STANDARDS REFERENCE
Container Inspection Criteria and the Evidence Standards That Support Them
The inspection criteria are the industry's. The evidence practice is yours — and it is not the same thing as the criteria.
For inspectors and quality leads: which instruments govern what gets checked (IICL-6, UCIRC, CIC, cargo-worthy labels, CSC), and what those instruments leave to photo capture, retention, and audit practice. Exact photo requirements still follow the applicable contract and counterparty process.
Related: requirements vs vendor controls · inspection types · glossary
What Are Container Inspection Criteria?
Container inspection criteria are industry-recognised instruments that define what gets checked — damage thresholds, interchange condition, or safety examination scope — for a given container class or handover. Common references include IICL-6, UCIRC, CIC, cargo-worthy / trade-worthy condition labels, and CSC examination under the International Convention for Safe Containers. They govern inspection scope for their use case. They do not define how photo evidence must be captured, named, stored, retained, or distributed — and they do not name a software vendor.
Keep identity separate too: the container number format is defined by ISO 6346 (owner code, equipment category identifier, serial number, check digit). Validation of that number is an identity control, not a substitute for IICL or UCIRC damage tables.
What the Criteria Cover — and What They Leave Open
Confusing criteria with evidence practice is how teams either over-claim a platform as a “standard” or under-invest in the record that makes a correct inspection defensible later.
Typically on the criteria / convention side
Which components to inspect and which damage may require repair (see the published manual or procedure)
Interchange vs on-hire / off-hire scope where the instrument says so
Safety plating and the owner's duty to arrange periodic examination under CSC
Pest contamination inspection as integrated into UCIRC Revision 3
Left to evidence practice / contract
How photos are captured, linked to a container number, and filed
Where records are stored and how long they are retained
How capture context (timestamp, device-recorded location when available) is kept
How distribution and later access are logged
Informal channels (personal camera rolls, chat threads, shared folders) fail as evidence practice because association and retrieval break under time pressure — not because IICL-6 or UCIRC “require WhatsApp.” For the requirements-vs-controls framing, see digital documentation standards in modern container depots.
Major Instruments and What Each One Governs
Summaries below stay inside cited sources. For tolerances and repair tables, use the published manual or the procedure named in your contract — not this page.
IICL · Lessor
IICL-6
Institute of International Container Lessors — Guide for Container Equipment Inspection, 6th Edition
Provides criteria for deciding whether dry-container damage requires repair; catalogue description also notes harmonisation of inspection criteria and processes
Widely referenced for on-hire and off-hire of lessor-owned dry containers — confirm the edition your lessor names
Detailed tolerances and component tables: consult the paid IICL manual; do not invent them from secondary summaries
BIC · ICS · WSC
UCIRC (Revision 3)
Unified Container Inspection and Repair Criteria for steel general-purpose containers
Jointly prepared by BIC, ICS, and WSC for use at container interchanges
Covers physical damage and structural deformation criteria in the published document
Revision 3 integrates inspection for and removal of visible pest contamination into inspection and dispatch (including depots and other interchange points)
COA · Lessors
CIC (Common Interchange Criteria)
Launched by a group of major container leasing companies as an alternative to IICL-5; endorsed by the Container Owners Association
Harmonised with IICL-6 with effect from 1 August 2016 for interchange / off-hire activity described in the COA announcement
Thereafter CIC follows IICL inspection criteria updates — treat live tolerances as IICL-track unless a current CIC bulletin says otherwise
Export readiness
Cargo-worthy / trade-worthy labels
Commercial condition labels (often CCW / CWO / trade-worthy) describing suitability for ocean cargo vs restricted use
Not a single published global instrument on this page's source ledger — thresholds usually follow IICL, carrier, or shipper procedures
International moves still sit under CSC plating and examination duties for covered containers
Confirm the definition your counterparty uses before treating “cargo-worthy” as a universal photo checklist
IMO · CSC
CSC examination
International Convention for Safe Containers — testing, inspection, approval, and maintenance of covered freight containers
Safety-approved containers are plated; subsequent maintenance and periodic examination are the owner's responsibility
Industry practice uses Periodic Examination Scheme (PES) and Approved Continuous Examination Programme (ACEP) arrangements — confirm intervals and marking rules in the Convention text and national implementing rules
CSC does not, on the IMO overview cited here, prescribe a named photo-documentation product
ISO · Identity
ISO 6346 container number
Defines the freight-container identification system and a means of verifying accuracy of its use
BIC describes the number as owner code, equipment category identifier, six-digit serial, and check digit
The check digit can help identify incorrect numbers from data entry or OCR — it does not replace inspection criteria
Free tool: container number check-digit calculator
Keeping Evidence Practice Distinct from the Criteria
Four operator steps. No instrument below is replaced by a photo app.
01
Map to applicable criteria
02
Validate ISO 6346 identity
03
Capture contract-relevant photos
04
Retain, retrieve, log access
STEPS 01–02
Name the instrument, then lock identity
Write the criteria edition or counterparty procedure into the work order. Associate every photo with a validated container number before the record is trusted. See container inspection types and documentation for which events usually call which regimes.
STEPS 03–04
Photograph what the regime and contract need
Capture views that support the check you performed. Store them so they remain findable by container number; keep access and distribution logs where your controls provide them. Practical audit process: how to maintain an audit trail for container inspections.
When the Physical Check Passes but the Record Does Not
Criteria can be followed correctly in the yard and still fail later if the photo record cannot be retrieved or attributed.
| Situation | Weak evidence practice | Stronger evidence practice |
|---|---|---|
| IICL-6 off-hire condition challenge | Photos on a personal device or chat thread, no reliable container link | Timestamped photos filed under the validated container number |
| UCIRC pest / interchange check | Inspection done; no retrievable photo tied to the dispatch event | Capture retained centrally under the same container and event |
| Cargo-worthy export assertion | Verbal or form-only claim with scattered inbox photos | Photo set matching the counterparty's readiness checklist, linked to the unit |
| CSC examination / ACEP review | Examination assumed; no searchable per-container trail | Examination work and plate context retrievable by container number |
| Counterparty asks “was this sent?” | Email recollection only | Distribution or guest access logged where those controls exist |
Sources Cited on This Page
ISO 6346:2022 — freight-container coding, identification and marking (abstract)
IICL — Guide for Container Equipment Inspection, 6th Edition (catalogue-level citation; manual is paid)
ICS — UCIRC Revision 3 (jointly BIC, ICS, WSC)
COA — CIC / IICL-6 harmonisation announcement (1 July 2016)
Frequently Asked Questions
What are container inspection criteria? ▾
Container inspection criteria are industry instruments that define what gets checked during an inspection — for example IICL-6 for dry-container damage that may require repair, UCIRC for steel general-purpose containers at interchange (including pest contamination inspection in Revision 3), CIC as a historical lessor interchange set now harmonised with IICL updates, cargo-worthy condition labels used for export readiness, and CSC examination under the International Convention for Safe Containers. Each governs inspection scope for its use case; none is a photo-documentation software standard.
Do inspection criteria mandate a specific photo documentation platform? ▾
No. IICL, BIC, ICS, WSC, COA, and IMO publish or administer criteria and conventions — not vendor software. Photo sets, retention, and distribution expectations still follow the applicable contract and counterparty process. A documentation platform can supply capture, linking, and audit controls; it does not replace or invent the criteria.
What is the difference between IICL-6, UCIRC, and CIC? ▾
IICL-6 is the Institute of International Container Lessors' sixth-edition Guide for Container Equipment Inspection, providing criteria for deciding whether dry-container damage requires repair. UCIRC is jointly prepared by BIC, ICS, and WSC for steel general-purpose containers at interchange; Revision 3 integrates inspection for visible pest contamination. CIC (Common Interchange Criteria) was launched by a group of major lessors and endorsed by the Container Owners Association, then harmonised with IICL-6 with effect from 1 August 2016, after which CIC follows IICL inspection criteria updates.
Is photo documentation required for CSC periodic examination? ▾
The International Convention for Safe Containers governs testing, inspection, approval, and maintenance of covered freight containers, and owners must arrange periodic examination. The Convention overview does not mandate a named photo set or software product. In practice, many operators keep container-linked photos of examination work and of the CSC plate so the record is retrievable — that is evidence practice, not a CSC software requirement.
How should photo evidence stay distinct from inspection criteria? ▾
Criteria answer what to check and which damage or condition thresholds apply. Evidence practice answers how photos are linked to a validated container number, stored, retained, accessed, and logged. Mixing the two creates false certainty — for example treating a vendor feature list as if it were IICL-6 or CSC.
What happens if we cannot produce photo documentation after an IICL-6 or UCIRC inspection? ▾
The physical inspection may still have been performed correctly, but later disputes, claims, or audits are harder to close without a retrievable, container-linked record. Exact consequences follow the contract and counterparty process — there is no single universal industry rule for photo sets or retention.
Use the Criteria for the Check — Build Evidence Practice Separately
Name the instrument your contract requires. Validate the container number. Keep photos findable. Do not treat a vendor feature list as IICL-6, UCIRC, or CSC. When you need a photo-evidence layer that implements those controls, ConPDS Checker is one option — it does not replace the criteria.