FCA: Free Carrier (Incoterms® 2020)
FCA (Free Carrier) means the seller clears the goods for export and hands them to the carrier or other person the buyer has nominated, at a named place such as the seller's premises or a terminal. Risk passes to the buyer at that handover.
Quick facts
Where risk and costs pass from the seller to the buyer
SellerBuyer
How to write it
FCA + the named place of delivery + Incoterms 2020, for example: FCA Seller's factory, Suwon, Korea Incoterms 2020 or FCA Busan New Port container yard Incoterms 2020.
What the seller does
- Clears the goods for export and pays any export duties.
- Delivers to the buyer's carrier at the named place on the agreed date.
- Loads the goods if the named place is the seller's own premises.
- Provides proof of delivery, and an on-board bill of lading if the parties agreed to it.
What the buyer does
- Nominates the carrier and tells the seller the pickup details.
- Books and pays the main transport from the named place.
- Takes the risk from the moment of delivery and insures if it wishes.
- Clears the goods for import and pays duties and taxes.
When to use it
FCA works for every mode of transport and is the ICC's recommended rule for container shipments, where goods are handed over at a terminal before loading. It gives the buyer control of the freight while leaving export formalities with the seller, who knows them best.
Common mistakes
- A vague named place. If it is the seller's premises the seller loads; if it is anywhere else the seller only brings the goods there on its own vehicle, ready for unloading. Name the place precisely.
- Forgetting the bill of lading clause when the sale is paid by letter of credit. Incoterms 2020 lets the parties agree that the buyer's carrier issues an on-board bill of lading to the seller.
- Assuming FCA is only for air or trucks. It is often the best choice for sea containers.
FCA vs FOB
With FOB, risk passes only when the goods are on board the ship. With containers the seller hands them over at the terminal days earlier and can no longer protect them, so FCA, where risk passes at the handover, fits container shipping better.
Seller and buyer obligations, article by article (A1–A10 / B1–B10)
Incoterms 2020 gives each side ten matching articles. Here they are in plain language; the ICC text and your contract decide.
| Seller (A) | Buyer (B) | |
|---|---|---|
| A1/B1 General obligations | Provide the goods and the commercial invoice as the contract requires, plus any other proof of conformity it asks for. Documents may be paper or electronic if agreed or customary. | Pay the price as the contract requires. Documents may be paper or electronic if agreed or customary. |
| A2/B2 Delivery and taking delivery | Deliver to the carrier or other person nominated by the buyer at the named place: if that is the seller's premises, by loading the goods on the buyer's vehicle; anywhere else, by placing them, on the seller's vehicle and ready for unloading, at the carrier's disposal. | Take delivery as agreed. |
| A3/B3 Transfer of risks | Bears all risk until delivery. | Bears all risk from delivery, and earlier if it fails to nominate a carrier, its carrier fails to take the goods, or it fails to give notice, once the goods are identified. |
| A4/B4 Carriage | No obligation to contract carriage; if agreed, the seller contracts it on usual terms at the buyer's risk and cost. Meets transport-related security requirements up to delivery. | Contract or arrange carriage from the named place at its own cost; under Incoterms 2020 it may also use its own vehicle. |
| A5/B5 Insurance | No obligation to insure. At the buyer's request, risk and cost, give the information the buyer needs to buy insurance. | No obligation to insure. The buyer bears the risk from delivery, so it usually buys cargo insurance for itself. |
| A6/B6 Delivery or transport document | Provide, at its cost, the usual proof of delivery and help the buyer obtain a transport document. If the buyer's carrier issued an on-board bill of lading to the seller, pass it on to the buyer, often through the banks under a letter of credit. | Accept the proof of delivery. If agreed, instruct its carrier to issue to the seller, at the buyer's cost and risk, a transport document stating that the goods have been loaded, such as an on-board bill of lading. |
| A7/B7 Export and import clearance | Carry out and pay for export clearance: export licence, export security clearance, pre-shipment inspection and other official authorisations. Where applicable, help the buyer, at its request, risk and cost, with documents and information for transit and import clearance. | Carry out and pay for transit and import formalities, and help the seller with export clearance at the seller's request, risk and cost. |
| A8/B8 Checking, packaging, marking | Pay for the checks (quality, measuring, weighing, counting) needed to deliver, and pack and mark the goods for the transport, unless the trade customarily ships them unpacked or the parties agreed specific packing. | No obligation to the seller. |
| A9/B9 Allocation of costs | Pay all costs until delivery, the usual proof of delivery and export clearance duties, taxes and charges. | Pay all costs from delivery, transit and import duties and charges, the seller's costs of helping, and extra costs caused by its own failures to nominate or notify. |
| A10/B10 Notices | Give the buyer sufficient notice that the goods have been delivered, or that the nominated carrier failed to take them in time. | Notify the seller of the carrier's name, the delivery time, the mode of transport, the point of receipt and any transport-related security requirements. |
A plain-language summary of Incoterms® 2020 for everyday use. The full rules are published by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and your contract wording decides. Incoterms® is a registered trademark of the ICC.
All 11 Incoterms 2020 rules
Guides on this topic
Common questions
What is the full form and meaning of FCA?
FCA stands for Free Carrier, one of the 11 Incoterms® 2020 rules. Transport: Any mode. Delivery and risk pass to the buyer: Handed to the buyer's carrier at the named place. Main freight paid by: Buyer. Insurance: Not required. Export clearance: Seller. Import clearance and duties: Buyer.
Can FCA be used for sea freight?
Yes. FCA can be used for any mode of transport, including sea. It is the rule the ICC recommends for containerised sea freight instead of FOB.
Who loads the goods under FCA?
It depends on the named place. At the seller's premises, the seller loads the goods onto the buyer's vehicle. At any other place, the seller brings the goods there on its own vehicle, and the buyer's carrier unloads them.
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