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The CMR consignment note: what to know before international road transport

CMR is both the consignment note and the rules for international road freight. What it contains, what the liability limit means – and what about e-CMR?

LVT Transport · 12 October 2026 · 2 min read

TruckingCustoms and documentsEurope

Anyone shipping goods by truck across a border in Europe will meet CMR – both as a document and as a set of rules.

What is CMR?

CMR stands for Convention relative au contrat de transport international de marchandises par route. It is an international convention from 1956 on contracts for the carriage of goods by road.

The convention applies when goods are carried by road for reward between two countries, at least one of which is a party to CMR. Almost every European country is – as are several countries outside Europe.

The consignment note

The CMR note documents the contract. It is normally issued in three originals:

  1. for the sender,
  2. travelling with the goods to the consignee,
  3. for the carrier.

It typically includes:

  • sender, consignee and carrier,
  • place and date of collection and delivery,
  • description of the goods, number of packages, packaging and gross weight,
  • any instructions, e.g. on dangerous goods or temperature,
  • signatures at collection and delivery.

The consignee's signature and any remarks on the note matter. Shortages or damage must be noted at delivery – that is the basis for a later claim.

The liability limit – often overlooked

Under CMR, the carrier's liability for lost or damaged goods is limited to 8.33 SDR per kg of gross weight (SDR is the IMF's Special Drawing Right, a basket of currencies). For light, high-value goods the compensation can therefore be far below the value of the goods.

If you ship valuable goods, consider cargo insurance covering the full value.

e-CMR

An additional protocol from 2008 allows an electronic consignment note (e-CMR) between countries that have signed it. More and more carriers document collection and delivery digitally with signature and photo.

In short

  • CMR applies to international road carriage for reward.
  • The note must be filled in correctly and signed at collection and delivery.
  • Note any damage at delivery.
  • Liability is limited per kg – insure valuable goods.

See also CMR in the glossary.

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