"Ex Ship" means that the seller fulfils his obligation to deliver when the goods have been made available to the buyer on board the ship uncleared for import at the named port of destination. The seller has to bear all costs and risks involved in bringing the goods to the named port of destination.

This term can only be used for sea or inland waterway transport.

A. The seller must

A.1. Provision of goods in conformity with the contract

Provide the goods and the commercial invoice, or its equivalent electronic message in conformity with the contract of sale and any other evidence of conformity which may be required by the contract.

A.2. Licences, authorisations and formalities

Obtain at his own risk and expense any export licence or other official authorisation and carry out all customs formalities necessary for the exportation of the goods and, where necessary, for their transit through another country.

A.3. Contract of carriage and insurance

a) Contract of carriage

Contract at his own expense for the carriage of the goods by a usual route and in a customary manner to the named place at the named port of destination. If a point is no agreed or is not determined by practice, the seller may select the point at the named port of destination which best suits his purpose.

b) Contract of insurance

No obligation.

A.4. Delivery

Place the goods at the disposal of the buyer on board the vessel at the usual unloading point in the named port of destination uncleared for import on the date or within the period stipulated, in such a way as to enable them to be removed from the vessel by un loading equipment appropriate to the nature of the goods.

A.5. Transfer of risks

Subject to the provisions of B.5., bear all risks of loss of or damage to the goods until1 such time as they have been delivered in accordance with A.4.

A.6. Division of costs

Subject to the provisions of B.6.

- in addition to costs resulting from A.3.a), pay all costs relating to the goods until1 such time as they have been delivered in accordance with A.4.;

- pay the costs of customs formalities necessary for exportation as well as all duties, taxes or other official charges payable upon exportation and, where necessary, for their transit through another country.

A.7. Notice to the buyer

Give the buyer sufficient notice of the estimated time of arrival of the named vessel in accordance with A.4. as well as any other notice required in order to allow the buyer to take measures which are normally necessary to enable him to take the goods.

A.8. Proof of delivery, transport document or equivalent electronic message

Provide the buyer at the seller's expense with the delivery order and/or the usual transport document (for example a negotiable bill of lading, a non-negotiable sea waybill, an inland waterway document, or a multimodal transport document) to enable the buyer to take delivery of the goods.

Where the seller and the buyer have agreed to communicate electronically, the document referred to in the preceding paragraph may be replaced by an equivalent electronic data interchange(EDI) message.

A.9. Checking-packaging-marking

Pay the costs of those checking operations (such as checking quality, measuring, weighing. counting) which are necessary for the purpose of delivering the goods in accordance with A.4.

Provide at his own expense packaging (unless it is usual for the particular trade to deliver the goods of the contract description unpacked) which is required for the delivery of the goods. Packaging is to be marked appropriately.

A.10. Other obligations

Render the buyer at the latter's request, risk and expense, every assistance in obtaining any documents or equivalent electronic messages (other than those mentioned in A.8.) issued or transmitted in the country of dispatch and/or of origin which the buyer may require for the importation of the goods.

Provide the buyer, upon request, with the necessary information for procuring insurance.

B. The buyer must

B.1. Payment of the price

Pay the price as provided in the contract of sale.

B.2. Licences, authorisations and formalities


Obtain at his own risk and expense any import licence or other official authorisation and carry out all customs formalities necessary for the importation of the goods.

B.3. Contract of carriage

No obligation.

B.4. Taking delivery

Take delivery of the goods as soon as they are placed at his disposal in accordance with A.4.

B.5. Transfer of risks

Bear all risks of loss of or damage to the goods from the time they have been placed at his disposal in accordance with A.4.. provided, however, that the goods have been duly appropriated to the contract, that is to say, clearly set aside or otherwise identified as the contract goods.

Should he fail to give notice in accordance with B.7., bear all risks of loss of or damage to the goods from the agreed date or the expiry date of the period stipulated for delivery.

B.6. Division of costs

Pay all costs relating to the goods including unloading from the time they have been placed at his disposal in accordance with A.4., provided, however, that the goods have been appropriated to the contract, that is to say, clearly set aside or otherwise identified as the contract goods.

Should he fail to take delivery of the goods when they have been placed at his disposal in accordance with A.4., or to give notice in accordance with B.7., bear all additional costs incurred thereby.

Pay all duties, taxes and other official charges as well as the costs of carrying out customs formalities payable upon importation of the goods.

B.7. Notice to the seller

Whenever he is entitled to determine the time within a stipulated period and/or the place of taking delivery, give the seller sufficient notice thereof.

B.8. Proof of delivery transport document or equivalent electronic message

Accept the delivery order or the transport document in accordance with A.8.

B.9. Inspection of Goods

Pay, unless otherwise agreed, the costs of pre-shipment inspection except when mandated by the authorities of the country of exportation.

B.10. Other obligations

Pay all costs and charges incurred in obtaining the documents or equivalent electronic message mentioned in A.10. and reimburse those incurred by the seller in rendering his assistance in accordance therewith.