Detention & Demurrage Costs (2026): Rates, FMC Rules & How to Avoid Them

What Demurrage, Detention & Per Diem Actually Are

The three charges are billed by three different parties for three different things -- and the industry uses the names inconsistently. Anchor the definitions:

On a real import dray invoice all three can stack. A 7-day overrun at LA/LB on a 40-foot dry container in 2026 commonly looks like: 5 days demurrage at the terminal ($1,000-$1,500), 3 days detention from the line ($300-$600), and 7 days chassis per diem ($245-$420) -- roughly $1,545 to $2,520 of pure penalty fees on top of the base dray rate.

For a primer on how dray invoices stack base rate, fuel, chassis, and pier pass charges, see our companion guide on port drayage costs.

2026 Detention Rates by Major Carrier

Ocean carriers publish detention tariffs in tiers -- the longer you hold the box, the higher the daily rate. The numbers below are typical published rates for a 40-foot dry container at major US ports in early 2026. Reefer rates are roughly 2-3x these figures; 20-foot containers are roughly 75% of these figures.

Note that most carriers raised tariffs January 1, 2026 -- Maersk specifically increased Newark dry container rates by $20/day and reefer rates by $40/day, with similar adjustments at Miami, Port Everglades, and Philadelphia. Always pull the carriers current published tariff for your specific port and equipment type before quoting a number to your finance team.

Demurrage Rates by US Port (2026)

Marine terminal demurrage is set by the terminal operator, not the carrier -- so the same Maersk container at LA/LB and Savannah will face different demurrage tariffs even though the detention from Maersk is identical. Below are typical 2026 demurrage tier ranges for a 40-foot dry container.

Tier 1 typically covers the first 4-5 days past free; Tier 2 covers the next 5-7 days; Tier 3 is anything beyond. Several terminals also offer a fourth, deep-escalation tier after day 21 with rates above $1,500/day designed to force pickup. To estimate full landed dray cost including these scenarios, use our demurrage & detention calculator or the broader drayage cost calculator.

Free Time: How It Actually Counts

More importers blow their free time over a misunderstanding of how the clock starts and stops than over true operational delay. Three rules:

• Free time is calendar days at most US terminals. Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays count. A vessel that discharges on Wednesday with 4 free days exits free time at end-of-day Sunday. A Friday discharge with 3 free days exits free time end-of-day Monday -- you have one weekday to actually move it.
• Free time on the carrier side is separate from terminal free time. Detention free time starts when the container leaves the gate, not when the vessel arrives. A long terminal dwell that uses up demurrage free time does not also use up detention free time.
• Last free day (LFD) is the phrase that matters. Always pull the LFD from the terminals system or the dispatch screen -- not from the SOC arrival message. Schedule pickup at least 24 hours before LFD, never on LFD itself, since one missed appointment then puts the box into demurrage.

Several services (eModal, TIDEWORKS, Voyage Control) publish LFD via API so a TMS or 3PL can trigger automated alerts 48 hours out. The single highest-ROI investment for an importer with consistent D&D leakage is a tracking system that issues that 48-hour warning automatically.

The FMC Final Rule: Your Dispute Rights in 2026

The Federal Maritime Commissions Final Rule on Demurrage and Detention Billing Practices (46 CFR Part 541) took effect May 28, 2024. In September 2025 the D.C. Circuit set aside Section 541.4 (which had limited who could be invoiced), but the rest of the rule remains fully in force in 2026. The compliance requirements are the basis of most successful disputes:

Common winning dispute grounds in 2026 include:

• Constructive impossibility: No empty return location was open or accepting your equipment. Document with carrier dispatch screenshots.
• No appointment available: You attempted to book within free time and the terminal had no slots. Save the booking-attempt screenshots.
• Carrier or terminal delay: Vessel discharged late, terminal closed for labor action, or container was missing on the yard map. The day count should reset.
• Invoice non-compliance: Late issuance or missing data elements per 46 CFR 541.6 and 541.7.

For high-volume importers, a quarterly D&D audit recovering even 15-25% of paid charges via dispute is common -- and entirely defensible under the current rule.

How to Avoid & Reduce D&D Charges

The seven tactics below, applied together, cut D&D spend 40-70% for most mid-market importers. They are listed in order of leverage:

Worked Example: A $3,400 Overrun

Walk through a realistic 2026 scenario for a single 40-foot dry import container at LA/Long Beach with 4 days of demurrage free time and 4 days of detention free time, picked up on day 11 after vessel discharge:

Compare this to a clean 4-day pickup: $0 demurrage, $0 detention overrun, $250 chassis pool, total controllable cost $250. The 7-day overrun multiplied controllable cost by roughly 12x.

Now apply the tactics above. With LFD tracking and a pre-pull to a transload yard on day 4, total cost would be: $325 base dray + $150 pre-pull + $135 yard storage + $250 chassis = $860. Versus $3,400 unmitigated. That delta -- about $2,500 per overrun -- is what disciplined D&D management produces, repeated dozens or hundreds of times per year for a typical mid-market importer.

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