The 7-point inspection is one of the most recognized practices in supply-chain security, and it's also one of the easiest to do sloppily when the yard is busy. A guard with a clipboard, a cold morning, and three trucks waiting tends to tick boxes faster than they actually look. This guide walks through what the inspection is, the seven points themselves, the seal check that pairs with it, and the process changes that make it both faster and more defensible.

01What the 7-point inspection is — and why CBP recommends it

C-TPAT (Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism) is a voluntary program run by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Companies that join agree to follow a set of supply-chain security practices, and in return they can see benefits like reduced examinations and faster processing. It's a partnership, not a mandate — but once you're in, the agreed practices are part of how you're expected to operate.

The 7-point inspection is the container-integrity check at the heart of that program. The idea is simple: before a container is loaded or accepted, someone physically inspects seven specific areas to confirm the structure is sound, nothing has been added or modified, and there's nowhere to conceal contraband. It's looking for false walls, hidden compartments, recent repairs that don't belong, and anything else that says the container isn't what it claims to be.

02The seven points — your working checklist

Here are the seven points CBP defines for a container inspection. Run them in order, look (and feel) for anything inconsistent — unexpected repairs, mismatched materials, suspicious residue, or dimensions that don't add up — and document each one.

• 1. Front wall — Confirm it's a single solid wall. Check for false fronts: blocks, plates, or repairs that could hide a compartment. Vent holes should be visible from inside.
• 2. Left side — Inspect the full panel for unusual repairs, new bolts or rivets, fresh paint, or bulges. Tap to listen for solid vs. hollow sections.
• 3. Right side — Same check as the left: look for repairs that don't match the age of the container and any added thickness that would reduce interior space.
• 4. Floor — Confirm a level, even floor at the correct height. Watch for a raised floor, unusual repairs, or new material that could conceal a compartment underneath.
• 5. Ceiling / roof — Inspect for a lowered ceiling, hidden compartments, or repairs. The interior height should be consistent end to end.
• 6. Inside and outside doors — Check both door panels and the locking mechanisms. Confirm the hardware is original and secure, hinges aren't tampered with, and there's no hidden space within the door structure.
• 7. Outside and undercarriage — Walk the exterior and inspect the undercarriage / support beams for anything attached, welded, or modified that doesn't belong.

That's the standard set. Many sites do the inspection with the container empty and well-lit, because half of these points are about catching a difference — and you can't spot a difference you can't see.

One clarification, because it trips people up: the seven-point list is CBP's checklist for empty containers and unit load devices. Empty refrigerated containers take an eighth point, the fan housing. Highway carriers crossing a land border run a separate 17-point tractor-and-trailer checklist, and on a refrigerated trailer the refrigeration unit is one of those 17. (Free printable version: 17-point inspection checklist.) Source: CBP's CTPAT Minimum Security Criteria, criterion 5.3.

03Tractor, trailer, and the high-security seal

The container check is the core, but a full inspection at the gate usually pairs with two more things: a quick tractor and trailer check (fifth wheel, tires, exterior, fuel tank area for an over-the-road tractor) and — most importantly — the seal verification.

Once a loaded container is inspected and closed, it gets a high-security seal. The recognized standard for these seals is ISO 17712. Two things matter at this step, and both belong in your record:

• Seal number — Read it and write it down exactly. The number on the physical seal must match the number on the shipping paperwork. A mismatch is a stop-and-escalate situation, not a typo to wave through.
• Seal integrity — Confirm the seal is intact, properly affixed, and shows no sign of tampering, cutting, or re-fixing. A seal that looks "fine" but is on loosely is a red flag.

Recording the seal number correctly is the single step people most often get wrong — and it's the one auditors most often ask about.

04Where the paper version falls apart

The inspection itself is well defined. What breaks is the record. The most common failures we see have nothing to do with the seven points and everything to do with documentation:

• Lost paper — The checklist gets filed in a binder, the binder moves, and six months later when a customer or CBP asks, no one can find the form for that specific container.
• No photos — A checkbox says "floor: OK," but there's no image. If a question comes up later, "we checked it" is much weaker than a timestamped photo of the floor.
• Seal number not recorded — Or recorded with a transposed digit, which is arguably worse than blank because it looks complete.
• Inconsistent across shifts — The day crew does a thorough job; the night crew ticks boxes in twenty seconds. Without a structured tool, you have no way to know which inspection you're looking at.

05Run it faster — and build a defensible record

The fix for all four of those problems is the same: make the inspection digital and do it on one device, in the same flow as gate check-in. (This pairs naturally with the broader move to get the whole gate off a booth PC — more on that in our guide to cutting truck wait time at the gate.)

A good digital 7-point inspection captures, for each container:

• A photo for each of the seven points, so "checked" is backed by an image, not just a checkbox.
• The seal number, entered by the guard at the gate and checked against the shipping documents.
• A timestamp on every step, so the record shows when the inspection actually happened.
• A signature from the person who ran it, on the same device.

Bundled together, that becomes a photo + timestamp + signature evidence pack — an audit support pack you can pull up by container number instead of digging through a filing cabinet. It's designed to support customs and security audit workflows. Vantage prints a SHA-256 hash of each photo in the pack, which shows a photo file was not swapped; it does not by itself prove the record was never edited.

Worth being precise here: a digital pack makes documenting the inspection fast, consistent, and easy to retrieve. It doesn't replace your security program, and it isn't a substitute for the physical inspection — it just makes sure the inspection you did is the inspection you can show.

06A checklist you can actually copy

Want the short version to print, laminate, or rebuild in your tool of choice? Here it is:

• ☐ 1. Front wall — solid, no false front, vents visible
• ☐ 2. Left side — no unusual repairs or added thickness
• ☐ 3. Right side — no unusual repairs or added thickness
• ☐ 4. Floor — level, correct height, no raised section
• ☐ 5. Ceiling / roof — full height, no lowered ceiling
• ☐ 6. Doors (inside + outside) — panels and locking mechanisms intact
• ☐ 7. Outside / undercarriage — nothing attached or modified
• ☐ Seal — number matches paperwork, integrity confirmed (ISO 17712)
• ☐ Record — photo per point + timestamp + signature

That last line is the one that turns a routine into a record. Do the seven points, verify the seal, and capture the proof — every container, every shift, the same way.