The BOL is short form the Bill of Lading. This is a document which outlines the terms of the agreement between the company which is having goods moved and the company which is moving them. So, if your company hires a Boston airport courier to move your goods from Boston to another country, you will need to have a number of documents accompanying the shipment in order to ensure that there are no difficulties when it comes time for your shipment to move across the borders. One of those documents will be the bill of lading between you and your Boston courier service.
The majority of companies that work in the Boston area are going to require you to have a Bill of Lading accurately filled out before they agree to move your goods. As always, with any business transaction it is going to profit both sides to ensure that there is a very clear and accurate paper trail outlining the details of their transaction, and that is exactly what the BOL accomplishes. By listing the shipping company, the courier company, the applicable dates, the destination and origin points, and the fees for shipping the goods, it ensures that all information is disclosed and documented before anything leaves the warehouse, thereby protecting both you, and the airport courier you have hired to transport your goods.
A BOL is always going to be required when it comes time to make a shipment across international borders, but often on domestic orders as well, for the reasons mentioned above. When moving goods of any kind across borders, there is always a great deal of paperwork to be filed as the governments need to track the value of goods coming into their countries, as well as needing to impose any applicable fees or taxes. They need a bill of lading to verify the origin point of the goods and to help them in their own documentation, as well as for checking that any local laws governing the transportation of cargo are being followed. If you, for some reason, tried to move a shipment with a Boston courier service and did not have a BOL accompanying your shipment, you would stand a very good chance of having your delivery delayed at the border, if it was let through at all. Most border delays when transporting goods has to do with inaccurate or missing documentation, so be sure to discuss all papers, including the BOL, with your transport company.