Incoterms
What is FCA?
FCA (Free Carrier) — multimodal delivery, export clearance, and alternative to FOB for air and container exports.
FCA delivers goods to the carrier or person nominated by the buyer at the named place — suitable for all transport modes including air.
Meaning and When to Use FCA
FCA (Free Carrier) is an Incoterms® 2020 rule for international trade. FCA works for any mode — especially air, rail, and FCL handover at carrier terminal.
Always state the full format in contracts — e.g. "FCA Shanghai, Incoterms® 2020" — not the acronym alone.
Choose FCA based on who can best arrange carriage, insurance, and import clearance.
Division of Responsibilities, Risk, and Cost
Under FCA, responsibilities typically split as follows:
- Seller: Deliver goods cleared for export to carrier at named place
- Seller: Provide commercial invoice and export documents
- Buyer: Contract main carriage from handover point
- Buyer: Bear risk from delivery to carrier onward
Risk passes when goods are delivered to the buyer's carrier at the named place.
Pricing and Cost Practice
FCA price includes seller-side costs to the handover point (factory, warehouse, or airport cargo terminal). Use FCA Calculator for air and multimodal quotes.
Documents and Compliance
Air exports often use FCA Airport instead of FOB. Documents include commercial invoice, packing list, and air waybill once buyer's forwarder takes charge.
Examples
Example — FCA Shanghai Pudong air
Seller delivers cleared cargo to buyer's forwarder at PVG cargo terminal — risk passes at handover.
Example — FCA vs FOB container
FCL handed to liner at CY under FCA; FOB requires loading on vessel at port.
FAQ
- FCA vs FOB for air freight?
- Use FCA for air — FOB is not valid for air under Incoterms® 2020.
- Who loads under FCA?
- Depends on named place — if seller premises, buyer loads; at terminal, seller often delivers ready for carrier.
- Does FCA include export clearance?
- Yes — seller must clear export unless parties agree EXW-like variant (discouraged).
- FCA named place examples?
- FCA Factory, FCA Shanghai Terminal, FCA Carrier XYZ Warehouse.
- Is FCA common for e-commerce?
- Yes for cross-border parcels handed to integrators or postal carriers.
Conclusion
FCA is the flexible multimodal counterpart to port-only FOB. Use the FCA Calculator alongside EXW and FOB guides.