FCA or FOB for a China container order?
Start with FCA if your forwarder takes custody at a factory or terminal before vessel loading. Keep FOB if the supplier’s agreed delivery responsibility genuinely runs through loading on board. Specify the exact handover point and reconcile the charges before accepting either quote. Cambridge China Bridge can help coordinate this with the factory.
Choose around the actual handover
Our general Incoterms guide explains the wider allocation of cost and risk. For this container order, ask your forwarder where its nominated carrier will actually receive the goods, and ask the supplier whether that matches the proposed delivery term.
As a practical starting point, request FCA when the planned handover is before vessel loading. Consider FOB when the supplier can manage delivery through loading on board. Appointing your own forwarder does not, by itself, settle that choice.
Separate carrier receipt from vessel loading
HMRC describes FCA delivery as handover to the buyer’s nominated carrier or person at the seller’s premises or another named place, with risk passing at the specified point. FOB delivery and risk transfer occur on board the nominated vessel at the named shipment port.
For FOB, a terminal receipt alone therefore does not demonstrate the agreed delivery event. Ask what evidence will show vessel loading. For FCA, ask what receipt will record handover at the agreed point, including the goods’ condition.
Name a point someone can find
Avoid a quotation that says only FCA China or FOB China. For FCA, request the factory address, forwarder’s receiving depot or terminal, plus the precise collection or receiving point. For FOB, name the shipment port and confirm the terminal and vessel booking separately.
Ask whether the goods will be presented on a collecting vehicle, on an arriving truck or after unloading. Record who performs and pays for loading or unloading at that location. Include the agreed rules edition in the order, and get the supplier and forwarder to confirm the same wording.
Allocate the stages before loading
Send both parties a stage list: container collection, factory loading and securing, inland haulage, export clearance and documents, terminal receiving, unloading, storage, handling and vessel loading. Ask each to mark who arranges the work, who pays and which quotation includes it. For recurring orders, see planning a rolling China container programme.
Under FOB, the supplier’s delivery responsibility runs through loading on board, as our general guide explains. Ask your customs broker to confirm the export-clearance responsibilities for the agreed term. For an FCA proposal, ask the supplier to confirm export clearance and delivery to the specified handover point explicitly. Get your forwarder to quote the onward stages from that same point.
Check the gap before approving the order
Ask who deals with a missed receiving slot, rejected container, damage report or delayed loading. Agree who contacts whom, what evidence to preserve and how extra charges will be approved. Arrange insurance to match the agreed risk transfer point, including any terminal period before sailing.
Compare the supplier quote and forwarder quote together, looking for omitted or duplicated origin charges. Keep product inspection separate from transport handover: our guide to sourcing agents and forwarders explains their roles. Cambridge China Bridge’s staff in China can help clarify the factory-side arrangements; use our quote check service before accepting unclear wording.
Frequently asked questions
Is FCA better than FOB for a container order?
Start by asking for FCA if your forwarder receives the goods before vessel loading. Compare the exact handover point and origin charges. Keep FOB only when delivery through loading on board is clearly agreed and workable.
Does FOB risk pass when the container reaches port?
No. FOB risk passes when the goods are on board the nominated vessel at the named shipment port. A terminal receipt alone does not establish that event.
What named place should I put after FCA?
Use the agreed factory, depot or terminal address and specify the precise handover point within it. Ask your forwarder to confirm that its receiving instructions match.
What origin charges should I check before booking?
Check container collection, loading and securing, haulage, export documents and clearance, terminal receiving, unloading, storage, handling and vessel loading. Match each stage to a responsible party and a quoted charge.