Look down the freight section of almost any air freight quote and, alongside AFR and FSC, you'll find a line labelled SSC — usually a small per-kilogram figure that barely registers next to the base rate. It's easy to skip past, but it isn't optional and it isn't a carrier add-on invented to pad the invoice. SSC recovers the cost of security screening that regulators require before any cargo is allowed onto a commercial aircraft, and it appears on air quotes from every carrier, on every lane, for the same reason.
What is SSC on an air freight quote?
SSC (Security Surcharge) is a per-chargeable-kilogram charge that recovers the cost of mandatory cargo security screening before it's loaded onto an aircraft. Airlines and ground handlers are required by aviation security regulations to screen cargo — by X-ray, explosive trace detection, physical inspection, or an approved alternative — before it clears for loading, and SSC funds that screening infrastructure and process rather than sitting in the airline's margin.
Unlike a discretionary handling fee, SSC exists because of regulation, not carrier preference. Every airline flying cargo internationally operates under a security programme approved by its national aviation authority, and those programmes cost money to run: screening equipment, trained personnel, secure facilities, and audit compliance. SSC is how that cost gets billed back into the freight chain instead of being absorbed silently into the base rate.
Why airlines and handlers charge SSC
SSC exists because international and national aviation security rules require cargo to be screened or otherwise verified as secure before it's loaded onto a passenger or freighter aircraft, and that screening has a real operating cost. Frameworks like ICAO's international standards, the US TSA's air cargo security requirements, and the EU's aviation security regulation all mandate that cargo carried on commercial flights be screened or handled through an approved secure supply chain before departure.
Screening isn't a one-time inspection — it's ongoing infrastructure. Airports and handling agents run X-ray and explosive trace detection equipment, staff it with certified operators, and submit to regular regulatory audits. Airlines also participate in known-consignor and regulated-agent programmes (schemes that let a verified, audited shipper or forwarder ship cargo with a lighter screening burden because its supply chain is already vetted), which still carry compliance and audit costs even when physical screening is reduced. SSC is how airlines recover that spend across the cargo they carry, rather than folding it into AFR where it would be harder to isolate from route and capacity pricing.
Because the screening requirement is regulatory rather than commercial, SSC applies broadly — it isn't limited to high-risk cargo or specific trade lanes. A general cargo shipment on a well-travelled corridor still carries an SSC line, because the screening obligation applies before any cargo reaches the tarmac, regardless of what's inside the carton.
How SSC is calculated and how it appears on your quote
SSC is typically charged per chargeable kilogram, the same billing basis as AFR and FSC, so it's driven by whichever is greater between your shipment's actual weight and its volumetric weight. A carrier or ground handler publishes an SSC rate, and that per-kg figure — usually a small fraction of AFR — is multiplied against your shipment's chargeable weight the same way the base freight rate is.
Because SSC scales with chargeable weight rather than actual weight, the same volumetric-weight math that inflates your AFR and FSC lines inflates SSC too. Confirming your chargeable weight before you compare quotes matters here as much as it does everywhere else on an air quote — the free cargo calculator works out CBM, gross weight, and chargeable weight from your carton or pallet dimensions, so you can see what every per-kg line on the quote is actually being multiplied against.
SSC rates vary by carrier, origin airport, and regulatory jurisdiction — some markets carry a higher screening cost base than others — so don't expect the SSC figure to match exactly across quotes from different carriers or gateways, even on the same lane. Treat it as illustrative and confirm the current published rate on your specific quote rather than assuming it's fixed across the industry.
SSC alongside the other charges on an air quote
SSC is one of several charges that make up the freight section of an air freight quote, sitting between the base rate and the flat per-shipment fees:
| AFR | Air Freight Rate — base per-chargeable-kg charge, reflects carrier capacity and route economics |
|---|---|
| FSC | Fuel Surcharge — per-chargeable-kg, indexed to jet fuel prices and revised on its own cycle |
| SSC | Security Surcharge — per-chargeable-kg, recovers mandatory cargo screening costs |
| AWB fee | Flat fee per airway bill, not weight-based |
AFR, FSC, and SSC all multiply against the same chargeable weight figure, so a shipment that trends volumetric — bulky but light — sees all three lines rise together, not just the base rate. The AWB fee is the outlier: it's a flat charge per shipment for issuing the air waybill, so it barely affects the total on a large shipment but matters proportionally more on a small one. When you're adding up an "all-in" air freight figure to compare forwarders, include SSC alongside AFR and FSC rather than treating it as a rounding error — on lower-value or high-volume cargo, small per-kg surcharges compound the same way the base rate does.
Is SSC negotiable?
SSC is generally not negotiable, because it's a pass-through of a regulatory screening cost rather than a carrier margin line. A forwarder can sometimes negotiate AFR down through volume or a stronger carrier relationship, but SSC — like FSC — reflects a cost the carrier doesn't set unilaterally and typically can't discount on request.
| Charge | Typically negotiable? |
|---|---|
| AFR | Yes — varies by carrier relationship and volume |
| FSC | No — indexed to jet fuel, set by carrier's published table |
| SSC | No — recovers mandatory security screening cost |
| AWB fee | No — flat administrative charge |
That said, SSC is usually a small enough figure per kilogram that it rarely swings a quote comparison on its own. Where it matters more is on very high-volume or very low-margin cargo, where every per-kg surcharge adds up across a large chargeable weight.
Reading SSC without getting surprised
A few habits keep SSC from becoming an unexpected line at booking:
- Confirm your chargeable weight first. Since SSC scales with the same figure as AFR and FSC, an inaccurate carton or pallet count throws off every per-kg line, not just the base rate.
- Ask whether the quote's freight section is itemised. A quote that bundles AFR, FSC, and SSC into a single freight number makes it harder to tell whether a competing quote is genuinely cheaper or just structured differently.
- Expect it on every air shipment, not just "sensitive" cargo. SSC applies because of the screening requirement on cargo generally, not because of what's inside a specific carton — don't assume a low-risk commodity is exempt.
- Check the quote's validity window. Rate tables, including SSC, can be revised on the carrier's own schedule; a ship date outside the quoted window may see SSC recalculated at booking.
The how shipping works guide walks through where SSC and the other freight-section charges sit relative to the origin and destination sections of a full air freight quote.
How Holo Cargo helps
Holo Cargo's air freight quotes itemise AFR, FSC, SSC, and AWB fees separately rather than folding them into a single freight number, so you can see exactly what each line covers before you book. Quoting from live rate data means the SSC figure on your quote reflects current published tables, and what we quote for freight-section charges is what lands on the final invoice. See the technology page for a top-level look at how that quoting speed and accuracy work.
