CT-e Sequential Number Generator

CT-e number: structure, models 57/67 and transport fiscal flow

The CT-e (Conhecimento de Transporte Eletronico) is the Brazilian electronic fiscal document issued by transport carriers, identified by document model 57. It replaced the legacy paper-based CT and is mandatory for cargo transport across all modes: road (rodoviario), rail (ferroviario), air (aereo), waterway (aquaviario) and pipeline (dutoviario). The CT-e number (nCT) is a sequential integer assigned by the carrier within the tuple (CNPJ, mod, serie, nCT) — much like an NF-e, the 44-digit access key is what guarantees global uniqueness.

A parallel model, CT-e OS (Outros Servicos, model 67), covers passenger transport and cargo not linked to a Nota Fiscal — typical use cases are residential moving (mudanca), event-cargo and intercity bus operations.

Parties involved and required fields

A CT-e identifies up to five distinct parties — all with CNPJ/CPF and full address:

• Tomador — who contracted the freight (defined by CIF vs FOB clause).
• Remetente — the cargo sender.
• Destinatario — the cargo recipient.
• Expedidor — optional intermediate who hands the cargo to the carrier.
• Recebedor — optional intermediate who receives at destination.

Other mandatory fields: freight value, ICMS calculation, cargo description with NCM, weight, volumes, plus a transport-specific CFOP.

Transport CFOP ranges

• 5351-5359 — intrastate transport services.
• 6351-6359 — interstate transport services.
• 7351 — international (export) transport.

Events, MDF-e binding and contingency

Authorized CT-es support several events: cancelamento (within legal window), prestacao iniciada (transport started), EPEC for offline contingency and vinculacao to one or many NF-es — a single freight job typically aggregates several NF-es under one CT-e. During transit, the CT-e is bundled by the carrier into an MDF-e (model 58) which manifests all goods currently inside a vehicle.

Issuance flows through the Sefaz Virtual environment hosted by RS, with autonomous environments for SP and a few other states. The auxiliary printout is the DACTE, mandatory for road inspection.

Common mistakes and compliance

The most frequent compliance issue is misassigning the tomador — under FOB the buyer pays freight and is the tomador, under CIF the seller pays. Wrong tomador triggers ICMS credit issues. Road carriers must hold an active RNTRC registration (ANTT). Carriers can submit lotes (batches) of CT-es to optimize throughput.

Frequently asked questions

What if the cargo has no NF-e attached (e.g. residential moving)? Use the CT-e OS, model 67, designed exactly for transport without a linked goods invoice.

Does a road carrier always need RNTRC? Yes. RNTRC issued by ANTT is mandatory for professional cargo transport over public roads — without it the CT-e is rejected at fiscal posts.

Can a CT-e cover cabotage (coastal shipping)? Yes. The aquaviario modal of CT-e covers cabotage; the carrier must be authorized by ANTAQ.

Are these numbers usable for real emission? No. This generator produces fake sequential numbers strictly for testing ERP integrations, mock data and homologation scenarios — they will not authorize against any SEFAZ environment.