• Instructions for properly completing a Shipper’s Declaration are found in the IATA DGR Section 8.1.6.

The “Shipper’s Declaration for Dangerous Goods” form must be completed strictly according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) Section 8.1.6, “Detailed Instructions for Completing the Declaration Form.” The shipper is required to enter all details on the Shipper’s Declaration, except that the “Air waybill number,” “Airport of Departure,” and “Airport of Destination,” may be entered or amended by the shipper, the shipper’s agent, or by the operator. Any other details can be entered only by the shipper, or persons/organizations employed by the shipper to act on the shipper’s behalf.

The Shipper’s Declaration for Dangerous Goods must contain the following information:

• Shipper: Enter the full name and address of the shipper.
• Consignee: Enter the full name and address of the consignee.
• Air Waybill Number: Enter the appropriate Air Waybill number for the shipment.
• Page … of … Pages: Enter the appropriate page number and total number of pages.
• Aircraft Limitations: Delete the box that does not apply to indicate whether the shipment is packed to comply with the limitations for passenger and cargo aircraft or cargo aircraft only. Refer to Section 8.1.6.5 for complete details of this section.
• Airport of Departure: Enter the full name of the airport or city of departure. This information is optional and may be left blank.
• Airport of Destination: Enter the full name of the airport or city of destination. This information is optional and may be left blank.
• Shipment Type: Indicate if the shipment is non-radioactive or radioactive. If Radioactive, Radioactive materials cannot be included on the same declaration form as other dangerous goods except for Carbon dioxide, solid (dry ice) if used as a refrigerant.
• Nature and Quantity of Dangerous Goods: Refer to complete details in Section 8.1.6.9 and 8.1.6.10. Enter the identification of each dangerous good in the following order:
  • UN number
  • Proper shipping name (see IATA DGR Section 8.1.3 for complete details)
  • Class/division, subsidiary class/division listed in parenthesis
  • Packing group
  • Quantity and type of packaging
  • Packing instruction number
  • Authorization
• Additional Handling Information: Enter any special handling information relevant to the shipment. Note that there are details required for the handling of or samples of organic peroxides and self-reactive substances, chemical oxygen generators, infectious substances and controlled substances, fireworks classification references, and viscous flammable liquids.
• Certification Statement: The Shipper’s Declaration must include a certification statement and the air transport declaration statement:
  
  “I hereby declare that the contents of this consignment are fully and accurately described above by the proper shipping name and are classified, packaged, marked and labelled/placarded and are in all respects in proper condition for transport according to applicable international and national governmental regulations. “I declare that all of the applicable air transport requirements have been met.”
  
• Name and Title of Signatory: Enter the name and title of the person signing the declaration. The title is optional.
• Date: Enter the date when the Shipper’s Declaration was signed. The date format is not mandated; however, YYYY-MM-DD is preferred.
• Signature: The declaration must be signed by the shipper.

In addition, other information may be required by the national authority depending on the mode of transport. For example, this additional information could include the flash point or flash point range in degrees Celsius.

Copies and recordkeeping

If using paper declarations, the shipper must provide the operator with two signed copies of the Shipper’s Declaration. The operator will keep one copy and the other copy will be sent with the shipment. Carbon copies are acceptable. Only the original operator is required to keep the copy; if a shipment is transhipped, a photocopy is acceptable.

If the declaration is via electronic data processing (EDP) or electronic data interchange (EDI), the data must be able to immediately be produced as a hard copy paper document, including all of the pertinent details.

The shipper is required to keep the Shipper’s Declaration for at least three months. If the declarations are kept electronically, the shipper must be able to print them.