Section
1. INTRODUCTION
This Directory has been compiled on the basis of the work within the ECE Working Party on Facilitation of
International Trade Procedures (WP.4), which has adopted agreed sets
of standard data elements for various areas of application. Volume I of the Directory
constitute International Standard ISO 7372. Volume II includes the User Code List and
Volume III a Compendium of Trade Facilitation Recommendations.
1.1. Scope
The standard data elements included in this Directory are intended to facilitate
interchange of data in international trade.
These standard data elements can be used with any method for data interchange on paper
documents as well as with other means of data communication: they can be selected for
transmission one by one, or used within a particular system of interchange rules, e.g. the
United Nations rules for Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce and
Transport (UN/EDIFACT) , developed within the United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe (UN/ECE) and published as International Standard ISO 9735.
1.2.1. International Standards
The following standards contain provisions which, through reference in this text,
constitute provisions of this International Standard. All standards are subject to revision,
and parties to agreements based on this International Standard are encouraged to investigate the possibility of applying the most recent editions of the standards indicated below. Members of IEC and ISO maintain registers of currently valid International Standards
(Available from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
1, rue de Varembé, CH-1211 Geneva 20)
- ISO 216
- Writing paper and certain classes of printed matter - Trimmed sizes -
A and B series
- ISO 639: 1988,
- Code for the representation of names of languages Bilingual edition
- ISO 1000:1992
- SI units and recommendations for the use of their multiples and of
certain other units
- ISO 2382-1:1984
- Data processing - Vocabulary
- ISO 2784: 1974
- Continuous forms used for information processing - Sizes and sprocket
feed holes
- ISO 2955: 1983
- Information processing - Representation of SI and other units for use
in systems with limited character sets
- ISO 3166: 1993
- Codes for the representation of names of countries
- ISO 3535: 1977
- Forms design sheet and layout chart
- ISO 4217: 1990
- Codes for the representation of currencies and funds
- ISO 6346: 1984
- Freight containers - Coding, identification and marking
- ISO 6422: 1985
- Layout Key for trade documents
- ISO 8601: 1988
- Data elements and interchange formats - information interchange -
representation of dates and times
- ISO 8859-1: 1987
- Information processing - 8 bit single-byte coded graphic character sets-
Part 1: Latin alphabet No. 1
- ISO 8859-2: 1987
- Information processing - 8 bit single-byte coded graphic character sets-
Part 2: Latin alphabet No. 2
- ISO/IEC 8859-5: 1988
- Information processing - 8 bit single-byte coded graphic character sets-
Part 5: Latin/Cyrillic alphabet
- ISO 8859-7: 1987
- Information processing - 8 bit single-byte coded graphic character sets-
Part 7: Latin/Greek alphabet
1.2.2. UN/ECE Recommendations
(Available from the UN/ECE Trade Division
Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10)
- Recommendation No. 1
- United Nations Layout Key for Trade Documents
- Recommendation No. 3
- ISO Country Code - Code for Representation of Names of Countries
- Recommendation No. 4
- National Trade Facilitation Organs
- Recommendation No. 5
- Abbreviations of INCOTERMS - Alphabetic Code for Incoterms 1953
- Recommendation No. 6
- Aligned Invoice Layout Key for International Trade
- Recommendation No. 7
- Numerical Representations of Dates, Time and Periods of Time
- Recommendation No. 8
- Unique Identification Code Methodology - UNIC
- Recommendation No. 9
- Alphabetic Code for the Representation of Currencies
- Recommendation No. 10
- Codes for Ships' Names
- Recommendation No. 11
- Documentary Aspects of the International Transport of Dangerous
Goods
- Recommendation No. 12
- Measures to Facilitate Maritime Transport Documents Procedures
- Recommendation No. 13
- Facilitation of Legal Problems in Import Clearance Procedures
- Recommendation No. 14
- Authentication of Trade Documents by means other than signature
- Recommendation No. 15
- Simpler Shipping Marks
- Recommendation No. 16
- Code for Ports and other Locations (LOCODE)
- Recommendation No. 17
- Abbreviations for Terms of Payment - PAYTERMS
- Recommendation No. 18
- Facilitation Measures Related to International Trade Procedures
- Recommendation No. 19
- Code for Modes of Transport
- Recommendation No. 20
- Codes for Units of Measurement
- Recommendation No. 21
- Codes for Types of Cargo, Packages and Packaging Materials
- Recommendation No. 22
- Layout Key for Standard Consignment Instructions
- Recommendation No. 23
- Freight Cost Code - FCC. Harmonization of the description of freight
costs and other charges
For the purpose of this International Standard, the following definitions apply.
- alphabetic character set
- A character set that contains letters and may contain control
characters, and special characters, but not digits (Source: ISO 2382/4).
- alphanumeric character set
- A character set that contains both letters and digits and
may contain control characters, and special characters(Source: ISO 2382/4).
- blank(Character)
- A character that represents an empty position in a graphic character
string (Source: ISO 2382/4)
- character
- A member of a set of elements that is used for the representation,
organization, or control of data (Source: ISO 2382/4).
- character set
- A finite set of different characters that is complete for a given purpose
(Source: ISO 2382/4).
- code
- A collection of rules that maps the data elements of one set on to the elements of
a second set(Source: ISO 2382/4).
- data
- A representation of facts, concepts or instructions in a formalized manner suitable
for communication, interpretation or processing by human beings or by automatic means
(Source: ISO 2382/1).
- data element
- A unit of data that in a certain context, is considered indivisible (Source:
ISO 2382/4).
- A unit of data for which the identification, description and value
representation have been specified (source: ISO 9735)
- data element tag
- A unique identifier for a data element in a data elements directory
(Source: ISO 9735).
- data element value
- The specific entry of an identified data element represented as
specified in a data elements directory (Source: ISO 9735).
- data element value length
- The number of characters in a data element value (Source:
ECE).
- digit (Numeric character)
- A graphic character that represents a non-negative integer
(Source: ISO 2382/4).
- letter
- A graphic character that, when appearing alone or combined with others, is
primarily used to represent a sound element of a spoken language (Source: ISO 2382/4).
- numeric character set
- A character set that contains digits and may contain control
characters and special characters, but not letters (Source: ISO 2382/4).
- special character
- A graphic character that is not a letter, a digit, or blank character,
and usually not an ideogram (Source: ISO 2382/4).
1.4. Abbreviations
The following acronyms or abbreviations are used for making reference to documents, conventions and interchange standards:
| AWB | - | IATA Air Waybill |
| CIM | - | Rail Consignment Note (CIM Convention) |
| CIMP | - | IATA Cargo Interchange Message Procedures Manual (CARGO-IMP manual) |
| CMR | - | Road Consignment Note (CMR Convention) |
| EC | - | European Communities |
| EFTA | - | European Free Trade Association |
| IATA | - | International Air Transport Association |
| ICC | - | Standard forms adopted within the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) |
| INV | - | United Nations Layout Key for Aligned Invoices |
| MAR | - | IMO Model forms and ICS Standard Bill of Lading
|
| ODETTE | - | Organisation de Données Exchangées par Télé Transmission en Europe |
| SAD | - | Single Administrative Document (EC and EFTA) |
| S.W.I.F.T | - | Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication |
| UNLK | - | United Nations Layout Key |
| UNSM | - | United Nations Standard Message (UN/EDIFACT) |
1.5. Character sets
The characters in ISO 8859 shall be used for the representation of the data elements in
this Directory.
1.6. Explanation of the contents of the Directory
In addition to this introduction, the Directory contains the following sections:
Section 2 provides rules and procedures for maintenance.
Section 3 contains alphabetic and numeric indexes, listing data element names and numeric tags only. The alphabetic index is expanded to include synonyms when applicable.
Section 4 is the main part of the Directory and contains the complete list of standard data elements presented as described in 1.6 and 1.7 hereafter. In principle, each entry in this part should be self-contained and consultation of other parts of the Directory or outside sources should be required only exceptionally;
Each identified data element has been given:
- a) a data element name;
- b) a description of the concept to explain the agreed meaning and to
aid in determining the content of the information (data value) to be
provided with the data element;
- c) a specification of the character representation of the data value,
with indication of space (in number of characters) available and
location in aligned forms, and of field lengths where such have
been established in particular interchange protocols;
and, when applicable or required:
- 1) notes providing additional information;
- 2) references to other parts of the Directory, or to other sources, as
- appropriate;
- 3) synonyms of data element names where such are widely used.
The values of a data element can either be expressed in plain language or in code, and it is recognized that there will be a need to refer to either of these versions, and sometimes to both.
1.8. Categories of data elements, allocation of identifiers (tags)
Four-digit numbers are used as data element identifiers (tags) in the Directory. Taking
into account the desirability of grouping the data elements into broad categories in a way
that will assist users of the Directory, and also the need to reserve substantial capacity for
national and company use, numbers have been assigned as follows, within the framework
of a sub-division into 9 general categories, as specified in Section 4.
Even tag numbers are used to designate the plain language representation of the data item
(which includes numerical values other than codes), whereas the following odd number is
reserved for the coded representation, when applicable, of the same data element, e.g.
4460 Payment means; 4461 Payment means, coded.
When a coded version for a data element is available, this is reflected in Section 3
"Indexes" by showing the last digit of the uneven tag number after the corresponding
even tag number separated by an oblique stroke (slash), e.g. 4460/1 Payment means.
The purpose of the tags is to provide language independent identifiers for the data
elements; the only significance attributed to the numbers is their designation of broad
categories and the indication of plain language and coded version.
1.9. Data element issue numbering
Data elements used in UNSMs are identified by an "E" in front of the issue number. These data elements are also included in the United Nations Trade Data Interchange Directory (UNTDID), Part 5, Chapter 6, EDED.
Each data element has been given an issue number:
- a) for service data elements (the "0xxx" series) which are defined in ISO 9735 (the EDIFACT syntax), version control is reflected in data element 0002 in segment UNB and is based on changes to ISO 9735.
- b) for data elements used in UNSMs (identified by "E") version/releas control is reflected in data elements 0052 and 0054 and is based on change to UN/EDIFACT directory version/release procedures.
- c) for other data elements the year of introduction into UNTDED or of
amendment, e.g. 87).
1.10. Availability of the UNTDED and ISO 7372
The UNTDED (Vol. I) is issued once a year and can be obtained from the ECE/TRADE Division, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10 ,Fax: +41 22 9170037; telex: 41 29 62.
In addition to the paper version, UNTDED is available on PC diskettes which can be ordered from the United Nations Sales Section, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10 .
ISO 7372 is available from ISO Central Secretariat, 1, Rue de Varemb , CH-1211 Geneva 20.
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