What Is Free Carrier (FCA)?

Free carrier is when a seller is responsible for delivering to a destination specified by the buyer. The destination is typically an airport, shipping terminal, warehouse, or other location where the carrier operates.

The seller includes transportation costs in its price and assumes the risk of loss unt🎃il the carrier receives the goods. At this point, the buyer assumes all responsibility.

How Free Carrier (FCA) Works

Buyers and sellers engaged in 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:economic trade can use FCA shipping terms to describe any transportation point, regardless of the n🥂umber of transportation modes involved in the shipping process. The point must be a location within the seller’s home country, however. It's the seller'ဣs duty to safely transport the goods to that facility. The carrier can be any kind of transportation service, such as a truck, train, boat, or airplane.

澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Liability for the merchandise transfers from the seller to ♔the carrier or buyer at the time the seller delivers the goods to the agreed location. The seller is only responsible for delivery to the specified destination as part of the liability transfer. It isn't obligated to unload the goods, but the seller might be responsible for ensuring that the goods have been 🐼cleared for if the destination is the seller's premises.

Under FCA shipping terms, the buyer doesn't have to deal with export details and licenses because this is the responsibility of the seller. The buyer must arrange for transport, however. Once goods arrive at the carrier and title transfers to the buyer, the goods become an asset on the buyer's 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:balance sheet.

FCA Incoterms

Contracts involving international transportation often contain abbreviated trade terms, or terms of sale, that describe shipment specifics. These might include the time and place of delivery, payment, the point at which the risk of loss shifts from the seller to the buyer, and the party responsible for freight and insurance cos꧋ts.

To help facilitate the delivery of such items, the most commonly known trade terms are international commercial terms (澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Incoterms). Incoterms are internationally recognized standards published by the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). These are often identical in form to domestic terms, such as the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), but there can be slight differences in their 𝐆;official interpretations.

The term free carrier (FCA) is a typical example of Incoterms. It has been internationally recognized as a standard set of instructions to designate delivery terms. FCA shipping terms were included in Incoterms starting in 1980 and have been revised every ten years.

Example of FCA

Under ꦺFCA shipping terms, the seller delivers the goods to the destination named by the buyer. The shipper has responsibility for the goods until they arrive there. The buyer is responsible for loading the goods for transport.

For example, say Susan, a seller, ships goods to Bob, a buyer, under an FCA shipping term agreement. Bob opts to use a shipper he's done business with before. Susan agrees. It's her responsibility to deliver the goods to the shipper. At this point, all liability passes to Bob.

The Bottom Line

Under FCA shipping terms, the seller is responsible for pre-carriage to a terminal, delivery to the agreed upon destination, and proof of delivery. The seller is also responsible for export pack♕aging, licenses, and customs formalities. The buyer pays for the goods and is responsible for the main means of transportation. The buyer also covers lo𒐪ading charges, import duties, taxes, and formalities.