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Incoterms 2020 Reference Table for Buyers

Incoterms 2020 are eleven three-letter trade rules published by the International Chamber of Commerce. This table shows, for each rule, where risk passes to you, who clears export and import, who pays the main carriage and who must insure.

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Term	Full name	Transport mode	Risk passes to buyer	Export clearance	Main carriage paid by	Insurance duty	Import clearance and duty
EXW	Ex Works	Any mode	When goods are placed at the buyer's disposal at the seller's premises	Buyer	Buyer	None required	Buyer
FCA	Free Carrier	Any mode	When goods are handed to the buyer's carrier at the named place	Seller	Buyer	None required	Buyer
CPT	Carriage Paid To	Any mode	When goods are handed to the first carrier	Seller	Seller (to named destination)	None required	Buyer
CIP	Carriage and Insurance Paid To	Any mode	When goods are handed to the first carrier	Seller	Seller (to named destination)	Seller, Institute Cargo Clauses (A) minimum	Buyer
DAP	Delivered at Place	Any mode	When goods are ready for unloading at the named destination	Seller	Seller	None required	Buyer
DPU	Delivered at Place Unloaded	Any mode	When goods are unloaded at the named destination	Seller	Seller	None required	Buyer
DDP	Delivered Duty Paid	Any mode	When goods are ready for unloading at the named destination	Seller	Seller	None required	Seller
FAS	Free Alongside Ship	Sea and inland waterway	When goods are placed alongside the vessel at the named port	Seller	Buyer	None required	Buyer
FOB	Free On Board	Sea and inland waterway	When goods are on board the vessel at the named port	Seller	Buyer	None required	Buyer
CFR	Cost and Freight	Sea and inland waterway	When goods are on board the vessel at the port of shipment	Seller	Seller (to destination port)	None required	Buyer
CIF	Cost, Insurance and Freight	Sea and inland waterway	When goods are on board the vessel at the port of shipment	Seller	Seller (to destination port)	Seller, Institute Cargo Clauses (C) minimum	Buyer
DAT	Delivered at Terminal (Incoterms 2010)	Any mode	Retired: replaced by DPU in 2020	Seller	Seller	None required	Buyer
DDU	Delivered Duty Unpaid (pre-2010)	Any mode	Retired: replaced by DAP in 2010	Seller	Seller	None required	Buyer
DAF	Delivered at Frontier (pre-2010)	Any mode	Retired: replaced by DAP in 2010	Seller	Seller	None required	Buyer
DES	Delivered Ex Ship (pre-2010)	Sea	Retired: replaced by DAP in 2010	Seller	Seller	None required	Buyer
DEQ	Delivered Ex Quay (pre-2010)	Sea	Retired: replaced by DAT in 2010	Seller	Seller	None required	Buyer

Incoterms govern delivery, risk and cost allocation between buyer and seller, not title, payment terms or governing law. Always state the rule with the named place and the edition, for example FCA Shenzhen Incoterms 2020. Retired terms are shown only because old contracts still quote them.

Landed cost by Incoterm from your ERP data

Optional: we can review how your ERP stores freight terms and duty and show how to report landed cost per PO.

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How to use the table

Search by term or by what you want to know, such as insurance or import. Pick the row that matches the rule on your purchase order, then read left to right: transport mode, the point where risk passes to you, and which side clears customs. The important habit is to always pair the term with a named place on the PO, because FOB Shanghai and FOB Los Angeles are very different obligations. Compare two rows side by side before you accept a supplier's quote on a different basis.

Check that the rule fits the transport mode (FOB, CFR and CIF are for sea and inland waterway only)
Write the rule, named place and edition on the PO
Compare quotes on the same rule before ranking suppliers
Decide who books the freight forwarder and who files the export declaration

What the rules do and do not cover

Incoterms allocate three things: the point where risk of loss passes, who arranges and pays carriage and insurance, and who handles export and import formalities. They do not transfer ownership, set payment terms, define remedies for breach or choose the governing law. Those belong in the purchase agreement. A common buying mistake is assuming that CIF means the supplier carries risk to your dock. Under CIF, risk passes when goods are on board at the origin port even though the seller pays freight to the destination port.

Choosing a rule as a buyer

EXW gives you control and the most work, which suits buyers with their own forwarder in the supplier's country. FCA is usually the better modern choice because the seller clears export. DAP and DPU give predictability on delivered cost but the buyer still clears import. DDP puts import duty on the seller, which can create tax registration problems in the destination country, so confirm who is importer of record before agreeing it. For containerised cargo, ICC guidance favours FCA, CPT and CIP over the port-based terms.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between FOB and FCA?

FOB applies only to sea and inland waterway transport and passes risk when goods are on board the vessel. FCA works for any mode and passes risk when goods are handed to the buyer's carrier at the named place. FCA is generally preferred for containers because the handover happens at a terminal, not on a ship.

Does the seller or buyer insure under CIF?

The seller must obtain insurance under CIF, at a minimum of Institute Cargo Clauses (C), covering the contract price plus ten percent, for the buyer's benefit. Under CIP the minimum rose to Clauses (A) in Incoterms 2020. Buyers often ask for higher cover in the PO.

Which Incoterm is best for a buyer?

There is no single best rule. FCA is common when you control the main freight, DAP when you want a delivered price without handling import duty. DDP removes work but can hide cost and tax risk. Choose by where you want to control logistics and compare quotes on a like for like basis.

Are Incoterms law?

No. They are contractual rules that apply only when both parties incorporate them into the contract, usually by naming the term, place and edition. National law and the rest of the agreement still govern title, payment and remedies. Always specify Incoterms 2020 to avoid ambiguity with older editions.

If landed cost, freight terms and duty are scattered across spreadsheets, Netray can connect them to your ERP purchasing data so each PO shows the real delivered cost basis.

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