Tag Archive | "Incoterms"

Regarding Daf Of Incoterms (foreign Trade)?


I need help to clarify a doubt regarding whether DAF term can be applied to USA – Mexico export / import transaction particularly at the border zone of Laredo, Tx.
In case you’re not familiar with the operation there, I would explain. The cargo is delivered by the USA supplier (exporter) to the forwarder’s warehouse at Laredo. Normally, that forwarder is an affiliate company of the Mexican customs broker, assigned by the Mexican customer (importer).
Therefore, the Mexican importer indicates to the American shipper the warehouse address, so that this shipper can arrange the land transportation (truck freight).
At the warehouse, there are several steps that must be followed; SED (Shipper’s Export Declaration), physical check of the cargo (mainly for the Mexican import customs clearance), issuance of the Mexican customs declaration.
Once this procedure is done, the cargo is loaded onto a ‘transfer truck’ (truck with permission to cross the border) with all the documents for the Mexican import customs clearance, and it goes through the border.
In normal cases, the work of this forwarder is paid by the Mexican importer though the Mexican customs broker (parent company of the forwarder).
Therefore, from the viewpoint of the USA shipper, they are delivering the commodity AT THE FORWARDER’S WAREHOUSE, even though such warehouse is located in the border zone (or border city).
My doubt is whether the DAF term, according to Incoterms, can be applied for this sort of operations, because even though the cargo is delivered at a border city, still it’s not ‘FRONTIER’, especially there are charges that are occurred on the USA side before crossing the border, so in my opinion, it does not fit to the definition of DAF, and most probably, the term most appropriate is DDU Laredo, TX.
As far as I have heard, DAF can be used only in European countries, where the truck goes through the border, without making any cargo handling, maybe just getting stamp on the documents, but splitting the freight cost in two parts; the freight from the origin up to the border to be covered by the seller, and the freight from the border up to its final destination. (I have heard that there are borders in Europe where there are only officers checking documents, but there is not any warehouse or space for cargo loading or unloading).
I really need to know if my understanding is correct or not.

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