully Enforceable in 46 CFR Part 541

Every other provision of Part 541 survived and is binding law:

• §541.5 — Omission of any applicable required element eliminates the billed party's obligation to pay.
• §541.6 — Required invoice content (five categories, up to 20 items).
• §541.7 — Carriers and MTOs must issue invoices within 30 calendar days of the last charge date.
• §541.8 — Billed parties have at least 30 days to dispute; billing parties have 30 days to respond.

The FMC confirmed that carriers violating any of these surviving provisions risk liability under the Shipping Act. For those watching port infrastructure changes, the PNCT expansion and what it means for drayage shippers in 2026 adds another operational layer to how quickly containers move — and how fast those clocks tick.

Your Invoice Audit Checklist: The 5 Categories Under 46 CFR 541.6

Section 541.6 organizes required content into five distinct categories covering up to 20 numbered items depending on whether the shipment is an import or an export. Pull the invoice and go through each category line by line. Under §541.5, a single missing or inapplicable required element is enough to eliminate your payment obligation until a corrected invoice is issued.

(a) Identifying Information

The invoice must identify the container number(s), the bill of lading number, and the specific basis for why the billed party is liable for the charge. Vague references to "your shipment" are not sufficient. If the B/L number is missing or wrong, document it before doing anything else.

(b) Timing Information

This is where many invoices fall short. Required: the invoice date, the payment due date, the specific dates for which charges are being assessed, and the free-time start and end dates (last free day). A carrier that leaves the container availability date blank or lists incorrect dates is handing you a §541.5 defense.

(c) Rate Information

The invoice must state the daily rate, the applicable tariff or service contract reference, and the total amount due. "See attached schedule" is not a tariff reference. If you cannot independently verify the rate against a filed tariff or your service contract, push back in writing.

(d) Dispute Contact Information

A compliant invoice includes a working email address or phone number for questions, a URL or QR code to a mitigation request portal, and clearly stated dispute timeframes. Invoices that bury the dispute process or omit it entirely are non-compliant.

(e) Certifications — the Field Most Shippers Miss

Under §541.6(e), every D&D invoice must carry two certifications from the billing party: (1) that the charges comply with FMC rules including the incentive principle at 46 CFR 545.5, and (2) that the billing party's own performance did not cause or contribute to the charges. If the certification is absent, the invoice is deficient. If it is present but demonstrably false — because the terminal gate was closed or appointments were unavailable — you have both a §541.5 defense and a direct factual challenge to the carrier's certification.

D&D Invoice Audit: Pay, Dispute, or Refuse?

The 30-Day Clocks You Must Track Before Paying Anything

Three separate 30-day deadlines govern every D&D invoice. Miss any one of them and you either pay money you did not owe or lose the right to dispute money you should not have paid.

Clock 1: Carrier Must Invoice Within 30 Days (§541.7)

Under 46 CFR 541.7(a), VOCCs and MTOs must issue a D&D invoice within 30 calendar days from the date the charge was last incurred. An invoice that arrives on day 45 or 60 after the container left the terminal is not payable. Pull your records, confirm the last charge date, and count. This is one of the cleanest defenses available — it requires no factual argument about terminal conditions.

Clock 2: You Have 30 Days to Dispute (§541.8(a))

From the date the invoice is issued, you have at least 30 calendar days to submit a written mitigation, refund, or waiver request. Do not wait to see if the carrier corrects it voluntarily. Submit the dispute in writing, cite the specific deficient field by CFR subsection, and note the date sent. A phone call does not stop the clock.

Clock 3: Billing Party Must Respond Within 30 Days (§541.8(b))

Once the billing party receives your written dispute, it has 30 calendar days to attempt resolution. "Attempt" is the FMC's word — the carrier does not have to agree with you. But silence or a form rejection without substantive engagement creates its own problem, particularly if you escalate to an FMC Charge Complaint.

NVOCC Pass-Through: An Extra 30-Day Layer (§541.7(b)–(c))

NVOCCs that receive a D&D invoice from an upstream carrier and pass it through to their customer get their own 30-day window — running from when the NVOCC received the upstream invoice, not from when the charge was incurred. If the NVOCC notifies the upstream ocean carrier of a customer dispute, that carrier must grant the NVOCC an additional 30 days to pursue the dispute. This creates a chain: shipper disputes to NVOCC → NVOCC disputes to carrier → carrier must respond within its own 30-day window.

The Incentive Principle: Challenging Fees When the Port Was the Problem

46 CFR 545.5: When Charges Lose Their Justification

Demurrage and detention charges are meant to motivate cargo owners to move equipment quickly. The FMC's interpretive rule at 46 CFR 545.5 — the incentive principle — holds that these charges lose their legal justification when the terminal or carrier's own actions made movement impossible: closed gates, no appointment slots, chassis shortages, no empty-return authorizations. If the container sat because the port was not accepting it, the fee cannot function as an incentive and is suspect.

The D.C. Circuit upheld the FMC's application of this principle in Evergreen Shipping Agency (America) Corp. v. FMC, 174 F.4th 169 (D.C. Cir. 2026), unanimously affirming that detention fees levied during a port closure — when the trucker had no ability to return equipment — were unreasonable. The §541.6(e)(2) certification on every invoice is directly testable against that same logic.

How to Document an Unavailability Defense

Build the record the same day events happen. Screenshot gate-closure notices from terminal websites. Save appointment system confirmations or screenshots of fully booked grids. Download chassis-availability data from the port's systems. If a carrier certifies on the invoice that its performance did not contribute to your charges, and you have screenshots from that same day showing no appointments were available, you have a direct factual challenge to that certification. In an FMC proceeding, the burden then lands on the carrier to explain the discrepancy.

How Fast Recovery at a Cross-Dock Cuts Demurrage Exposure

The Math: Every Day in the Terminal Costs Real Money

At Port Newark terminals, demurrage rates for a standard dry container escalate from roughly $370 per day in early tiers to over $620 per day for extended dwell, based on carrier tariff data. Maersk's January 1, 2026 rate changes added $20/day across dry-container tiers at Newark. The Port of NY/NJ closed 2025 with a full-year total of approximately 8.9 million TEUs — a high-volume environment where even a one-day slip past free time generates a four-figure invoice on a multi-container shipment. Two or three days of inaction on a stuck container compounds quickly.

Why Proximity to Port Newark and Elizabeth Matters

The fastest way to stop a demurrage clock is to get the container out of the terminal gate — which requires a receiver or cross-dock facility close enough to accept same-day delivery. RapidShips runs 24/7 dock operations at 25A Cotters Lane, East Brunswick, NJ, minutes from Port Newark, Elizabeth Marine Terminal, and Global Container Terminal. Our port-rejected container recovery triage process handles situations where cargo comes off the vessel with a compliance issue requiring same-day resolution before demurrage compounds further.

Cross-Docking and Transloading as Fee-Avoidance Tools

Pulling the container off the terminal stops demurrage. Getting the empty box back to the carrier on time stops detention. A facility that can do both in the same building — receive the full container, break it down, and stage the empty return — compresses both billing clocks simultaneously. Our cross-docking and transloading options near Port Newark are built for exactly this situation. If cargo needs to be sorted, palletized, relabeled, or consolidated before delivery, our transloading services that move cargo before free time expires run around the clock because port cargo does not wait for business hours.

Step-by-Step: What to Do When a D&D Invoice Arrives

Step 1: Audit the Invoice Against the 541.6 Checklist

Go through all five §541.6 categories against the table above. Check every field. Note the specific missing or incorrect element — not "this invoice is wrong" but "§541.6(b) requires the container availability date; this field is blank." Specificity matters. Also document any container held because of a compliance issue requiring rework. Freight rework when cargo fails compliance on arrival creates a separate timeline that can affect which party bears responsibility for the resulting charges.

Step 2: Check the 30-Day Issuance Timestamp

Identify the date the last charge was incurred — usually the day the container left the terminal or the last day of the accrual period. Count 30 calendar days forward. If the invoice date falls after that cutoff, write a one-paragraph response citing §541.7(a), state that the invoice arrived outside the issuance window, and confirm it is not payable. Keep a copy of your response and any delivery confirmation.

Step 3: Assess the §545.5 Unavailability Defense

Pull your operational records for the charge period. Did your trucker request an appointment and find no availability? Was the terminal gate closed? Were chassis unavailable through the port's chassis pool? Compare that against the §541.6(e)(2) certification on the invoice. If the billing party certified its performance did not contribute to the charges but the record shows otherwise, document the discrepancy and include it in your dispute letter.

Step 4: Submit a Written Dispute Before Day 30

Send a written dispute within 30 calendar days of the invoice issuance date. The dispute should: identify the invoice by number and date; cite each deficient §541.6 field by subsection; state that under §541.5 your obligation to pay is eliminated pending correction; and request mitigation, correction, or waiver. Send it to the email address listed in the §541.6(d) dispute contact field — if that field was blank, that is itself a deficiency worth citing.

Step 5: Escalate to FMC Charge Complaint Under 46 U.S.C. §41310

If the billing party does not resolve the dispute within 30 days of receiving your written request, or if its response is a blanket denial without substantive engagement, file a Charge Complaint with the FMC under 46 U.S.C. §41310. Once filed, the burden shifts to the carrier to prove its fees are reasonable. The FMC has authority to order refunds. Your documentary record — gate logs, appointment screenshots, timestamp-verified correspondence, the invoice itself — determines the outcome. Build it from day one, not after the dispute escalates.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to pay a demurrage or detention invoice that is missing required information?

No. Under 46 CFR 541.5, omission of any applicable required minimum information from a demurrage or detention invoice eliminates the billed party's obligation to pay that specific charge. The obligation does not attach until a corrected, compliant invoice is issued. Put the defect in writing, cite the specific missing field by CFR subsection, and send your written objection before the 30-calendar-day dispute window closes from the original invoice date.

How long does a carrier have to send me a demurrage or detention invoice?

Under 46 CFR 541.7(a), VOCCs and MTOs must issue a demurrage or detention invoice within 30 calendar days from the date the charge was last incurred. An NVOCC passing through the charge gets 30 calendar days from the date it received its own upstream invoice. If the invoice arrives after that window has passed, it is not payable. Confirm the last-charge date from your shipping records and count the days before doing anything else.

Did the D.C. Circuit strike down the FMC's demurrage and detention billing rule?

No. On September 23, 2025, the D.C. Circuit in World Shipping Council v. FMC, No. 24-1088, vacated only §541.4 — the provision governing which parties could be invoiced. The FMC removed §541.4 effective January 2, 2026. The invoice-content requirements at §541.6, the 30-day issuance deadline at §541.7, and the dispute-and-response windows at §541.8 all remain fully enforceable. Any carrier citing the decision as grounds that these requirements no longer apply is wrong.

What is the certification requirement on a compliant D&D invoice?

Under 46 CFR 541.6(e), every demurrage or detention invoice must include the billing party's certification that (1) the charges comply with all applicable FMC rules, including the incentive principle at 46 CFR 545.5, and (2) the billing party's own performance did not cause or contribute to the charges. If the terminal's gate was closed, appointments were unavailable, or chassis were not accessible during the charge period, that certification is directly and factually challengeable using gate logs and appointment records.

How can moving my container fast reduce demurrage at Port Newark?

Demurrage at Port Newark terminals begins after free time expires — typically three to seven calendar days after vessel discharge per the applicable carrier tariff. Rates run from approximately $370 per day in early tiers to over $620 per day for extended dwell, with Maersk adding $20 per day across dry-container tiers at Newark terminals effective January 1, 2026. A cross-dock or transload facility minutes from Port Newark and Elizabeth can receive the container the same day it is released, stopping the demurrage clock before escalating tier rates apply.

What happens if my dispute is unresolved after the 30-day billing-party response window?

You can file a Charge Complaint with the FMC under 46 U.S.C. §41310. Once you file, the burden shifts to the carrier to demonstrate its fees are reasonable; the FMC has statutory authority to order refunds. The outcome of a contested claim turns on the documentary record: gate logs, appointment screenshots, email timestamps, the invoice itself, and your written dispute correspondence. Build that record from the day the charges accrue, not after the dispute is already in front of a federal agency.

The Bottom Line

The FMC's 46 CFR Part 541 framework gives shippers real tools: a no-pay trigger for non-compliant invoices, a hard 30-day issuance deadline, a built-in dispute window, and a certification requirement that puts carriers on the record about their own conduct. The World Shipping Council v. FMC decision in September 2025 removed one provision. Everything else held. Use these rules.

The fastest way to reduce D&D exposure is to keep containers moving. RapidShips runs 24/7 dock operations at 25A Cotters Lane, East Brunswick, NJ — minutes from Port Newark, Elizabeth Marine Terminal, and Global Container Terminal. When your container is released, we receive it, transload it, and get the empty box back to the carrier before escalating-tier math starts working against you. Call us at 800-376-2808 to talk through your next import or what is already sitting on a terminal clock.