Topic: Procurement and trade terms · Published · Updated · Version 1
Incoterms 2020: what buyers should name in a request
Incoterms® 2020 are a set of eleven three-letter trade terms, issued by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), that allocate tasks, costs and risks between seller and buyer in a contract for the sale of goods. If you want a trade term in a sourcing request, write the rule, the version (Incoterms® 2020, unless another edition has been agreed) and a named place. Do not paraphrase the rule. This page is general information, not legal advice. It does not copy the official ICC rule text, and it does not set a freight term or a delivery promise for any Global Market listing.
What the official sources say Incoterms are
The ICC describes Incoterms® rules as “a set of eleven three-letter trade terms, reflecting business-to-business practice in contracts for the sale and purchase of goods.” It first published the rules in 1936 and presents Incoterms® 2020 as the official current edition (Incoterms® rules; Incoterms® 2020).
The U.S. International Trade Administration’s Know Your Incoterms page states that the Incoterms® are 11 individual rules issued by the ICC which define the responsibilities of sellers and buyers for the sale of goods in international transactions, and that each rule “clarifies the tasks, costs, and risks to be borne by buyers and sellers.”
Trade.gov groups the eleven 2020 rules into two categories. Seven are listed for any mode or modes of transport: EXW (Ex Works), FCA (Free Carrier), CPT (Carriage Paid To), CIP (Carriage and Insurance Paid To), DAP (Delivered at Place), DPU (Delivered at Place Unloaded) and DDP (Delivered Duty Paid). Four are listed for sea and inland waterway transport: FAS (Free Alongside Ship), FOB (Free on Board), CFR (Cost and Freight) and CIF (Cost Insurance and Freight). Each name is paired with a place of delivery, a place of destination, or a named port, as the rule requires.
The ICC explains a 2020 renaming: the former Delivered at Terminal (DAT) rule “has been changed to Delivered at Place Unloaded (DPU)” so that the place of destination can be any place, not only a terminal. Under DAP, the ICC says, the seller does not unload the goods; under DPU the seller does (Incoterms® 2020).
Name the rule, the version and the place
A three-letter abbreviation on its own is not a complete term. Trade.gov always pairs the rule with a place or port. A request that says only “FOB” or only “delivered” does not say where responsibility is intended to change. Write the rule, “Incoterms® 2020”, and the named place you mean.
The version matters. Trade.gov asks whether Incoterms® 2010 may still be used after 1 January 2020, and answers yes: contracts using any Incoterms are valid if they are agreed upon by all parties and correctly identified on the export-related documents. It adds that although the ICC recommends Incoterms® 2020 from that date, parties can agree to use any version and “need to clearly specify the chosen version” (Know Your Incoterms).
Do not invent an “equivalent” rule, and do not borrow a sea-and-inland-waterway rule for a mode the official grouping does not list it for. Whether a given rule is suitable for a shipment is a contract question. It is UNKNOWN here, and this guide does not recommend a rule.
What Incoterms do not decide
An Incoterms rule does not, by itself, create a contract, a quotation or a shipment. Trade.gov’s disclaimer says its page is not legal advice and is “not the official legal or full definition of each Incoterm®.” The official rules are published by the ICC and are protected by copyright (Know Your Incoterms; Incoterms® 2020). This guide names the rules and points to those sources. It does not restate article-by-article obligations. The ICC’s Incoterms® 2020 page states that the CIF and CIP rules provide for different levels of insurance coverage; this guide does not restate those cover levels, and the official rule text should be used for the obligations.
A named rule is also not a product specification, a certificate, a customs classification or a duty calculation. Global Market listings do not set a trade term for you, and a sourcing request is not an order. Whether a later quotation will use a term you named is UNKNOWN until that quotation says so.
How this relates to a Global Market request
Write the Incoterms® 2020 rule and the named place in the request, and keep the product description in its own words. On 10 November 2026 the homepage described the visible listings as synthetic demonstration records, not real offers, so do not treat any listing as already sold on a given term.
Frequently asked questions
Can I still use Incoterms® 2010? Trade.gov says yes, if all parties agree and the chosen version is clearly identified. If you mean the 2020 rules, say Incoterms® 2020.
Does DAP include unloading? The ICC’s 2020 note says that under DAP the seller does not unload the goods, and under DPU the seller does. Use the official rule text for the full obligations.
Is FOB a rule for any mode of transport? Trade.gov lists FOB among the four rules for sea and inland waterway transport, not among the seven rules for any mode.
Does naming an Incoterms rule set a price? No. The official sources describe the rules as allocating tasks, costs and risks in a sales contract. A sourcing request on this site is not a quotation and does not take payment.
Sources
Read 10 November 2026, Asia/Singapore (UTC+8).
- Incoterms® 2020 — International Chamber of Commerce
- Incoterms® rules — International Chamber of Commerce
- Know Your Incoterms — U.S. International Trade Administration
Related
How to send a sourcing request · HS codes in international sourcing · Sourcing guides