CBP CTPAT · 7 point

7 point container inspection checklist (CTPAT)

Get proof the box was sound before the factory sealed it.

Pick the equipment, mark each inspection point, record the seal numbers and the VVTT check, then print a sheet laid out on CBP's 7 point checklist for the loading factory to sign.

Last updated 2026-09-28. Math runs in your browser, no data leaves your computer.

Fill this in on a phone at the loading dock, or send the link to the factory's shipping clerk before the empty box arrives. Any field you leave blank prints as a line to write on, so the same page also works as a paper form.

Nothing you type leaves your browser. The sheet follows the point numbering on the CBP checklist and the record list in criterion 5.5 of the CTPAT importer criteria.

The equipment and the people

Pick the list that matches the equipment at the dock, because criterion 5.3 sets a different number of points for each one.

Copy it from the door, not the booking, and the tool checks the ISO 6346 check digit so a typo shows up before it reaches the bill of lading.

Name the place where the box was stuffed, since that is where the criteria expect the inspection to happen.

Use the local date at the loading site, which should fall on or before the stuffing date.

Record the time too, because criterion 5.5 lists both date and time on the sheet.

Give the person who walked the box, since that person signs the sheet and answers for it later.

Where a supervisor oversees the inspection, criterion 5.5 says the supervisor should sign the checklist as well.

Inspection points

Mark each point OK only after a person has looked at it, and tick the photo box when a picture is on file. A short note beats a blank, for example "new weld, left side, 2 m from doors".

Seal record and VVTT

Criterion 6.2 asks for a seal that meets ISO 17712, applied right after stuffing on the secure cam or the center most vertical bar of the right hand door.

Record it only if the box arrived sealed, and leave it blank for an empty container off the depot.

This number has to match the bill of lading and the carrier's manifest, so read it off the seal itself.

Both qualify under criterion 6.2, and a cable seal must be pulled taut with no slack on either side.

Name the person who put the seal on, because the CBP sheet asks for that name and a signature.

A second person who checks the seal catches the wrong number before the truck leaves the gate.

Note anything the points do not cover, such as a seal change by the carrier, which the criteria say must be recorded with the replacement number.

The button builds the sheet below and opens your browser's print dialog, where Save as PDF is one of the destinations.

Before the booking, screen the name on the invoice. Shipment pre-check is on the paid plans, from USD 59 a month.

General guidance only. Verify against the cited primary sources before you commit to a shipment, declaration, or contract.

Where the points come from

The 7 points and the sign off lines follow the one page CBP CTPAT checklist, which numbers them from the outside and undercarriage first to the inside floor last. Its footer asks for the inspector's name and signature, the date and time, a follow up inspector, the seal on arrival and on departure, and the names of whoever affixed and verified the seal, and the printed sheet carries all of those lines.

The current rule behind the sheet is criterion 5.3 of the CTPAT Minimum Security Criteria for U.S. Importers, October 2021. It asks for a seven point inspection on every empty container before stuffing, eight points on an empty reefer with the fan housing added, and 17 points on tractors and trailers crossing a land border. The same inspection is also agricultural, which is why the sheet carries a line for visible pests, soil and plant or animal material.

Criterion 5.5 lists what the record should hold: the container number, the date, the time, the inspector's name and the areas inspected, with a supervisor's signature where one oversees the work. The seal block follows criteria 6.2, 6.5 and 6.7, the ISO 17712 seal, its test certificate and the VVTT check. The ISO 6346 check digit test on the container number is the same one the container number check digit validator runs.

Worked example. A seal number that did not match

The booking. A Texas importer books a 20 foot dry box of 80 drums of resin out of a factory in Shandong. The shipping clerk walks all 7 points, marks each one OK with a photo, and seals the doors, which looks fine on paper.

The failure. Nobody ran the Verify step, and the seal on the doors carries a number one digit off the seal number the forwarder put on the bill of lading. At discharge the seal on the box does not match the shipping documents, which is the exact gap the VVTT check in criterion 6.7 exists to close. The choice is the usual one: fix the paperwork before the vessel sails, or explain the discrepancy after it lands.

The fix. The importer now has the factory send this sheet with the seal number typed from the seal itself and a second person's name in the verified line. The forwarder takes the seal number from the signed sheet, the bill of lading is corrected before loading, and the box arrives with the numbers in agreement.

Want to confirm the container number itself before it goes on the bill of lading? The container number check digit validator shows the ISO 6346 working, with the owner code and serial number explained.

Frequently asked

What are the 7 points of a CTPAT container inspection?

CBP's own 7 point container inspection checklist numbers them as 1 outside and undercarriage, 2 inside and outside doors, 3 right side, 4 left side, 5 front wall, 6 ceiling and roof, and 7 the inside floor. The CTPAT Minimum Security Criteria list the same seven areas in a different order and add the reliability of the door locking mechanisms to the doors point.

Is it a 7 point or a 17 point inspection?

Both exist, and they cover different equipment. Criterion 5.3 of the CTPAT Minimum Security Criteria for U.S. Importers (October 2021) requires a seven point inspection on every empty container before stuffing and an eight point inspection on an empty refrigerated container, which adds the fan housing. The 17 point inspection is for highway carriers crossing a land border and covers 7 points on the tractor and 10 on the trailer.

Who should fill in the checklist, the factory or the forwarder?

The criteria put the inspection at the point of stuffing, so for an FCL out of China that is usually the loading factory or its warehouse. Criterion 5.5 says the completed inspection sheet should be part of the shipping documentation packet and that the consignee should receive the packet before the goods arrive, so ask the factory to send the signed sheet and photos with the other shipping documents.

What is the VVTT seal check?

VVTT is the seal verification process in criterion 6.7 of the CTPAT importer criteria. View the seal and the locking mechanisms, verify the seal number against the shipment documents, tug on the seal to make sure it is affixed properly, then twist and turn a bolt seal to make sure its parts do not unscrew or separate. The seal itself has to meet the current ISO 17712 standard for high security seals.

Does a signed checklist make my company CTPAT compliant?

No, the checklist is one record the criteria ask for, and CTPAT membership depends on the whole security profile CBP validates. CTPAT is voluntary, and most non member importers use the same checklist because it is a cheap control on what goes into their containers.

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Sourzi shows what official files say. It is not customs or legal advice. For a binding answer, ask a licensed customs broker, a CBP ruling or an Australian Border Force Tariff Advice.

File dates and links are on Data sources.