Generally speaking, you would need a commercial invoice and packing list. We will produce a bill of lading. However, depending on the goods and the nature of your cargo, additional documents may be required. Contact us and we will guide you.

A document signed by a carrier (the party contracted to carry the goods) or the carrier’s representative and issued to a consignor (the shipper/exporter of goods) that evidences the receipt of goods for shipment to a specified designation and person.

Simply stated, logistics professionals ensure that the right product, in the right quantity and in the right condition, is delivered to the right customer at the right place, at the right time and at the right cost. In other words, logistics is the process chain management of transport flow, and the storage of goods and services from its origin to its consumption. At Thomas Smith, we can provide purchasing, transportation, warehousing and inventory control under logistics.

Thomas Smith offers the full range of transport methods and services, including road, airfreight, deep-sea container, warehousing, packing, documentation and, of course, marine insurance.

Yes. Thomas Smith offers warehousing both for the local market and for goods in transit to Malta. Our free-zone bonded warehouses can manage and clear your goods within the EU and re-export them for final distribution to various consignees. Click here for more information on the warehousing services we offer.

Yes, we have trained staff who can handle hazardous goods and are certified to verify and export your hazardous goods.

Please click here for more information on how to get in touch.

Hazardous goods are classified in various classes and specific documentation is required for each hazardous class. Contact us and our trained staff will guide you.

The concept of dimensional weight (also known as volumetric weight) has been adopted worldwide by the transportation industry as a means of establishing a minimum charge for the cubic space a shipment occupies while in transit. Carriers use the greater of the actual weight or dimensional weight to calculate shipping charges, based on the following formula: (Length x Width x Height) / (Dimensional Factor). The “Dimensional Factor” varies based on metric versus imperial measurement, and on whether the shipment is domestic versus international.

Liability is in accordance with the trading conditions of the carrier. It is highly recommended that you insure your cargo to protect your interests against limitations specified in the carrier’s trading conditions and our standard trading conditions. Thomas Smith is able to offer a very favourable all-risks insurance cover for your cargo. Please contact us should you wish to avail yourself of this offer.

Thomas Smith is a fully licensed customs broker with a direct electronic connection with local customs and can prepare all the necessary customs formalities on your behalf.

Documentation requirements vary significantly from one country to another and they are also dependant on the nature of your commodity. However, nearly all shipments will require at least a commercial invoice, a packing list and a document of transport (such as a bill of lading, airway bill or CMR), which varies depending on the mode of transport being used.

In this case, you should immediately contact our office and inform our Operations Manager, who may be reached by telephone on + 356 2205 8110. To make a claim, you need to submit a written notice of claim within 15 days from delivery providing verifiable documentation and quantification of the damage/loss supporting your written claim.

The Standard Trading conditions of Thomas Smith may be viewed by following this link.

Yes, contact us during office hours on +356 2205 8210, or after office hours on +356 9949 2599. With the exception of the oil-taking terminal in Marsaxlokk, which operates 365 days a year, the main local ports and terminals do not perform cargo operations on the following days:
Good Friday – 08:00 for 24 hours
1st May – 08:00 for 24 hours
15th August – 08:00 for 24 hours
24th December – 12:00 to 26th December 08:00
31st December – 16:00 to 2nd January 08:00

Exemptions are possible on request, so we suggest you get in touch with us if you require a vessel to enter port on these dates.

Do not hesitate to contact us on either of the above contact numbers should you have any queries or require additional information.

The average time needed for a crew to be transferred from vessel to airport and vice versa is:
Vessel alongside berth – 1 hour from airport to vessel
Vessel at Valletta roads – 2 hours from airport to vessel outside Valletta Grand Harbour

Yes, visa processing requires two working days. Click here for the list of nationals requiring a visa (as at September 2012). Please contact us for final verification.

Malta has only one international airport, the Malta International Airport (Airport Code MLA). Distances are outlined below:
Airport to Valetta port – 9.5km
Airport to Hotel (centrally located) – 10.5km
Airport to Malta Freeport (Marsaxlokk) – 12.3km

Yes. Thomas Smith can quote and make arrangements for bunker fuels. Bunker samples are also received from ship and dispatched as per instructions.

Thomas Smith can provide independent surveyors to assist in bunker deliveries with laboratory support readily available.

Thomas Smith has its own warehousing as well as access to quayside storage facilities both at Valletta and the Malta Freeport.

Yes. Maintenance, repairs and engineering works can be arranged by Thomas Smith. These services can be supplied onboard or at the contractors’ workshop (in this case, the item can be taken ashore). If required, riding squads can be arranged to execute and finish repairs whilst the vessel continues its scheduled voyage.

Yes, life-raft servicing and inspections can be arranged. Spare, certified life rafts can also be provided for on-board use during repair time.

Click here for the company’s standard trading conditions.

All types of conventional and bulk cargoes can be handled by Thomas Smith. Services include booking appropriate berth, craneage, stevedoring, and local transportation.

Typical services provided outside port include crew changes; medical assistance and disembarkations, bunker supplies and freshwater supply, provisions and stores, navigational charts and publications, delivery of spare parts and other equipment shipped to Malta by air/sea/truck, propeller & hull inspection and cleaning, diving services, and cash-to-master deliveries.

If the service you require is not listed above, please contact us.

Thomas Smith provides port agency services in all the ports of Malta, as well as in Tunisia, Algeria & Libya. Port pro formas and quotations can be supplied on request.