Port DA
A Port Disbursement Account (DA) is the statement of all costs incurred during a vessel's port call, prepared by the ship agent and presented to the shipowner, charterer, or operator for payment. The DA is the financial settlement document for the port call.
A typical DA includes: port and harbour dues, pilotage, towage, mooring/unmooring, berth occupancy, light dues, agency fees, husbandry services (crew change, medical, repairs, provisions), bunker barging, fresh water, garbage disposal, customs and quarantine charges, port security charges, and the agent's service fee.
The workflow has two stages: a Proforma DA (PDA) is issued before the call as an estimate, requiring the principal to remit funds in advance; an FDA (Final DA) is issued after the call with actuals, reconciled against the PDA. Disbursement accounts are the single biggest source of revenue leakage in ship agency — modern platforms auto-reconcile supplier invoices against expected lines to close DAs in days rather than weeks.
The DA is where port-call money leaks. Dozens of third-party charges — pilotage, towage, dues, agency fees — each have to be estimated, funded, incurred and reconciled. It is the single biggest source of revenue leakage in ship agency, which is why fast, accurate DA reconciliation is worth real money.
estimate · funds in advance
costs incurred
actuals · reconciled
What is the difference between a PDA and an FDA?
A Proforma DA (PDA) is the pre-call estimate that the principal funds in advance; the Final DA (FDA) is the post-call statement of actual costs, reconciled against the PDA.
What costs go into a port disbursement account?
Port and harbour dues, pilotage, towage, mooring, berth charges, agency fees, husbandry (crew change, provisions, repairs), water and garbage, security and customs charges — every cost of the call.