A House Bill of Lading (HBL) is issued by the NVOCC/Freight Forwarder to the actual customer.

A Master Bill of Lading (MBL) is issued by the Shipping Line (Carrier) to the NVOCC/Freight Forwarder and otherwise known as a Straight Bill of Lading is issued by the Shipping Line (Carrier) direct to the importer or record.

House Bill of Lading will be an EXACT replica of the Master Bill of Lading issued by the actual Shipping line in respect of cargo details. The only difference will be that the shipper, consignee and notify party details will be different in the HBL and MBL.