Demurrage and Detention Claims in Bangladesh (2026): Charterparties, Container Charges and Port Rent

Demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh: the 2026 position

A demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh businesses face usually involves three different charges that are often confused. Vessel demurrage is the agreed daily rate a charterer pays when loading or discharge runs past the laytime in a charterparty. Container detention is the per-day charge a shipping line levies when a consignee keeps the line's box beyond the free time in its tariff. Port rent, which traders at Chattogram routinely call "port demurrage", is the storage charge the port authority levies on cargo and containers left in its yards. Each has a different contractual or statutory basis, a different creditor and a different set of defences.

This guide covers all three: how vessel demurrage is calculated and who owes it, when a receiver is bound by charterparty terms, how carriers set container detention charges and what the 2025 licensing rules for shipping agents do and do not regulate, how port rent works at Chattogram and Mongla, and how to dispute, recover or defend a claim. Arrest procedure, the Admiralty Court's general jurisdiction and freight claims are covered in companion TRW guides, which are linked rather than repeated here.

Summary: Vessel demurrage is liquidated damages for exceeding laytime and is owed by the party that agreed to pay it, normally the charterer; a receiver is not personally liable merely because a bill of lading incorporates the charterparty. Container detention is a carrier's tariff charge under the bill of lading terms, collected by the line's local agent, and no government order fixes its rates. Port rent is a port authority charge set by government tariff. Claims under carriage or hire contracts fall within the Admiralty Court's jurisdiction, many charterparties send disputes to arbitration, and the general limitation period for breach of contract is three years.

Key point: Sue the right party. In Melimas Shipping v BCIC (10 December 2025) the Admiralty Court held that the head charterer, not the Bangladeshi receiver, was liable for demurrage, applying The Miramar, and then dismissed the claim against the Singapore head charterer for want of jurisdiction. The owner recovered only the balance of freight, through the lien clause incorporated into the bill of lading.

At a glance

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Table of Contents

Three charges behind every demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh importers face

Most disputes go wrong at the first step, because the parties argue about "demurrage" without agreeing which charge is in issue. The distinction matters because it decides the creditor, the governing document, the forum and the defences. A receiver who refuses to pay a line's detention invoice on the ground that the port has waived storage rent is making an argument that cannot succeed: the two charges have nothing to do with each other.

Vessel demurrage

Vessel demurrage is a charterparty concept. The charterparty allows a period of laytime for loading and discharge and fixes a daily rate payable if that time is exceeded. The Admiralty Court, citing The Spalmatori, has described demurrage as "the agreed damages to be paid for delay" once the vessel exceeds laytime.[6] The creditor is the shipowner or disponent owner; the debtor is the party that agreed to pay demurrage, normally the charterer.

Container detention and carrier demurrage

Container detention is a liner concept. The shipping line's bill of lading terms and published tariff allow a number of free days for the merchant to use the line's container, after which a daily charge accrues until the box is returned. Some lines distinguish detention (container outside the terminal) from carrier demurrage (container inside the terminal), and some combine them. The creditor is the line, acting through its Bangladeshi shipping agent.

Port rent and storage

Port rent is a public charge. The Chittagong Port Authority acts as legal custodian of imported cargo until lawful delivery under sections 8 and 130 of the Customs Act 2023, and levies storage rent on cargo and containers left in its yards beyond the free period.[14] [10] The creditor is the port authority, and the rates come from a government tariff, not from a contract the importer negotiated.

The table below sets out the differences. On a phone, scroll it sideways.

Vessel demurrage under charterparties

Demurrage claims under voyage charterparties are the classic shipowner claim against Bangladeshi charterers, particularly state importers of fertiliser, grain, edible oil and coal that charter tonnage to Chattogram and Mongla. The claim depends almost entirely on the charterparty wording, and Bangladeshi courts apply the English authorities on charterparty construction where the contract is in standard English form.[6]

Laytime, notice of readiness and the laytime statement

A demurrage claim is built from a laytime statement. It starts with the time the vessel arrived and tendered notice of readiness, applies the turn time and any excepted periods, deducts time not counting under the charterparty, and compares the time used with the time allowed. In Melimas Shipping, the vessel took 22 days 9 hours 50 minutes to load at Al-Jubail against an allowance of seven days, producing a demurrage claim of USD 94,250.[6] The statement of facts signed at the port, the notice of readiness and the charterparty laytime clauses are the documents that decide such a claim.

Demurrage as liquidated damages

Because demurrage is liquidated damages, the owner does not have to prove its actual loss; it proves the delay and applies the rate. The court in Melimas Shipping held that once the vessel exceeds laytime, the charterer is in breach, and that demurrage is the daily rate of liquidated damages for that breach.[6] This sits comfortably with section 74 of the Contract Act 1872, under which a party may recover reasonable compensation not exceeding a sum named in the contract for breach, whether or not actual loss is proved.[3]

Damages for detention

Where the charterparty contains no demurrage clause, or the delay falls outside the demurrage period, the owner is left with unliquidated damages for detention, and must prove its actual loss of earning capacity. The court in Melimas Shipping rejected a USD 182,000 detention claim, calculated at USD 6,500 per day for the period the owner itself held the vessel at Colombo, because the owner had not made out a case for its loss.[6] A detention claim needs evidence of the market, the vessel's alternative employment and the costs incurred, not merely a daily figure in an invoice.

Exclusion clauses and the 2026 Dry Bulk decision

Demurrage can be excluded or qualified by contract. In Dry Bulk Shipping v BCIC, decided on 9 September 2026, the owner carried about 29,828 tonnes of urea from Qatar to Chattogram and sued for the retained 20 per cent of freight, USD 438,661.80, plus demurrage. The High Court Division held that the demurrage claim was excluded by clause 51(II) of the charterparty and dismissed the suit.[7] Government tender charterparties often contain bespoke demurrage, payment and documentation clauses; read them before issuing the invoice, not after the defence is filed.

Who is liable: charterers, receivers and the bill of lading

A demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh receivers dispute often turns on whether the receiver is a party to the obligation at all. The charterer agreed to pay demurrage. The receiver, who holds the bill of lading, agreed to the terms of the bill of lading, which may or may not carry the charterparty obligations with them.

The Bills of Lading Act 1856

Section 1 of the Bills of Lading Act 1856 transfers to every consignee named in a bill of lading, and every endorsee to whom property in the goods passes, all rights of suit, and makes them "subject to the same liabilities in respect of such goods" as if the contract in the bill of lading had been made with them.[2] The question is therefore what the bill of lading contract contains. A liner bill that refers to the carrier's tariff will usually carry container detention. A charterparty bill that incorporates charterparty terms may or may not carry demurrage.

Incorporation and the Miramar rule

In Melimas Shipping, the receiver was the Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation, which was both end charterer and consignee. The owner argued that the head charterparty lien clause, which gave a lien for freight, demurrage and damages, was incorporated into the bill of lading, making BCIC liable for demurrage. The court disagreed. Applying The Miramar, it held that general words of incorporation do not make a bill of lading holder personally liable for charterparty demurrage, and that the owner's claim lay against the head charterer.[6]

The court also applied the Appellate Division's decision in Samsun Shipping Corporation v Hossain and Sons, 47 DLR (AD) 31, that a consignee is not bound by charterparty conditions where the charterparty is not identified in the bill of lading.[6] The receiver's first question on any demurrage demand should be whether its bill of lading actually imposes the liability, rather than how much it owes.

Lien is not personal liability

The same judgment shows the distinction between a lien and a debt. The court held the lien clause incorporated for freight, following The San Nicholas, and decreed the balance of freight, USD 45,072, against BCIC, payable within 30 days and thereafter with 10 per cent interest.[6] A lien for demurrage, where the clause gives one, entitles the owner to hold cargo until paid; it does not by itself create a personal debt the owner can sue the receiver for once the cargo is delivered.

Local agents

Section 230 of the Contract Act 1872 provides that, absent a contract to the contrary, an agent cannot personally enforce or be bound by contracts made on behalf of a principal.[3] A Bangladeshi ship agent or shipping agent is therefore not ordinarily liable for its principal's demurrage, and claims for container detention are made for the line, with the agent acting under authority. Claimants should name the principal correctly and check that the agent's power of attorney covers litigation.

Container detention charges in Bangladesh

Container detention charges in Bangladesh are the most common source of complaints from importers and exporters, because they accrue daily in US dollars, often while the merchant is waiting on customs, the bank or the port. The legal position is straightforward even when the commercial position is painful: detention is a contractual charge, payable under the carrier's terms, at the carrier's published rate. For a line, a demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh consignees resist is usually won or lost on the free-time count.

How free time and rates are set

Each line publishes its own Bangladesh tariff and revises it by notice. In April 2026, after the outbreak of the Middle East conflict at the end of February pushed up fuel and insurance costs, Maersk raised per-day detention charges by about 7 to 10 per cent from 6 April and ONE raised them by about 4 to 7 per cent from 1 April. Maersk kept free time at four days for dry import containers and two days for refrigerated containers.[12] Rates typically rise in slabs the longer the box is held, and free time and rate depend on container type.

Who regulates detention charges

No published government tariff fixes container detention rates in Bangladesh. The port tariff governs storage in port yards, not the carrier's charge for its own equipment. The Shipping Agent Licensing Rules 2025, notified by the National Board of Revenue on 30 December 2025, replaced the Customs Agent Licensing Rules 2020 for shipping agents. As reported, they remove the cap on licence numbers and the written and viva examinations, require licences to be issued within 30 working days on complete documents, and make a licence valid at every sea and river port.[13] They are licensing rules, not a tariff order, and they do not set what agents or lines may charge.

Delivery orders and container deposits

In practice the shipping agent controls release. It issues the delivery order that customs and the port require, and will usually require outstanding charges, or a container deposit or guarantee, before it does so. On export, the empty container is released against the line's terms. Disputes therefore tend to arise after the event, when the agent sets detention against a deposit or invoices the consignee for days the consignee says were not its fault.

When detention is the carrier's risk

Carriers cannot charge detention for delay they cause. If the line delivers late, misdeclares a container, fails to issue a delivery order once charges are paid, or refuses to accept a returned empty, the merchant has a contractual answer for that period. Section 73 of the Contract Act 1872 confines compensation to loss arising naturally from the breach or contemplated by the parties, and excludes remote and indirect loss.[3] Delay caused by customs examination, port congestion or the merchant's own bank is, under most liner terms, the merchant's risk unless the line has agreed otherwise.

Port rent at Chattogram and Mongla

Port rent is the charge most traders mean when they say "demurrage" at Chattogram. It is levied by the port authority, not by the shipping line, and it is fixed by government tariff, not contract. That makes it harder to dispute on the merits and easier to address by waiver, administrative representation or, exceptionally, writ.

Free time and storage rates at Chattogram

Imported containers receive four free days after unloading. After that, storage is charged per day at USD 6 for a 20-foot unit and USD 12 for a 40-foot unit, rising to USD 24 and USD 48 by the third week.[10] From 10 March 2025 the Chittagong Port Authority also applied a four-times penal rent, reported at USD 24 to USD 96 per day for a 20-foot container and USD 48 to USD 192 for a 40-foot container, to deter importers from using port yards as warehouses.[10]

Suspensions of the penal rent

The penal rent was suspended from 26 August 2025 for a month, renewed in September and October, and extended for the fourth time to 31 December 2025 under CPA board resolution 19739 of 27 November, covering Kamalapur ICD as well.[10] On 27 July 2026 the authority published a fresh notice temporarily stopping the four-times rate for imported full container load containers, without stating how long the suspension would last.[11] Anyone calculating exposure must check the notice in force on each day the container sat in the yard.

The October 2025 tariff revision

The Ministry of Shipping revised Chattogram's charges by SRO No 364-Law/2025, dated 14 September 2025, and the new tariff took effect at 12:01 am on 15 October 2025 for vessels berthing after that time.[8] [9] Charges rose by up to 41 per cent, with 23 of 52 categories increasing; truck entry fees rose from Tk 57 to Tk 230 and daily gate passes for C&F and shipping agents from Tk 15 to Tk 115.[8]

The Bangladesh Container Shipping Association challenged the SRO by writ. In October 2025 the High Court Division issued a rule asking why it should not be declared illegal and directed the ministry and the port authority to dispose of the association's representation within 15 days, but granted no stay, so the tariff remains in force.[9] The association argued, among other things, that the statutory notice requirements of the Ports Act 1908 had not been followed.[9]

Mongla

Mongla operates under its own port authority statute and tariff, and the same structure applies: free time after discharge, then storage or wharf rent in slabs, with waivers at the authority's or ministry's discretion. Rates differ from Chattogram, and published schedules are not always current, so obtain the authority's tariff in force for the period in question. Our guide to maritime law in Bangladesh covers the port authority statutes and terminal concessions.

Port rent and line detention run together

The commercial danger is that port rent and carrier detention run at the same time. A container held at Chattogram beyond both free periods attracts storage rent from the port and detention from the line, in different currencies of account and under different rules. A port waiver does not reduce the line's invoice, and a line's free-time extension does not reduce the port's. Negotiate both, separately and in writing.

Disputing excessive demurrage and detention

Defending a demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh owners or lines bring is mostly a documents exercise. The best defences are usually arithmetic and contractual, not equitable: the clock started later, stopped earlier or never ran against this party at all. Arguments that a charge is simply unfair rarely succeed against a clear tariff or charterparty rate.

Defences to vessel demurrage

• Invalid notice of readiness: if the vessel was not an arrived ship or not in fact ready, laytime may not have started when the owner says it did.
• Excepted periods: weather, holidays, strikes, shifting and owner's delays may be excluded under the laytime clauses.
• Owner's fault: time lost through the vessel's own breakdown or failure to discharge at the agreed rate does not count against the charterer.
• Exclusion or cap: as in Dry Bulk Shipping, the charterparty may exclude or condition demurrage.[7]
• Wrong defendant: as in Melimas Shipping, a receiver may not be liable at all.[6]

Defences to container detention

• Miscounted free time: check when the clock started (discharge, gate-out or availability) and stopped (empty return or acceptance), and how the event day is counted.
• Wrong tariff: check that the rate applied was the tariff in force on the relevant date and that any increase was notified as the terms require.
• Carrier-caused delay: days lost to the line's own failure to deliver, issue a delivery order or accept an empty should be excluded.
• Agreed extension: free-time extensions agreed with the line's sales team must be reflected in the invoice, so keep the email.
• Penalty argument: where a detention charge far exceeds any plausible loss, section 74 limits recovery to reasonable compensation not exceeding the stipulated sum, which gives the court room to reduce it.[3]

Disputing port rent

Port rent is disputed administratively, not commercially. The usual tools are a waiver application to the port authority or ministry, an objection that the wrong tariff slab or penal rate was applied, and, where the authority's own delay or a customs hold caused the overstay, a representation supported by the customs record. The 2025 tariff writ shows that a statutory challenge is possible, but without a stay the importer pays first and argues later.[9]

Mitigation and abandoned cargo

Consignees who stop paying and walk away from cargo rarely end their exposure. Uncleared consignments are eventually auctioned by customs, and the port authority reports more than 9,000 TEUs of abandoned auctionable containers occupying yard space.[14] Detention continues to accrue while the line's box is trapped in that process. A consignee that cannot take delivery should tell the line in writing, offer to destuff or abandon formally, and ask the line to mitigate, so that any later claim is measured against a documented record.

Recovery process for a demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh courts will hear

Recovery starts with the contract and the debtor's location, not with the court. A charterer in Dhaka, a receiver with assets at Chattogram and a foreign head charterer with no Bangladeshi presence need three different strategies. The sequence we follow is set out below.

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Admiralty Court jurisdiction

The High Court Division sits as the Admiralty Court under the Admiralty Court Act 2000. Section 3(2) includes claims arising out of any agreement relating to the carriage of goods in a ship or to the use or hire of a ship, and the court in Melimas Shipping held that a demurrage claim falls within clause (h) of that subsection.[1] [6] Section 7 caps the court fee at Tk 1,00,000.[1] Our guide to the Admiralty Court Act Bangladesh covers jurisdiction, procedure and appeal in detail.

Jurisdiction over the defendant

Under section 4(8), a person is liable in an in personam action for a clause (h) claim only on the footing that it ordinarily resides or has a place of business in Bangladesh. In Melimas Shipping, the Singapore head charterer and its agent had no subordinate office in Bangladesh and did not submit, so the demurrage claim against them was dismissed for want of jurisdiction, leaving the owner to sue elsewhere.[6] Before filing against a foreign charterer, establish a jurisdictional link or an asset.

Arrest as security

An action in rem may be available where the person liable was the owner or charterer of a ship when the cause of action arose and the claim fits the routes in section 4.[1] In demurrage cases the debtor is usually a charterer or receiver, so arrest of a ship it owns is the exception rather than the rule. Where it is available, arrest changes the negotiation completely; our guide to vessel arrest and release covers the procedure and security.

Arbitration

Most charterparties refer disputes to arbitration, commonly in London or Singapore. If a party sues in Bangladesh despite an arbitration clause, the other party may apply under section 10 of the Arbitration Act 2001, before filing its written statement, for the matter to be referred to arbitration and the suit stayed.[5] Filing a written statement first risks losing that right. A foreign award against a Bangladeshi charterer is enforced by execution as a decree under section 45.[5] See our guide to foreign arbitral award enforcement in Bangladesh.

Container detention claims against merchants

Lines usually recover detention from Bangladeshi consignees or shippers by setting it off against deposits, refusing further bookings, or issuing a legal notice followed by a money suit. These are in personam contract claims; they can be brought in the ordinary civil courts or, where the amount and subject matter qualify, under the new commercial courts regime. A legal notice setting out the tariff, the free time, the days charged and the bill of lading clause is usually the most efficient first step.

Limitation and time bars

Limitation for a demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh law governs comes from the Limitation Act 1908, not from any maritime statute, because the Admiralty Court Act contains no limitation periods of its own. The answer depends on how the claim is characterised, and on whether the charterparty imposes a shorter contractual bar.

The three-year period

Article 115 of the First Schedule allows three years for compensation for the breach of any contract not otherwise provided for, running from when the contract is broken.[4] Demurrage and detention claims are contract claims, so three years is the usual period. Article 120 provides six years for suits for which no other period is provided.[4] Time for demurrage typically runs from the date it fell due under the charterparty, which may be on completion of discharge or on presentation of the claim, depending on the wording.

Hague Rules one-year bar

The one-year Hague Rules time bar applies to carriers' liability for loss of or damage to goods. It is not a bar to a carrier's or owner's claim against the merchant for detention or demurrage, though cargo interests sometimes raise it by way of counterclaim. Our guide to cargo loss and short delivery claims covers that regime.

Contractual time bars

Many tanker and dry cargo charterparties require demurrage claims to be presented with supporting documents within a fixed period after discharge, failing which the claim is waived. These clauses are strictly applied in London arbitration. For an arbitration seated in Bangladesh, section 55(3) of the Arbitration Act 2001 allows the court to extend a contractual time limit for commencing arbitration where the interest of justice requires, and section 55(1) applies the Limitation Act to arbitrations as to court proceedings.[5] A documents-presentation bar may not be covered by that power, so treat any contractual deadline as fixed.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

Four developments shape practice now. First, the Admiralty Court has produced two significant demurrage judgments in under a year: Melimas Shipping on receiver liability and jurisdiction over foreign charterers, and Dry Bulk Shipping on contractual exclusion of demurrage in a state charterparty.[6] [7] Owners chartering to Bangladeshi state buyers should expect their contracts to be read closely and literally.

Second, port costs rose sharply with the October 2025 Chattogram tariff, and the legality of that tariff remains before the High Court Division.[9] Third, the penal four-times rent has been switched on and off repeatedly, most recently suspended again on 27 July 2026.[11] Fourth, carriers raised detention charges in April 2026 on the back of higher fuel and insurance costs.[12] Together these make overstay at Chattogram more expensive than at any time in recent years, and make every demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh traders face larger by the day.

The regulatory gap also persists. The 2025 shipping agent licensing reforms opened the market to more agents but did not create a mechanism for reviewing carriers' detention tariffs.[13] Disputes over those charges will continue to be resolved under contract, by negotiation, notice and suit, rather than by complaint to a regulator. Importers who want predictability need to negotiate free time and rates in their service contracts or freight terms before shipment.

Demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh mistakes to avoid

The same errors recur on both sides of a demurrage and detention claim Bangladesh parties bring or defend. Each is avoidable with early attention to the documents.

• Confusing the charges: a port rent waiver does not answer a line's detention invoice, and a vessel demurrage claim is not a container charge.
• Suing the receiver for charterparty demurrage: unless the bill of lading clearly imposes the liability, the claim lies against the charterer.[6]
• Suing a foreign party with no Bangladeshi presence: the Admiralty Court may decline in personam jurisdiction, as it did in December 2025.[6]
• Treating detention as liquidated damages: without a demurrage clause, the owner must prove its actual loss.[6]
• Filing a defence before seeking a stay: a party relying on an arbitration clause must apply under section 10 before its written statement.[5]
• Ignoring contractual notice periods: a strong demurrage claim can be lost by presenting it a week late.
• Abandoning cargo without notice: silence lets detention run; written notice frames the mitigation argument.

For freight shortfalls, dead freight and the wider charterparty dispute, see our guide to freight and charterparty claims in Bangladesh. TRW's customs and trade compliance practice advises importers on clearance delays that drive these charges, and our international arbitration practice handles charterparty arbitrations and award enforcement.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between demurrage and detention?

For ships, demurrage is the agreed daily rate for exceeding laytime, while detention is unliquidated damages for delay outside the demurrage regime, which the owner must prove. For containers, detention is the line's charge for keeping its box beyond free time. Port rent is a separate storage charge levied by the port authority.[6]

Is a Bangladeshi receiver liable for charterparty demurrage?

Not merely because the bill of lading incorporates the charterparty. In December 2025 the Admiralty Court applied The Miramar and held that demurrage lay against the head charterer, not the receiver.[6]

Who sets container detention charges in Bangladesh?

Each shipping line sets its own free time and rates in its tariff and bill of lading terms. No published government order fixes them; Maersk and ONE raised them in April 2026.[12]

Do the Shipping Agent Licensing Rules 2025 control agents' charges?

No. As reported, the rules notified on 30 December 2025 deal with licensing: numbers, examinations, processing time and the ports at which a licence is valid.[13]

How much is port rent at Chattogram?

After four free days, standard storage starts at USD 6 a day for a 20-foot container and USD 12 for a 40-foot container, rising to USD 24 and USD 48 by the third week. A four-times penal rate has applied at times since March 2025 and was suspended again in July 2026.[10] [11]

Is the October 2025 Chattogram tariff still in force?

Yes. The High Court Division issued a rule on the container shipping association's writ but granted no stay, so the tariff in effect from 15 October 2025 continues to apply.[9]

Which court hears a demurrage claim?

The Admiralty Court, which is the High Court Division, has jurisdiction over claims arising from agreements for carriage of goods or the use or hire of a ship, including demurrage. An arbitration clause may require the dispute to go to arbitration instead.[1] [6]

What is the limitation period for demurrage and detention claims?

Usually three years from breach under Article 115 of the Limitation Act 1908, subject to any shorter contractual time bar in the charterparty.[4]

Can a court reduce an excessive detention charge?

Section 74 of the Contract Act 1872 limits recovery for a stipulated sum to reasonable compensation not exceeding that sum, which gives the court scope to reduce a charge that operates as a penalty.[3]

Is the local shipping agent personally liable?

Ordinarily not. Under section 230 of the Contract Act 1872, an agent is not personally bound by contracts made for its principal unless it agreed otherwise.[3]