Legal Definitions - DAF

DAF, which stands for DELIVERED AT FRONTIER, is an international trade term (an Incoterm) used to define the point at which responsibility for goods transfers from the seller to the buyer. Under DAF terms, the seller is responsible for delivering the goods to a named place at the border of the importing country, but *before* the customs border of that country. The seller bears all costs and risks associated with bringing the goods to that frontier point. Once the goods arrive at the specified frontier, the risk and cost transfer to the buyer, who then becomes responsible for customs clearance, duties, and all further transportation to the final destination.

• Example 1: Cross-Border Retail Shipment
  A furniture manufacturer in Guadalajara, Mexico, sells a large shipment of custom-made tables to a retail chain in San Antonio, Texas, under DAF Laredo, Texas border crossing terms. The Mexican manufacturer arranges and pays for the transport of the tables by truck to the US side of the Laredo border crossing.

  This illustrates DAF because the Mexican seller's responsibility for the goods, including transport costs and risks, ends once the tables are delivered to the specified Laredo border point. From that moment, the US retail chain (the buyer) takes over the responsibility for customs clearance, paying any import duties, and arranging the onward transport of the tables from Laredo to San Antonio.

• Example 2: Industrial Materials by Rail
  A German steel mill sells a large quantity of steel beams to a construction company in Warsaw, Poland. The contract specifies DAF Frankfurt (Oder) / Słubice border crossing, Poland, by rail. The German mill loads the steel onto freight trains and covers the cost and risk of transport to the Polish side of the border.

  Here, DAF means the German seller is accountable for ensuring the steel beams reach the designated Polish border point by rail. Once the train arrives at the Słubice side of the border, the Polish construction company (the buyer) assumes all further costs and risks, including Polish customs procedures, import taxes, and arranging for the steel to be transported from the border to the construction site in Warsaw.

• Example 3: Specialized Equipment Delivery
  A Canadian electronics distributor sells specialized server equipment to a data center located just across the border in Buffalo, New York, under DAF Peace Bridge, USA terms. The Canadian distributor arranges for the equipment to be trucked to the US side of the Peace Bridge border crossing.

  This scenario demonstrates DAF because the Canadian seller's obligation ends when the server equipment is delivered to the specified US border point. The US data center (the buyer) then assumes responsibility for clearing the equipment through US customs, paying any applicable duties, and transporting it the short distance from the border to their facility in Buffalo.