Free Alongside Ship (FAS)

Free Alongside Ship (FAS) is the Incoterms 2020 sea rule under which the seller clears the goods for export and places them alongside the vessel the buyer has nominated at the named port of shipment, on the quay or on a barge. Delivery and risk pass at that point. The buyer pays for loading, books and pays the ocean freight, and handles import. FAS is used for sea and inland waterway transport only.

Who does what under FAS

• Seller: moves the goods to the port, clears them for export and places them alongside the named vessel within the agreed period, then notifies the buyer
• Buyer: nominates the vessel and the loading point in time, pays loading, contracts and pays the ocean freight, insures if it wishes, clears import and pays the duty
• Late notice or a late vessel: if the buyer does not give the vessel details in time, or the vessel closes for cargo early or fails to take the goods, the risk and the resulting costs move to the buyer

The 2000 revision reworked the customs clauses of FAS, and under the current rules export clearance is the seller's job.

Where FAS fits, and where it does not

FAS was written for cargo delivered to the ship's side and loaded from the quay: bulk commodities such as minerals, grain and cement, steel, vehicles and breakbulk or project cargo. Containers are handed to the carrier at a terminal, not alongside the ship, and ICC guidance is that FCA is the right rule for them. If a supplier offers FAS on a container shipment, ask for FCA at the container terminal instead. The Incoterms explainer compares the F rules.

FAS vs FOB

The only difference is loading. Under FOB the seller loads the goods on board and delivery happens there; under FAS the seller stops at the ship's side and loading is the buyer's cost and risk. For heavy or awkward cargo that matters: a lift that goes wrong under FAS is the buyer's loss.

FAS in US usage

• Domestic contracts. The Uniform Commercial Code has its own "F.A.S. vessel" term (UCC 2-319), under which the seller delivers alongside at a named port. Incoterms FAS additionally puts export clearance on the seller. Write "FAS [port], Incoterms 2020" if you mean the ICC rule
• US exports. For goods leaving the US, for example on the USA to India lane, the value reported in the Electronic Export Information is the value at the US port of export: the selling price plus inland freight, insurance and other charges to the port (15 CFR 30.6(a)(17)), the same point where FAS delivers
• US imports. A FAS price excludes the ocean freight, and loading and freight the buyer pays to others are not payments to the seller, so they stay out of transaction value under 19 CFR 152.102(f)

FAS and Airlift

Most cargo on Airlift's lanes moves in containers or by air, where FCA or FOB is the better fit. If your supplier has quoted FAS on containerized goods, Airlift can book the ocean freight from the named port on FCA terms, issue the bill of lading to you, file the ISF and coordinate the entry through our licensed customs-broker network (customs clearance). FAS does not require either party to insure, so arrange cargo insurance from the ship's side if you want the loading and voyage covered.