Every mode of transport has its own specific document for transportation.for air transport it is the air waybill, referred to as the awb, while for sea transport it is the bill of lading shortened frequently to the b/l. for international road freight, the consignment note completed by the hauler is the cmr note. the bill of lading is one of the oldest documents used in international trade. bills of lading are issued either by shipping lines or by freight forwarders and also by the international federation of freight forwarders association (fiata). all bs/l are fairly similar in appearance, the only difference is the name of the shipping line which is stated at the top. details of the shipment are in the body of the document with the space for signatures at the bottom. the reverse side is filled with the detailed description of the conditions of carriage which become important when something goes wrong. the bill of lading fulfills three functions. its first function is to act as a receipt of goods, as it includes full details of the number of packages and the description of the goods. the b/l is also the contract of carriage between the shipper and the shipping line. the bill is completed after the ship has left the port, and only after that the shipping line can complete the parts of the bill regarding the name of the vessel and the sailing date. the third function of the b/l is as a document of title. this means that anyone who presents the b/l can take delivery of goods. the consignment note is used for international road freight. it is completed by the hauler. the cmr contains the information about the load and the details of the trailer and the carrier. the first copy of the cmr remains with the sender, the second accompanies the goods and the third is retained by the carrier. upon the charge of the goods the consignee will be asked to sign the cmr. the air waybill is used for all airfreight; it is completed either by the airline or the airfreight forwarder who will establish the document. the number in the top right-hand corner is unique and is used to identify the goods at all stages of their journey as well as when they are collected by the consignee, so it is important to inform a customer on the air waybill number as soon as possible. the air waybill is also used as an accounting document with charges added as the goods move through various stages of their journey. there is one more specific export/import document which is called the single administrative document (sad) that acts as a customs declaration. it is used throughout the european union. the sad is an eight-part document which accompanies the goods from door to door; some parts are filled in by the exporter; some by the freight forwarder at the time of export and other parts – by the freight forwarder handling the import. реферирование текста