ABSTRACT
Incoterms (or international commerce terms) are international sales terms, published by International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and widely used in international commercial transactions. The entry describes several of the important terms.The terms are accepted by governments, legal authorities and practitioners worldwide in the conduct of international trade. This reduces or removes uncertainties arising from interpretation of such terms in different countries. They are used to divide transaction costs and responsibilities between buyer and seller and reflect state‐of‐the‐art transportation practices. They also closely correspond to the U.N. Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. Incoterms detail what one party in an international transaction is responsible for, such as documentation, routing, choice of forwarders/brokers, export/import licenses, freight payment, etc. Incoterms have a direct impact on compliance and security regulations and defining which party is responsible to assure adherence.
