The document that serves as a contract of carriage and receipt for shipped goods is a bill of lading.
A carrier issues a bill of lading to acknowledge receiving cargo. It records details such as the goods’ description, quantity, marks, and destination. It also provides evidence of the carriage agreement and, in many cases, functions as a document of title.
The term is historically associated with sea transport, but bills of lading are now used for multiple forms of carriage. The word “lading” comes from an old term meaning loading. Bills of lading became especially important as medieval international trade created demand for documents that could represent goods in transit.
A bill of lading is not the same as an invoice, which states the sale price, or a packing list, which itemizes package contents. An air waybill is used for air freight and generally does not confer the same transferable title function.