API

Outline of how to get started with the API

Getting Started with the API

The first step is to register for access at the BIC website for the API access, once you have done this you can start using the Facility Code API.

Then you should download the Postman collection which is available to assist your integration work: View the Postman Collection Documentation we strongly recommend the postman collection as it allows you to test the API and understand the data and endpoints before writing any code, you just need to register for access to start using it with examples.

Finally you can start planning your API Integration once you are familiar with the API Endpoints available to you and to suit your purposes.

OpenAPI definition

The Facility code API is documented on the BIC Facility Code SwaggerHub

There is a Postman collection available to assist your integration work: View the Postman Collection Documentation we strongly recommend the postman collection as it allows you to test the API and understand the data and endpoints before writing any code, you just ned to register for access to start using it.

Access to the API

The BIC promote standardisation and harmonisation in the container shipping industry, and believe that the data should be available under a fair usage approach. So we ask you when using our API’s to be responsible with your calls and usage so the API’s can remain openly available to all, if you require access that is maybe more demanding we have some options available and encourage you to contact us to discuss the best way forward instead of trying to be creative.

The full T&C can be found at https://www.bic-code.org/bic-facility-codes/

Caching of Results

The Facility codes are fairly constant so are a good candidate for caching, the latest data is always available via the API, so please consider if caching will benefit your use cases and how fresh you would need that data to be and the impact it may have and choose an appropriate cache time.

Rate Limits

The API is provided by the BIC, there are rate limits in place to ensure fair use. If you need consistently use a high number of calls to the API we have a better solution to enable you to stay in sync and meet your needs, please contact the BIC to dicsuss this further.