Electronic bill of lading (eBL)

The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) describes an eBL as an electronic record that replicates the three functions of a paper bill of lading: a receipt for the goods, evidence of the contract of carriage and, where negotiable, a document of title. An eBL has the same legal effect as paper only where the applicable law provides for it. In the United Kingdom, the Electronic Trade Documents Act 2023, in force since 20 September 2023, names bills of lading among trade documents that can exist in electronic form, provided a reliable system secures identification, integrity, exclusive control, demonstrable control and effective transfer (sections 1 to 3). In Singapore, Part 2A of the Electronic Transactions Act 2010 adopts the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR) and expressly includes bills of lading. Under MLETR, adopted by UNCITRAL on 13 July 2017, an electronic record satisfies a legal requirement for a transferable document if it contains the required information and a reliable method identifies it, keeps it capable of control and retains its integrity (article 10). The Rotterdam Rules (2008; not in force as at 17 October 2026) call the equivalent a "negotiable electronic transport record" (article 1(19)). Recognition under one law does not settle recognition under another: MLETR leaves private international law rules unaffected (article 19(2)).