Shipping from India to USA: Sea & Air Freight Forwarder, Transit Time, Cost Factors
Airlift USA ships full containers (FCL), LCL and air freight from India to the USA, with Airlift offices at both ends: 14 Airlift group branches in India and Airlift USA offices in New Jersey and Los Angeles. By sea, plan on 31–60 days port to port (30–39 days Mundra to New York and 32–40 days Nhava Sheva to New York on Airlift’s own shipments); by air, 3–5 days airport to airport.
Get a quote for India to USA freight
India to USA at a Glance
Airlift USA ships full containers (FCL), less-than-container loads (LCL) and air freight from India to the United States. Ocean freight takes about 31–60 days port to port for most port pairs. On Airlift’s own shipments (P10–P90, sailings July 2025 to June 2026), Mundra to New York took 30–39 days, Nhava Sheva to New York 32–40 days, Nhava Sheva to Savannah 36–45 days, Nhava Sheva to Los Angeles 37–56 days and Chennai to Los Angeles 37–54 days. Air freight takes 3–5 days airport to airport on direct services from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad.
Both ends of the India–USA lane are Airlift offices, not agents. In India, 14 Airlift group branches, including Navi Mumbai near Nhava Sheva, Gandhidham for Mundra and Kandla, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Coimbatore and Kolkata, handle pickup, container stuffing and export clearance. In the USA, the New Jersey and Los Angeles offices of AIRLIFT (U.S.A.), INC., an FMC-licensed NVOCC (FMC No. 016162), file the ISF, coordinate the customs entry through licensed customs brokers and arrange delivery. Based on Airlift’s bookings over the last 12 months, the recurring cargo is granite and stone slabs, engineered quartz, cast iron and electrical insulators.
- Mundra to New York: transit range and sailings
- Nhava Sheva to New York: transit range and sailings
- Nhava Sheva to Newark: transit range and sailings
- Nhava Sheva to Los Angeles: transit range and sailings
- Chennai to Los Angeles: transit range and sailings
- Freight forwarder in Navi Mumbai, near Nhava Sheva (Airlift’s own office)
- Freight forwarder in Gandhidham for Mundra and Kandla (Airlift’s own office)
- Airlift USA in New Jersey: imports through the Port of New York and New Jersey
- Airlift USA in Los Angeles: imports through Los Angeles and Long Beach
- All Airlift offices
Quick Facts: India USA
Main Ports, by Airlift Booking Volume
Top origin ports in India:
Mundra, Nhava Sheva, Ennore, Kolkata, Chennai, Pipavav, Kattupalli and Tuticorin
Top destination ports in the USA:
New York, Norfolk, Savannah, Houston, Los Angeles, Charleston, Newark and Oakland
Transit Times by Port Pair (Airlift Shipments, P10–P90)
From Nhava Sheva
| Destination port | Transit planning range |
|---|---|
| New York | 32–40 days |
| Los Angeles | 37–56 days |
| Long Beach | 39–56 days |
| Norfolk | 36–43 days |
| Oakland | 42–63 days |
| Houston | 40–57 days |
| Savannah | 36–45 days |
| Charleston | 35–47 days |
| Newark | 30–34 days |
| Baltimore | 35–64 days |
| Port Everglades | 43–78 days |
From Mundra
| Destination port | Transit planning range |
|---|---|
| New York | 30–39 days |
| Los Angeles | 40–61 days |
| Norfolk | 31–40 days |
| Oakland | 47–70 days |
| Long Beach | 41–60 days |
| Savannah | 35–45 days |
| Houston | 44–66 days |
| Jacksonville | 36–60 days |
| Charleston | 38–47 days |
| Seattle | 44–65 days |
| Port Everglades | 43–78 days |
| Newark | 35–42 days |
| Baltimore | 40–55 days |
| Tacoma | 42–56 days |
| Boston | 40–74 days |
| Miami | 36–69 days |
From Chennai
| Destination port | Transit planning range |
|---|---|
| New York | 41–63 days |
| Los Angeles | 37–54 days |
| Long Beach | 40–57 days |
| Norfolk | 40–64 days |
| Oakland | 44–63 days |
| Houston | 44–73 days |
| Charleston | 46–73 days |
| Savannah | 54–70 days |
| Seattle | 47–63 days |
From Ennore
From Kolkata
| Destination port | Transit planning range |
|---|---|
| Norfolk | 42–75 days |
| New York | 43–64 days |
| Savannah | 49–72 days |
| Houston | 54–88 days |
| Los Angeles | 38–58 days |
| Jacksonville | 47–64 days |
| Oakland | 45–73 days |
| Charleston | 56–68 days |
| Long Beach | 44–67 days |
From Pipavav
From Tuticorin
| Destination port | Transit planning range |
|---|---|
| New York | 35–47 days |
| Savannah | 42–58 days |
| Norfolk | 41–58 days |
| Charleston | 45–58 days |
From Kattupalli
| Destination port | Transit planning range |
|---|---|
| New York | 40–70 days |
| Los Angeles | 29–52 days |
| Jacksonville | 44–82 days |
| Long Beach | 39–70 days |
| Seattle | 55–74 days |
From Cochin
| Destination port | Transit planning range |
|---|---|
| Port Everglades | 68–88 days |
| New York | 35–51 days |
| Savannah | 42–55 days |
| Baltimore | 38–53 days |
| Norfolk | 41–56 days |
Each range runs from the 10th to the 90th percentile (P10–P90) of Airlift’s own shipments on that port pair, port to port, for sailings that departed between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026. These are planning ranges, not guaranteed transit times. Confirm the current routing and sailing schedule when you request a quote.
These ranges are port to port only. The glossary explains what a quoted transit time includes and which origin and destination legs it leaves out.
Guides for each port pair
Pick your load port and destination. Each page has the port codes, live sailings, the planning range (where the table above lists one) and a quote form with the route already filled in.
- From Chennai: Charleston · Houston · Long Beach · Los Angeles · New York · Norfolk · Oakland · Savannah · Seattle
- From Cochin: Baltimore · Houston · New York · Norfolk · Port Everglades · Savannah
- From Ennore: Baltimore · Boston · Charleston · Houston · Jacksonville · Miami · New York · Newark · Norfolk · Savannah · Seattle · Tacoma
- From Haldia: Houston · New York · Norfolk
- From Hazira: Newark · Norfolk
- From Kattupalli: Charleston · Jacksonville · Long Beach · Los Angeles · New York · Seattle
- From Kolkata: Charleston · Houston · Jacksonville · Long Beach · Los Angeles · New York · Norfolk · Oakland · Savannah
- From Mangalore: New York · Norfolk · Tacoma
- From Mundra: Baltimore · Boston · Charleston · Houston · Jacksonville · Long Beach · Los Angeles · Miami · New York · Newark · Norfolk · Oakland · Port Everglades · Savannah · Seattle · Tacoma
- From Nhava Sheva: Baltimore · Charleston · Houston · Long Beach · Los Angeles · New York · Newark · Norfolk · Oakland · Port Everglades · Savannah
- From Pipavav: Baltimore · Houston · Los Angeles · Newark · Oakland · Savannah
- From Tuticorin: Charleston · New York · Norfolk · Savannah
Shipping from India to the USA?
Send your cargo details and ready date, and we’ll quote your shipment.Air Freight from India to the USA
When cargo can’t spend 31–60 days at sea — samples, fashion drops, spare parts, pharmaceuticals, high-value electronics — ship it by air. Airlift books the flight with its airline partners, and the same Airlift offices that handle your ocean freight handle the air shipment, so documents, customs and tracking follow one process. Airlift’s own branches in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Kolkata are close to the airports the cargo leaves from.
Airport to airport takes 3–5 days on direct services, longer on connecting flights. Door to door, including US customs clearance and final-mile trucking, usually takes 5–10 days. Main gateways: Delhi (DEL), Mumbai (BOM), Bengaluru (BLR), Chennai (MAA) and Hyderabad (HYD) to New York and Newark (JFK, EWR), Chicago (ORD), Los Angeles (LAX), Dallas (DFW), Atlanta (ATL) and, for Florida, Miami (MIA). Shippers in Gujarat and East India can also hand cargo over at Ahmedabad (AMD) or Kolkata (CCU); ask which routing reaches your US airport sooner.
You pay on chargeable weight: the greater of the actual weight and the volumetric weight (length × width × height in centimeters ÷ 6,000). Dense cargo pays by the kilo; light, bulky cargo pays by volume. That’s why cartons of apparel often cost more per kilo than machine parts.
How an air shipment from India moves
- Booking: the airline and routing are chosen against your cargo-ready date, the weights and dimensions and any special handling, and the flight is confirmed before pickup.
- Pickup and export clearance: Airlift’s India office collects the cargo and checks it against the packing list; the shipping bill is filed on ICEGATE and Indian Customs issues the Let Export Order at the air cargo complex.
- Screening and acceptance: the cargo is security-screened and accepted by the airline before its cut-off.
- Advance data to US Customs: before the cargo is loaded, the inbound air carrier or an eligible filer such as the forwarder sends Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS) data to CBP. The air manifest follows no later than four hours before arrival.
- US customs entry: a licensed customs broker files the entry, which can be lodged before the flight lands; Airlift coordinates the file and the duty estimate so the cargo is not waiting on paperwork.
- Recovery and delivery: once CBP and the airline release the shipment, it is collected from the airline’s import warehouse and trucked to your door or distribution center.
Which air service to ask for
- Airport-to-airport: you or your supplier deliver to the Indian airport and your US broker and trucker take over at the US gateway. The usual choice for pallets and larger shipments.
- Consolidated air freight: smaller, time-critical shipments travel on their own house air waybill under one master air waybill, which lowers the per-kilo cost when a full pallet isn’t justified.
- Door-to-door: pickup from the factory, export clearance, the flight, the US customs entry through a licensed broker and delivery to your warehouse, under one booking.
- Temperature-controlled: pharmaceuticals and other temperature-sensitive cargo are booked on the airline’s cool-chain handling from the start, so the right equipment is reserved at each transfer point.
What affects the cost of air freight from India
- Chargeable weight: the greater of actual and volumetric weight, so packing density changes the bill. Vacuum-packing garments or shipping goods knocked down can bring a shipment back to its actual weight.
- Service level: a direct flight costs more than a routing that connects through a Gulf or Asian hub; consolidated air freight costs less per kilo but waits for the consolidation to close.
- Origin and destination: trucking from an inland factory to the departure airport, the US arrival airport and the delivery distance from it.
- Season: space is booked out well ahead in the October–December run-up to the US holidays, and airlines adjust fuel and security surcharges through the year.
- Special handling: temperature control and oversized pieces take specialist acceptance and cost more to move.
Documents and compliance for air shipments from India
- In India: your IEC, a commercial invoice and packing list that agree with each other, the shipping bill filed on ICEGATE, and a certificate of origin where your buyer or the goods require one.
- Air waybill: the airline issues a master air waybill; on a consolidation the forwarder issues a house air waybill for your shipment. Unlike an ocean bill of lading it is not negotiable and does not transfer title.
- No ISF: the Importer Security Filing applies only to cargo arriving by vessel. For air, the advance security data is ACAS, filed before loading by the inbound air carrier or another eligible filer, usually the forwarder; there is no separate ISF-style filing for the importer to make.
- Dangerous goods: Airlift does not book dangerous goods by air. Lithium batteries, including batteries packed with or inside equipment, are dangerous goods under the IATA rules, so check the product before asking for an air quote.
- US agency rules still apply by air: food needs FDA prior notice before it arrives, and drugs, cosmetics and other regulated goods have their own FDA requirements. Tell us what the goods are before booking.
- Duties are the same by air or sea: the HTS rate, the Section 301 duty on Indian goods (10% since July 24, 2026, with exemptions) and any Section 232 duty apply to air shipments as they do to containers. The Harbor Maintenance Fee applies only to ocean cargo.
Air or sea from India?
- Air suits samples, apparel drops, spare parts, pharmaceuticals and high-value goods, and any deadline that cannot move: 3–5 days airport to airport, against 31–60 days port to port by sea.
- Sea suits heavy or bulky cargo such as stone, cast iron and furniture, where a full container or LCL gives the lowest cost per kilo.
- Many shippers fly the urgent part of an order and ship the rest. For a few cartons, compare an air quote with an LCL quote on landed cost, including destination charges and duty.
- International air freight forwarding with Airlift USA
- Air freight documents: air waybill, ACAS and dangerous goods rules
- Chargeable weight and CBM calculator
- Glossary: Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS)
- Glossary: air waybill (AWB)
- Glossary: FDA prior notice
- Mumbai airport code (BOM)
- Delhi airport code (DEL)
- Chennai airport code (MAA)
- Bengaluru airport code (BLR)
- Ahmedabad airport code (AMD)
- Estimate US duties on Indian goods with the tariff simulator
What Affects the Cost of Shipping from India to the USA
There is no single price for shipping from India to the USA, and this page doesn’t publish one. Every quote is built from the factors below, so use them to brief your quote request and to check that two quotes cover the same thing. Online rate search may not list a published rate for your port pair; a blank result doesn’t mean we can’t move the shipment.
FCL or LCL
A full container (FCL) is priced per container, however much you load into it. LCL is charged by weight or measure, per cubic meter or per 1,000 kg, whichever is greater, with origin and destination CFS handling as separate lines. Below about 13 m³, LCL is usually cheaper; between about 13 and 20 m³, ask for both; above 20 m³, a container of your own usually wins. Work out your cargo’s volume in cubic meters (CBM) before you ask, with the calculator linked below.
Container type: 20′, 40′ or 40′ high cube
The container sets both the space and the weight you can load. Light, bulky cargo such as textiles or household goods fills the space first and suits a 40′ or 40′ high cube. Dense cargo such as granite, quartz or cast iron reaches the weight limit first, and US road weight rules often make a 20′ the practical choice even when the cargo would fit in a 40′. Open-top or flat-rack equipment for oversized cargo is quoted separately.
Origin port in India and destination coast in the USA
On Airlift’s bookings, Mundra and Nhava Sheva (JNPT) carry most India–USA containers, followed by Ennore, Kolkata and Chennai; Pipavav, Kattupalli, Tuticorin, Cochin, Mangalore and Hazira also appear in the transit tables above. Trucking or railing the container from your factory to the load port is part of the cost, so the nearest port is not always the cheapest overall. In the USA, East Coast ports (New York, Newark, Norfolk, Savannah, Charleston), Houston on the Gulf and West Coast ports (Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle, Tacoma) are reached by different services, which price differently and have different transit ranges.
Season and peak surcharges
Peak-season surcharges and general rate increases (GRIs) typically run from July or August until the pre-holiday peak in October and early November. Carriers can also add or change surcharges, such as fuel adjustments or charges tied to a routing change, at short notice, so a quote holds only for the validity dates it states.
Accessorials and drayage
The ocean freight covers port to port. Origin charges (pickup, container stuffing, export clearance and terminal handling) and destination charges (terminal handling, chassis, drayage — trucking from the port or rail ramp to your door — and detention or demurrage if the container is kept past its free time) are separate lines. Ask for them to be quoted up front, together with the contract or spot basis: recurring volumes can go on carrier contracts with protected space, while one-off shipments move at spot rates.
US duties and customs costs
Duties are not part of the freight, but they are part of what the shipment costs you. They depend on your product’s HTS code and country of origin. As of September 2026, most goods of Indian origin pay the normal duty for their HTS line plus a 10% Section 301 duty in force since July 24, 2026, with exemptions that include tea, pepper, turmeric and many finished medicines; goods under Section 232, such as steel, pay their own rates instead. The IEEPA tariffs on India are no longer collected on entries from February 24, 2026, and the Section 122 surcharge has expired. Customs fees, the ISF, the customs entry filed through a licensed customs broker, and your customs bond add to the landed cost.
Cargo insurance
A carrier’s liability for loss or damage is limited by law and by the bill of lading terms, and it is not insurance. Cargo insurance is optional and is priced on the insured value and the type of goods; say in your request if you want it quoted.
- FCL vs LCL: the volume decision table
- CBM and chargeable weight calculator
- US tariffs on India in 2026: rates and changes
- Estimate US duties on Indian goods with the tariff simulator
- Cargo insurance: what it covers
- Check ocean freight rates (not every route is listed)
Questions about your cargo?
Tell us what you ship and how it is packed, and a specialist will contact you.What Ships on This Lane
Top four by container volume:
- Granite and stone slabs
- Engineered (artificial) quartz stone
- Cast iron products
- Electrical insulators
Other cargo we handle:
Textiles, household goods, automotive components and industrial machinery.
Customs and Documents
Export from India
- Airlift’s India offices handle export clearance, filing through ICEGATE, Indian Customs’ electronic data interchange (EDI) system.
- Commercial invoice
- Packing list
- Shipping bill (the export declaration)
Import into the USA
- US imports follow US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regulations. Airlift USA coordinates the filings through licensed customs brokers.
- ISF (Importer Security Filing), filed before the cargo is loaded
- Customs entry, filed under a customs bond
- Duty payment, based on your product’s HTS code
Service Options
- Full container load (FCL): 20′, 40′ and 40′ high cube
- Less than container load (LCL): on select sailings (details below)
- Special equipment, such as open top: on request
- Door delivery in the USA: on request
LCL Shipping from India to the USA
Less than container load (LCL) is for orders that don’t fill a 20′ container. You deliver cartons or pallets to a container freight station (CFS) serving Nhava Sheva (JNPT), Mundra or Chennai. There they are consolidated with other shippers’ cargo under Airlift’s house bill of lading, then unpacked at a CFS near New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles or Long Beach for delivery. Airlift’s own Indian branches handle the origin side and its own US offices the destination.
- How it’s charged: by weight or measure, per cubic meter or per 1,000 kg, whichever is greater. Origin and destination CFS handling, documents, the ISF, the customs entry and delivery each appear as a separate line on an LCL quote.
- When a full container wins: below about 13 m³, LCL is usually cheaper; between about 13 and 20 m³, ask for both; above 20 m³, a container of your own usually wins on cost, handling and transit. Dense cargo such as granite and quartz can tip toward FCL sooner, because LCL is charged on weight when weight is greater than volume.
- Transit: the ocean leg matches FCL on the same service — 32–40 days Nhava Sheva to New York and 37–54 days Chennai to Los Angeles port to port, from the table above. Add time for the CFS receiving cut-off at origin and for unpacking and release at destination.
- Cut-offs and documents: the CFS receiving cut-off comes before the container cut-off for the same vessel. The ISF is filed against the house bill 24 hours before loading. Filing the customs entry before arrival lets the cargo leave the destination CFS without storage charges.
Choosing a Freight Forwarder for India to USA
On this lane, a freight forwarder does more than book a container. It arranges pickup and container loading at your supplier in India, files the shipping bill with Indian Customs, secures vessel space, files the ISF before loading, coordinates the US customs entry and duty payment, and arranges trucking from the port to your warehouse.
Airlift USA Inc. has been in business since 1999 and is an FMC-licensed NVOCC (FMC No. 016162) and a C-TPAT certified partner. The offices in India and in New Jersey and Los Angeles are Airlift’s own, so one team is accountable from pickup to delivery, and you can see every milestone in the Airlift platform.
What to check before you choose a forwarder:
- An FMC license and NVOCC bond, so the forwarder can issue its own bills of lading.
- Its own staff at both ends of the lane, not an agent at one end.
- Its ISF filing record: late or inaccurate filings can draw CBP liquidated damages of up to $5,000 per filing.
- Customs handled through licensed brokers, with duty estimates before you book.
- Live tracking and document access, not emailed status updates.
How to Ship from India to the USA, Step by Step
- Request a quote: send pickup and delivery locations, cargo-ready date, commodity, and weight and dimensions or the container you need. Check which charges and services the quote includes.
- Confirm the booking and cargo-ready date: Airlift secures vessel space and equipment and sends a booking confirmation with the document and gate-in cut-offs.
- Pickup and loading: the container goes to your factory or a container freight station, where it is loaded, sealed and taken to the origin port.
- Export customs in India: the shipping bill is filed through ICEGATE with the commercial invoice and packing list, and customs issues the Let Export Order.
- ISF and bill of lading: Airlift files the ISF at least 24 hours before loading and issues the bill of lading once the vessel sails.
- In transit: track the container by container number or bill of lading, with ETA updates as the vessel moves.
- US customs entry: the entry is filed through Airlift’s licensed broker network, duties are paid under your bond, and any CBP exam is handled.
- Delivery: a truck (drayage) brings the container from the port or rail ramp to your door, and the empty is returned within free time.
Why Ship with Airlift
- Airlift’s own offices at both ends: 14 branches in India and offices in New Jersey and Los Angeles, not agents
- In business since 1999; FMC-licensed NVOCC (FMC No. 016162), filing the ISF on the containers it carries
- Published P10–P90 transit ranges for 73 port pairs from 11 Indian load ports, drawn from Airlift’s own shipments
- Recurring experience with granite and stone, engineered quartz, cast iron and electrical insulators
- Export and import documents handled by in-house teams and licensed customs brokers, with shipment tracking on Airlift’s digital platform
Check our licenses before you ship
Each license and membership below links to the public register or directory that lists it, so you can verify who you are dealing with before you send cargo details.
- FMC OTI license 016162 — Licensed and bonded NVOCC and ocean freight forwarder, d/b/a Airlift Container Line. Look it up on the FMC OTI list →
- FMCSA property broker, USDOT 2355713 / MC-798584 — US drayage and trucking arranged as a non-asset broker through contracted motor carriers. FMCSA SAFER company snapshot →
- WCA World member since 2019 — Los Angeles head office and New Jersey branch, both with Gold Medallion financial protection. WCA member profile →
- C-TPAT certified — Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, U.S. Customs and Border Protection. About C-TPAT →
- NCBFAA regular member — National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America. NCBFAA →
- IATA CargoLink listed — IATA-accredited air cargo agent, listed in the CargoLink directory. CargoLink listing →
What to Include in Your India–USA Quote Request
With these details, the team can check the route, equipment and services in one pass. If something isn’t decided yet, say so in your notes.
- Pickup location in India and delivery location in the USA, plus preferred ports if you have them.
- What you’re shipping: commodity, package count, gross weight and packed dimensions, or container size and quantity.
- Cargo-ready date and the date you need it to arrive or be delivered.
- Which services to include: pickup, origin handling, freight, customs coordination, final delivery.
- Stone or metals: the weight of each packed unit. Machinery: lifting points and any oversized dimensions. Textiles: carton dimensions and delivery deadlines.
The more of this you send, the more complete the quote, and the easier it is to compare with others.
Comparing two full-container quotes? Use the ocean freight quote-scope worksheet to check what each one covers.
Get a quote for India to USA freight
Your route is already in the notes; edit it if you need to. Then add what you are shipping, when it is ready, pickup and delivery locations, and the services you want quoted.
Prefer WhatsApp? Message us on WhatsApp+91 93513 74451
Tools and guides for this lane
Shipping from a country without a lane guide? See every origin, by region, on shipping to the USA by country of origin.
U.S. import duty on the top goods shipped on this lane
Calculated total duty for the highest-value tariff lines on this lane, from our tariff engine and U.S. Census import values. Each page breaks the duty into its components, shows its history by entry date and works through the landed cost.
- Smartphones
- Medicaments primarily affecting the eyes
- Switching and routing apparatus
- Peeled farmed shrimps and prawns
- Towels
- Wind turbine blades
- Gear boxes and speed changers for wind turbines
- Women's dresses
- Tetracycline antibiotics
- Cotton bed sheets
- Frozen prepared shrimps and prawns
- Mounted brake linings
161 more in this group. Rates are our tariff engine's total for a commercial entry today. Open a page for the duty lines behind a rate and how it changed by entry date, browse all import duty pages, or price your own shipment.
Frequently asked questions
Ocean freight from India to the USA takes about 31–60 days port to port for most port pairs. On Airlift’s own shipments (P10–P90, sailings July 2025 to June 2026), Mundra to New York took 30–39 days, Nhava Sheva to New York 32–40 days, Nhava Sheva to Los Angeles 37–56 days and Chennai to Los Angeles 37–54 days; Kolkata, the South Indian ports and Houston or Florida routings run longer. Air freight takes 3–5 days airport to airport on direct services. These are planning ranges, not guaranteed schedules.
Ocean freight from India to the USA usually takes 31–60 days port to port, depending on the port pair. On Airlift’s own shipments (P10–P90, port to port, sailings from July 2025 to June 2026), Mundra to New York took 30–39 days, Nhava Sheva to New York 32–40 days, Nhava Sheva to Savannah 36–45 days, Nhava Sheva to Houston 40–57 days, Nhava Sheva to Los Angeles 37–56 days and Chennai to Los Angeles 37–54 days. Add time for pickup and export clearance in India and for customs release and delivery in the USA.
On Airlift’s own India–USA bookings, Mundra and Nhava Sheva (JNPT) carry about two thirds of the containers, followed by Ennore, Kolkata and Chennai. West and North India usually ship through Mundra, Nhava Sheva or Pipavav; South India through Ennore, Chennai, Kattupalli or Tuticorin; East India through Kolkata. From the west coast ports the fastest pairs are to the US East Coast: 30–39 days Mundra to New York and 30–34 days Nhava Sheva to Newark, port to port.
On Airlift’s India–USA bookings, the main US discharge ports are New York, Norfolk, Savannah, Houston, Los Angeles, Charleston, Newark and Oakland. From India’s west coast, the East Coast is quickest: 30–39 days Mundra to New York, 31–40 days Mundra to Norfolk and 30–34 days Nhava Sheva to Newark, port to port on Airlift’s own shipments. To the West Coast, Nhava Sheva to Los Angeles takes 37–56 days and Chennai to Los Angeles 37–54 days; Nhava Sheva to Houston takes 40–57 days.
You book a full container (FCL): 20′, 40′ or 40′ high cube, with open top and other special equipment on request. The empty container is delivered to your factory or a container freight station, loaded and sealed, and taken to the load port. After export clearance in India and the ISF in the USA, it sails to the US port, where the customs entry is filed through a licensed customs broker and a truck delivers it to your door. Dense cargo such as granite, quartz and cast iron usually goes in 20′ containers because of US road weight limits.
Both. From India to the USA, Airlift ships full containers (20′, 40′ and 40′ high cube) and LCL on select sailings. LCL cargo is delivered to a container freight station serving Nhava Sheva, Mundra or Chennai, consolidated under Airlift’s house bill of lading and unpacked near New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles or Long Beach. Below about 13 cubic meters LCL is usually cheaper; above about 20 cubic meters a container of your own usually wins. The ocean leg takes as long as FCL on the same service.
For a container from India to the USA: request a quote and confirm the booking and cargo-ready date; the cargo is picked up and loaded in India; the shipping bill is filed with Indian Customs, which issues the Let Export Order; the ISF is filed at least 24 hours before loading; the vessel sails (31–60 days port to port for most pairs) and you track the container; the US customs entry is filed through a licensed customs broker; and a truck delivers the cargo to your door.
Air freight from India to the USA takes 3–5 days airport to airport on direct services, longer on connections; door to door, including US customs clearance, usually 5–10 days. Cargo leaves Delhi (DEL), Mumbai (BOM), Bengaluru (BLR), Chennai (MAA) and Hyderabad (HYD) for New York (JFK), Newark (EWR), Chicago (ORD), Los Angeles (LAX), Dallas (DFW) and Atlanta (ATL). You pay on chargeable weight: the greater of actual weight and volumetric weight (L × W × H in cm ÷ 6,000).
Use the quote form on this page and say the shipment is for air. Include the pickup city, the US delivery address or airport, the number of cartons or pallets with their dimensions and gross weight, the commodity and its HTS code if you know it, and the date the cargo will be ready. Airlift quotes air freight per shipment, with the freight, surcharges, handling, customs entry and delivery on separate lines; the online rate search covers ocean freight only.
In India: an Importer-Exporter Code (IEC), a commercial invoice, a packing list and a shipping bill filed through ICEGATE, Indian Customs’ electronic system. In the US: an ISF (Importer Security Filing) at least 24 hours before the cargo is loaded, which Airlift files as the NVOCC, plus a customs entry under a customs bond, filed through a licensed customs broker. Our India to USA freight forwarder page has the full export checklist.
On the Indian side: an IEC from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, a commercial invoice and packing list, a shipping bill filed on ICEGATE, a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) if you export without paying IGST, a certificate of origin where your buyer or the goods require one, and ISPM 15-marked wood packaging. On the US side: an ISF before loading and a customs entry under a bond, plus any FDA or other agency requirements for your goods. The checklist on our India to USA freight forwarder page covers each item.
Yes. Airlift has 14 group branches in India, its own offices rather than agents or partner listings: Mumbai, Navi Mumbai (near Nhava Sheva), Gandhidham (for Mundra and Kandla), Ahmedabad, New Delhi (two offices), Jaipur (two offices), Jodhpur, Kolkata, Chennai, Coimbatore, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. They handle pickup, container stuffing and Indian export clearance. At the US end, Airlift USA’s offices in New Jersey and Los Angeles file the ISF, coordinate the customs entry through licensed customs brokers and arrange delivery.
Yes. On a door-to-door shipment from India to the USA, Airlift’s India office arranges pickup at the factory and Indian export clearance, Airlift books the ocean or air freight and, for ocean cargo, files the ISF as the NVOCC, a licensed customs broker files the US entry, and Airlift arranges delivery to your door. US trucking is arranged through contracted carriers: Airlift USA is a non-asset, FMCSA-licensed property broker. Air freight door to door usually takes 5–10 days.
US duty on goods from India depends on the product’s HTS code, not on the freight. As of September 2026, most goods of Indian origin pay the normal duty for their HTS line plus a 10% Section 301 duty in force since July 24, 2026, with exemptions that include tea, pepper, turmeric and many finished medicines; Section 232 goods such as steel pay their own rates instead. The IEEPA tariffs are no longer collected on entries from February 24, 2026. Duty is the same whether the goods arrive by air or sea.
There is no single price for shipping from India to the USA, and Airlift does not publish one. The cost depends on FCL or LCL, the container type, the Indian load port and the US coast, the season and peak surcharges, origin charges (pickup, stuffing, export clearance), destination charges (terminal handling, drayage, detention or demurrage), US duties and whether you insure the cargo. Ask for the ocean freight, the destination charges and the included services to be quoted together so two quotes compare on the same basis.
For most commercial cargo from India to the USA, ocean FCL gives the lowest cost per unit. LCL from Nhava Sheva, Mundra or Chennai is usually cheaper below about 13 cubic meters. Air freight costs the most but takes 3–5 days airport to airport instead of 31–60 days port to port by sea. For heavy granite, stone and cast iron, US road weight limits often make a 20′ container the better choice than a 40′.
Use the quote form on this page for an India to USA quote. Include the pickup city in India and the delivery address in the USA, the cargo-ready date, the commodity, and the weight and dimensions or the container you need (20′, 40′ or 40′ high cube). Airlift’s India offices and its New Jersey and Los Angeles offices quote the shipment end to end. The online rate search covers ocean freight only and may not show a published rate for your route or date.