Incoterms 2020
EXW, Ex Works
The seller does the absolute minimum: makes the goods available at their own premises. Everything after that, including loading, is the buyer’s problem.
- Group
- E
- Mode
- Any mode of transport
EXW places the smallest possible obligation on the seller. The goods are made available at the named place, usually the factory or warehouse, and the buyer takes over from there. The seller does not even have to load the vehicle, which surprises people the first time a truck arrives and nobody moves.
In practice EXW causes more problems than it solves on international sales. The buyer becomes responsible for export clearance in a country where they usually have no legal presence, and the seller ends up doing it informally anyway. FCA achieves almost the same commercial split while putting export clearance where it belongs.
The seller is responsible for
- Make the goods available at the named place, packaged and identified
- Provide the commercial invoice and any agreed documents
- Give the buyer notice that the goods are ready
The buyer is responsible for
- Load the goods onto the collecting vehicle
- Arrange and pay for export clearance in the seller’s country
- Arrange and pay for all transport from the seller’s premises
- Arrange and pay for import clearance, duty and taxes
- Bear all risk from the moment the goods are placed at their disposal
Risk transfers
When the goods are placed at the buyer’s disposal at the named place, before loading.
Costs transfer
At the same point. The seller bears nothing beyond making the goods available.
Best used for
Domestic sales, and situations where the buyer genuinely has their own operation in the seller’s country.
Watch out for
The buyer is legally the exporter, which is often impossible for a foreign company. Use FCA instead for anything crossing a border.
Related services
Tell us what you need to move.
Send the supplier city or port of loading, the volume and weight, and the date the goods are ready. We will come back with a landed cost and a realistic transit time, usually within one working day.