ICC Incoterms® terms of delivery
The ICC Incoterms® are standardised international delivery conditions that you can agree on with your customers and suppliers. These are rules with which you can immediately make worldwide agreements about transport, costs, and possible damage during transport.
Every 10 years, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) updates the Incoterms®. The latest version, the ICC Incoterms® 2020, came into effect on 1 January 2020. You may use earlier versions of the Incoterms®, as long as you refer to the version used in your contracts and agreements.
What do you arrange with the ICC Incoterms®?
You can arrange the following matters with the ICC Incoterms®:
- who takes care of the transport and up to what point, who arranges the transport insurance, and who is responsible for any import and export permits;
- who pays the transport costs and additional costs, such as for loading and unloading, customs clearance, and packaging;
- when the risk of loss or damage to the goods passes from the seller to the buyer.
What is not covered by ICC Incoterms®?
The ICC Incoterms® only contain agreements about the transport of the goods. Price agreements, payment terms, guarantees, or handling in the event of non-performance are not covered by the ICC Incoterms®. The ICC Incoterms® do not regulate when ownership of the goods passes from the seller to the buyer either.
How to use ICC Incoterms®
Preferably record the agreed ICC Incoterms® in a purchase contract, quotation, or your general terms and conditions. Make sure your customer knows these conditions.
- Preferably work with the latest version of the ICC Incoterms®, currently Incoterms® 2020.
- Use an ICC Incoterms® rule that fits the transport. Some Incoterms® are only intended for transport by water.
11 ICC Incoterms®
Which ICC Incoterms® you need depends on the mode of transport and the wishes of you and whoever you are doing business with. ICC Incoterms® 2020 has 11 delivery conditions (Incoterms® rules). Four of them apply specifically to transport by water. The other 7 apply to all types of transport (multimodal transport). You can find more detailed information about the various Incoterms® and an explanatory video on our page Incoterms® international transport conditions.
Publication ICC Incoterms® 2020
Would you like to know exactly which obligations per ICC Incoterms® rule apply to the seller and which to the buyer? You can order the ICC Incoterms® 2020 publication from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). This contains the rules in English.
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Questions relating to this article?
Please contact the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce, KVK