Sea and inland waterway only · Incoterms 2020
FAS Incoterm: Free Alongside Ship (Incoterms 2020)
Bulk-cargo specialist — seller delivers alongside the vessel; the buyer takes it from the quay.
FAS at a glance
Under FAS the seller delivers when the goods are placed alongside the buyer's nominated vessel at the named port of shipment — on the quay or a barge. Loading aboard, and everything after, is the buyer's responsibility and risk.
- Full term
- FAS — Free Alongside Ship
- Transport mode
- Sea and inland waterway only
- Delivery point
- Alongside the nominated vessel at the named port of shipment
- Risk transfers
- When the goods are placed alongside the vessel (quay or barge)
- Export clearance
- Seller
- Import clearance
- Buyer
What FAS means in practice
FAS is a sea and inland-waterway rule built for cargo that is physically staged next to a ship before loading: bulk commodities, break-bulk, project cargo, oversized units. The seller's job ends when the goods sit alongside the vessel the buyer nominated; the crane lift aboard already belongs to the buyer.
That makes FAS one of the most precise handover points in the rulebook — and one of the least suitable for containers. Containers are delivered to a terminal stack, not placed alongside a ship, so for containerised cargo FCA reflects the real flow.
FAS puts vessel nomination in the buyer's hands, which is why it appears in charter-party trades: the buyer fixes the ship, the seller feeds cargo to the berth. If the vessel arrives late, costs and risk sit with whoever caused the delay under the contract — one reason FAS contracts lean heavily on precise laycan and delivery-window wording.
Buyer vs seller responsibilities
| Task | Responsible |
|---|---|
| Packaging & export marking | Seller — Bulk cargo is often unpackaged by nature; where packaging applies, it is the seller's task. |
| Loading at origin | Seller |
| Pre-carriage (inland transport, origin) | Seller |
| Export clearance | Seller |
| Origin terminal handling | Depends — Charges up to placing the goods alongside are the seller's; loading aboard and stowage belong to the buyer — port tariffs vary in how they split this. |
| Main international transport | Buyer |
| Cargo insurance | Buyer — Neither party is obliged to insure. The buyer carries risk from alongside, so cover is normally arranged in the buyer's interest. |
| Import clearance | Buyer |
| Import duties & taxes | Buyer |
| Delivery to final destination | Buyer |
| Unloading at destination | Buyer |
Port cost structures differ widely. In bulk trades, the split between "alongside" costs and loading/stowage costs should be checked against the specific port tariff and charter terms.
Where costs transfer — and where risk transfers
Cost transfer
The seller pays everything needed to get the goods alongside the nominated vessel: inland transport, export clearance, port charges up to the quay. From alongside, the buyer pays loading, stowage, ocean freight, insurance if taken, and all destination costs.
Because "alongside" sits in the middle of a port's cost structure, disputes usually involve port charges that don't map neatly to either side — trimming, tallying, shifting. Bulk contracts often solve this with explicit references to the port tariff or charter-party terms (for example, free-in stowed terms on the freight side).
Risk transfer
Risk transfers when the goods are placed alongside the vessel. From that moment — through the crane lift, the voyage and beyond — loss or damage is the buyer's problem.
Cost and risk transfer at the same point under FAS. The subtlety is operational: if the buyer's vessel is late and cargo waits on the quay, the goods may sit at the buyer's risk in storage the seller is invoiced for — another reason to spell out delivery windows and storage cost allocation.
When FAS works well
- Bulk and break-bulk commodities — grain, minerals, timber, steel — loaded directly from the quay into a vessel's holds.
- Charter-party trades where the buyer fixes the vessel and wants the handover exactly at the berth.
- Project and oversized cargo staged at the port before a heavy-lift vessel loads it.
- Sellers close to the load port with efficient access to the berth, where delivering alongside is genuinely cheaper than quoting loaded terms.
When to think twice about FAS
- Containerised cargo — containers go to terminal stacks, not alongside vessels; use FCA.
- Any non-sea transport mode: FAS has no meaning for air, road or rail movements.
- Buyers without vessel-chartering or freight capability at the load port — nominating a ship is the buyer's core obligation here.
- Trades where the seller is expected to cover loading and stowage anyway — FOB (or explicit loaded terms) matches that expectation.
FAS in the real world
Grain exporter delivering alongside at Santos, Brazil
A trading house buys 30,000 tonnes of soybeans from a Brazilian exporter on "FAS Santos (Incoterms 2020)" terms and charters a bulk carrier for the voyage. The exporter moves the grain by rail to the port, completes Brazilian export formalities and delivers it into the export terminal serving the nominated berth.
The buyer's vessel arrives within the agreed laycan and loading begins under the buyer's charter, on the buyer's account. Midway through loading, a conveyor fault damages a parcel of cargo already alongside — the buyer's insurer responds, because risk passed when the goods were placed alongside, not when each tonne crossed into the holds.
The exporter's exposure ended at the berth; the trading house controlled the ship, the freight rate and the insurance programme — exactly the division both sides priced for.
Common mistakes with FAS
Using FAS for containers
Containers are never placed alongside a vessel by the shipper — they enter a terminal stack. FAS creates a handover point that doesn't physically exist in container flows; FCA is the like-for-like rule.
Leaving the alongside/loading cost split vague
Port tariffs bundle charges in different ways. If the contract doesn't align with the charter terms (who pays loading, trimming, stowage), the same cost can be billed to both parties — or to neither until a dispute forces it.
No plan for vessel delay
If the buyer's ship misses its window, cargo waits at the port at the buyer's risk, often on storage the seller gets invoiced for. Contracts should define delivery windows and who pays storage and deterioration costs when schedules slip.
Forgetting insurance starts at the quay
Buyers sometimes open cover from "vessel departure". Under FAS the buyer's risk starts alongside — before loading — and cover should too.
TradeIntel insight
FAS survives in modern practice almost entirely inside commodity and project logistics, where the quay really is the commercial frontier. If your cargo moves in containers or through forwarder networks, the appearance of FAS in a quote usually signals a template copied from a bulk trade — query it. Where FAS is genuinely right, the contract quality lives in the details around the berth: laycan, storage, and the loading cost split against the charter terms.
Is FAS right for your shipment?
Answer eight questions about your shipment and capability profile — the TradeIntel Incoterms Assessment explains which rules fit and why.
Frequently asked questions
What does "alongside the ship" actually mean?
Within reach of the vessel's loading gear or the berth's loading equipment — on the quay or on a barge next to the ship. The precise interpretation follows the customs of the named port, which is why naming the port (and terminal where relevant) matters.
Who pays for loading the goods on board under FAS?
The buyer. Loading, stowage and trimming are on the buyer's account and at the buyer's risk, usually organised through the buyer's charter or freight contract.
Is FAS usable for container shipments?
It's a poor fit. Container terminals take delivery into a stack days before loading; nothing is placed alongside a vessel. FCA at the container terminal reflects the real handover for containerised cargo.
Who clears the goods for export under FAS?
The seller. This is a key difference from EXW: under FAS the seller completes export formalities before delivering alongside the buyer's vessel.
What happens if the buyer's nominated vessel arrives late?
The goods typically wait at the port at the buyer's risk once the seller has delivered (or stands ready to deliver) within the agreed window. Storage costs and deterioration exposure should be allocated in the contract, because port invoices don't follow Incoterms automatically.
Related Incoterms guidance
Reviewed for practical procurement and logistics relevance by TradeIntel.
TradeIntel provides educational decision support and does not provide legal, tax, customs or contractual advice. Incoterms should be incorporated into a complete sales contract with a precisely named place or port.