Insight · Shipping modes · Vietnam

Ro-Ro Shipping to and from Vietnam: A Practical Guide

Ro-Ro shipping moves cargo that rolls: trucks, cranes, machinery on wheels or tracks, and heavy static pieces placed on a roll trailer. This guide covers what qualifies, which Vietnamese ports handle it, how it compares with flat rack and breakbulk, and the paperwork for vehicles and machinery.

Ask if your unit can go Ro-Ro

Written by our operations team from Ro-Ro jobs through Ho Chi Minh City and Hai Phong. · Jump to the comparison table

Short answer first: if your unit can drive, be towed, or sit on a roll trailer, Ro-Ro shipping is usually the safest way to move it by sea. Nothing is lifted at the berth, so the biggest single risk of heavy cargo, the crane lift, disappears. The trade-off is fewer sailings and fewer ports than container shipping.

What is Ro-Ro shipping?

Ro-Ro stands for roll-on/roll-off. The vessel has a stern or quarter ramp and several internal decks, a bit like a floating car park. Cargo is driven or towed up the ramp, parked on a deck and lashed to the deck fittings.

Car carriers (PCC/PCTC vessels) are the most common Ro-Ro ships on Asian routes. Their higher decks are for cars; the main deck and the hoistable decks take trucks, buses and construction machinery. Deck height and ramp capacity decide what fits, so every unit is checked against the vessel before booking.

What cargo can go by Ro-Ro shipping?

Ro-Ro cargo falls into two groups: units that move under their own power, and static cargo that is placed on a roll trailer (often called a Mafi) and towed on board by a terminal tractor.

A static unit on a roll trailer stays on that trailer from the load port to the discharge port. That is why Ro-Ro shipping suits long, heavy or fragile pieces: they are secured once and not lifted again until the terminal yard.

Ro-Ro shipping vs flat rack vs breakbulk

Most heavy units can travel at least two ways. The table shows how we compare them on an enquiry.

For pieces that cannot roll and are too heavy for a rack, see our guide what is breakbulk cargo. For a 40′ flat rack loaded with excavators, the rack is often cheaper on short Asian routes because sailings are frequent; on longer routes or for units above rack payload, Ro-Ro shipping usually wins.

Ports for Ro-Ro shipping in Vietnam

Ro-Ro and car carrier calls in Vietnam concentrate on two gateways. Which terminal a sailing uses depends on the line and the rotation, so we confirm it at booking.

• Ho Chi Minh City area: roll trailers and Ro-Ro units move through the city terminals and the Cai Mep–Thi Vai cluster. Our crew has lashed static cargo on Mafi trailers at SPCT for Ro-Ro export.
• Hai Phong: the northern gateway for imported trucks and machinery for sites around Hai Phong, Hai Duong, Bac Ninh and Hanoi.

Terminal by terminal notes, UN/LOCODEs and gate rules are in our Vietnam ports guide. If the unit cannot be driven on the road after discharge, it goes onto one of our lowbeds; see heavy haulage in Vietnam for permits and trailer limits.

Documents and customs for Ro-Ro cargo in Vietnam

The paperwork depends on whether the unit is a vehicle, machinery, or project equipment entering temporarily. These are the points that cause delays most often.

Send the year of manufacture and serial number of every used unit before booking. If a unit is over the age limit, it is far cheaper to find out before it sails than after it reaches the port.

The rules for export are simpler: an export declaration, commercial documents and, where a preferential duty applies at destination, a certificate of origin. Our export from Vietnam guide covers the steps.

What drives the cost of Ro-Ro shipping?

Ro-Ro freight is usually charged per cubic metre or per freight ton (W/M), based on the unit’s measured length, width and height. Four things move the price most:

1. Size of the footprint. Ro-Ro lines sell deck area. A long truck with a low load still pays for its length.
2. Height. Units that need a high deck have fewer slots available and cost more.
3. Static or running. Static cargo needs a roll trailer, terminal tractor moves and a lashing plan, which add port charges at both ends.
4. Port to door legs. Driving a truck off the port is cheap; a dismantled crane or a transformer needs a lowbed, a route survey and possibly a road permit.

Measure the unit yourself rather than using catalogue figures. Lines re-measure at the terminal, and the difference is billed.

Ro-Ro shipping jobs we have handled

Recent Ro-Ro work through our desk, with the routes and dates from our job files:

• 20 Scania trucks, Singapore → Hai Phong (January 2024): discharge and release in the north.
• Amusement ride system, Ho Chi Minh City → Melbourne (December 2023): too large for any container, trucked to the terminal on a multi-axle trailer.
• Concrete pump trucks (2023): driven on board and lashed on the vessel’s deck.
• 61 t industrial roll, SPCT → Shanghai: trucked under an overweight permit, placed on a Mafi trailer and lashed with chains and timber chocks.

We book Ro-Ro with K Line, NYK and MOL for trucks, construction machinery and rolling units across Asia and Australia.

How we handle Ro-Ro shipping in Vietnam

For an agent, the hard part of Ro-Ro is not the ocean leg; it is everything between the ramp and the site. In Vietnam we run that part from one desk:

• Booking with the Ro-Ro line, including the measured dimensions and the vessel check.
• Customs by our own licensed customs agent, including temporary import and used machinery checks.
• Lashing of static cargo on roll trailers by our crew, with our own lashing certificate.
• Trucking on our own 4-axle and 6-axle lowbeds for units that cannot drive on public roads.
• Updates with photos at discharge, loading and delivery, sent to you, not to your customer.

For heavy lift and breakbulk options on the same shipment, see breakbulk, heavy lift and Ro-Ro in Vietnam.

FAQ: Ro-Ro shipping to and from Vietnam

Next: plan your Ro-Ro shipment

Last updated: October 2026 · By Tony Tuan, CEO, Project Shipping