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Document formats

Straight vs. VICS bill of lading

Both are non-negotiable bills of lading doing the same three jobs — receipt, contract, and delivery instruction. The difference is the identifier system and layout retail distribution centers expect, and choosing wrong can mean a delayed receipt.

Open Standard modeOpen VICS/GS1 mode

The short answer

Use a straight BOL for general LTL and truckload freight to a named receiver. Use the VICS bill of lading when a retail distribution center's routing guide asks for it — the VICS form adds a standardized 17-digit shipment identification number, encoded as a GS1-128 barcode, plus SID/CID location identifiers.

Comparison of straight, VICS, and order bills of lading
FormNegotiable?Typical useIdentifier
Straight BOLNo — named consignee onlyMost LTL & truckload freightYour BOL ref + carrier PRO (Code 128)
VICS BOLNo — named consignee onlyRetail inbound / distribution centers17-digit GS1 ID · GS1-128 AI (402)
Order BOLYes — document of title, can be tradedFinanced or in-transit sales; rare domesticallyVaries

The straight BOL: the default for most freight

The straight bill of lading is the general-purpose form of U.S. trucking: one named consignee, no endorsements, no originals to surrender. If you ship pallets or truckloads to a business you can name — a warehouse, a job site, a store, a factory — and nobody needs to trade the document, the straight BOL is almost certainly your form.

It carries your own BOL reference and the carrier's PRO number, both printable as ordinary Code 128 barcodes, and it covers prepaid, collect, and third-party billing alike. Read what a bill of lading is and who signs it for the fundamentals, or go straight to the straight BOL generator.

What the VICS form adds

The VICS bill of lading is the retail industry's standardized straight BOL. It exists so a distribution center receiving hundreds of trailers a day can scan inbound paperwork and match it automatically against purchase orders and advance ship notices. Three additions do that work:

The 17-digit shipment ID (GSIN)

Built from your GS1 company prefix plus a serial reference you assign, totaling 16 digits, with a Mod-10 check digit appended as the 17th. It uniquely identifies the shipment from your dock to the retailer's system.

A GS1-128 barcode with AI (402)

The 17-digit ID is encoded as a GS1-128 symbol carrying Application Identifier (402), so a receiving clerk scans the page instead of keying seventeen digits — and the number lands in the right field of their system.

SID and CID location identifiers

Shipper and consignee identification numbers tie the paperwork to the location records retail systems keep, so inbound freight can be matched to purchase orders and advance ship notices.

A note on the name: VICS — the Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Solutions Association — published the standard for years before becoming part of GS1 US in 2012. The “VICS BOL” label stuck, and retail routing guides still reference it. The identifier machinery underneath (GS1 company prefixes, the GSIN, GS1-128 with AI 402) remains maintained GS1 standards.

The 17-digit number, worked end to end

The VICS shipment ID looks intimidating and is actually simple arithmetic. Here is a complete, real calculation — the same one DockBOL performs as you type:

  1. 1

    Start with your GS1 company prefix

    Six to twelve digits, licensed from GS1 US. Example: 0614141 (7 digits).

  2. 2

    Add your serial reference to reach 16 digits

    You assign the serial — one per shipment. Example: 000012345 (9 digits), giving the 16-digit base 0614141000012345. A 7-digit prefix leaves exactly 9 digits of room; DockBOL shows the capacity as you type.

  3. 3

    Compute the Mod-10 check digit

    From the rightmost base digit, multiply alternately by 3 and 1, then sum: 5×3 + 4×1 + 3×3 + 2×1 + 1×3 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 1×1 + 4×3 + 1×1 + 4×3 + 1×1 + 6×3 + 0 = 78. Subtract from the next multiple of 10: 80 − 78 = 2.

  4. 4

    Append and encode

    The shipment ID is 06141410000123452, printed on the document as a GS1-128 barcode with Application Identifier (402): (402)06141410000123452. The AI tells the scanner what the digits mean; it is not part of the 17-digit value itself.

How to decide which one to use

  • Check the receiver's routing guide or vendor-compliance manual first — retail distribution centers state their paperwork requirements there, and the routing guide wins.
  • Ask the consignee or your carrier when the routing guide is silent. One email is cheaper than a refused or delayed receipt.
  • Retail DC inbound freight → use VICS/GS1 mode. Virtually everything else — warehouses, job sites, businesses, manufacturers → a straight BOL.
  • When nobody requires VICS, a straight BOL with clean identifiers and scannable barcodes is completely professional paperwork.

Switching modes in DockBOL

The generator runs both modes from one form — flip the Standard / VICS-GS1 selector at the top and the party blocks, commodity lines, freight terms, and signatures carry over untouched. Only the identifier system and document layout change. In VICS/GS1 mode the builder enforces the 16-base-digit rule, computes the check digit live, and encodes the result as GS1-128 with AI (402).

Open Standard modeOpen VICS/GS1 mode

Standards-aware, not certified

DockBOL validates the structure and check digit of your 17-digit ID, but it does not certify GS1 prefix ownership — and no document software can honestly claim to be “VICS certified” or “GS1 certified.” You need your own GS1 company prefix, and the receiver's routing guide is the final word on what their dock accepts.

DockBOL’s standard Straight and VICS BOL generator is not for interstate household-goods moves for individual shippers. It does not provide the separate household-goods carrier workflow required by 49 CFR Part 375.

Straight vs. VICS — FAQ

Is the VICS bill of lading required by law?
No. There is no statute mandating the VICS form. It is a trading-partner standard: retail distribution centers require it through their routing guides and vendor-compliance programs, and paperwork that misses those requirements can mean delayed receiving or compliance chargebacks. The legal floor is a proper bill of lading under 49 CFR Part 373 — the VICS layout is the retail industry's dialect of it.
Do I need my own GS1 company prefix for VICS mode?
Yes, for a conforming shipment ID. The first 6–12 digits of the 17-digit number are a GS1 company prefix licensed to your company from GS1 US. DockBOL validates the structure and computes the check digit, but it does not — and cannot — certify that a prefix belongs to you. If you ship to retail DCs regularly, license a prefix; if a customer just needs a one-off, ask them what their dock will accept.
Is VICS still a current standard?
The name is older than the organization. VICS — the Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Solutions Association — published the standard for years, then became part of GS1 US in 2012. The “VICS BOL” name stuck, and retail routing guides still reference it. The identifier rules it rests on (GS1 company prefixes, the GSIN, GS1-128 with AI 402) are maintained GS1 standards.
Can I just use a straight BOL for a retail distribution center?
Some receivers accept one; many expect the VICS format with its scannable 17-digit shipment ID, and their systems are built to match that ID against the advance ship notice. Guessing wrong can mean a delayed or refused receipt. Check the routing guide — and when it says VICS, use DockBOL's VICS/GS1 mode.
What are SID and CID?
Shipper identification and consignee identification — the location reference numbers printed in the Ship From and Ship To blocks of a VICS document. They tie the paper to the location records in the retailer's system. In DockBOL they are optional fields on the party blocks; fill them when your trading partner supplies them.
Does switching modes change the rest of the document?
No. Parties, commodity lines, weights, freight terms, special instructions, and signatures work the same in both modes — and in DockBOL they carry over when you flip the selector at the top of the generator. What changes is the identifier system (your BOL reference with Code 128 vs. the 17-digit GS1 ID with GS1-128) and the layout details retail receivers expect.

Keep reading

What is a bill of lading?

Receipt, contract, and delivery instruction — the fundamentals every form builds on.

Bill of lading barcodes

Code 128 vs. GS1-128, what AI (402) means, and how to print barcodes that scan.

Straight bill of lading generator

When to use the straight form, what to prepare, and a filled example.

VICS bill of lading generator

The 17-digit builder with live check-digit math — free, no signup.

Sources & scope

Updated August 22, 2026. Scope: U.S. domestic LTL and truckload documentation. GS1 BOL guidance is voluntary; the receiver's current routing guide controls its own acceptance requirements.

The routing guide decides — DockBOL runs both

Whichever form the receiver expects, the generator builds it with scannable barcodes and a print-ready PDF. Free, no account, auto-saves in your browser.

Create a straight BOLCreate a VICS BOL

Free · no account · Standard & VICS/GS1 modes