What does EXW Dalian mean when you buy servers?
Short answer
EXW (Ex Works) under the ICC Incoterms 2020 rules means the seller makes the goods ready at its own premises, here our warehouse in Dalian, and the buyer takes over from that point. Your freight forwarder collects the servers, clears export as your agent, flies them and clears import, delivering DAP or DDP to your door in 1 to 2 weeks. Risk passes to you when the packed servers are placed at your forwarder's disposal in Dalian.
What does EXW mean under Incoterms 2020?
EXW, short for Ex Works, is one of the 11 Incoterms 2020 rules published by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). EXW places the least obligation on the seller: the seller makes the goods available at a named place, usually its own premises, and the buyer arranges everything after that.
An Incoterm only decides who does which task, who pays for it and where risk passes. An Incoterm does not set the price, the payment method or the ownership transfer. Those go in your sales contract, which should name the rule and the place in full, for example EXW Dalian, Incoterms 2020.
What does the seller do under EXW Dalian?
Under EXW Dalian the seller prepares the goods so your forwarder can collect them. For a server order at Fanxi that means:
- Building the configuration in the contract. CTO builds come directly from the Dell, HPE or Lenovo factory, and you can check the service tag on the vendor website.
- Testing: burn-in for 24 to 72 hours, a check of iDRAC, iLO or XCC logs, and serial numbers matched against the invoice.
- Packing for air freight, with carton weights and dimensions on the packing list.
- Handing the shipment over at our door in Dalian on the agreed date.
- Preparing the export documents as a service: commercial invoice, packing list and the data your forwarder needs for the Chinese export declaration.
The document work goes beyond what EXW requires. Under Incoterms 2020 an EXW seller only has to assist with export formalities when asked. We do it by default, because a clean export file is what gets servers out of China on time.
What does my freight forwarder do on an EXW shipment?
Your freight forwarder runs the shipment from our door to yours. A forwarder is a logistics company that books carriers and handles customs on your behalf. For an EXW Dalian server order the forwarder will:
- Collect the packed servers from our warehouse in Dalian.
- Clear Chinese export customs as your agent, using the documents we prepare.
- Book air freight from Dalian or a nearby hub and issue the air waybill.
- Clear import customs in your country, with duty and VAT assessed on the goods.
- Deliver to your office or data center, either DAP (you pay import duty and VAT on arrival) or DDP (the forwarder advances them and invoices you).
Door to door this takes 1 to 2 weeks by air. Every server we sell ships by air.
Who does what under EXW: seller or forwarder?
| Task | Seller (EXW) | Your forwarder |
|---|---|---|
| Build and configure servers | Yes | No |
| Burn-in test and serial check | Yes | No |
| Export packing | Yes | No |
| Commercial invoice and packing list | Yes | Receives and uses |
| Pickup at the seller's door | Hands over | Yes |
| Chinese export clearance | Supplies documents | Yes, as your agent |
| Air freight and air waybill | No | Yes |
| Cargo insurance | No | Optional, on your request |
| Import clearance, duty and VAT | No | Yes (DDP) or billed to you (DAP) |
| Delivery to your door | No | Yes |
Where does risk pass to the buyer under EXW?
Under EXW, risk passes to the buyer when the seller places the goods at the buyer's disposal at the named place, not loaded on the collecting vehicle. For EXW Dalian that is the moment the packed servers are ready for your forwarder at our warehouse on the agreed date.
From that point loss or damage in transit is your risk, so ask your forwarder for cargo insurance. Air cargo insurance on servers costs a small fraction of the goods value and covers the flight and the trucking at both ends.
Strict EXW leaves loading the truck to the buyer. Write the pickup time and loading arrangement into the contract, so your forwarder's driver and our warehouse team know who does what on the day.
Who pays what under EXW Dalian?
The EXW price covers the goods ready at the seller's door. Under EXW Dalian our price includes the servers, the configuration, the burn-in, export packing and the export documents. You pay the forwarder for everything after pickup: export clearance fees, air freight, insurance, import clearance, duty, VAT and delivery.
Ask the forwarder for one door-to-door quote, DAP or DDP. That number plus our EXW price is your landed cost, and it shows every line instead of hiding freight in a unit price.
Is an EXW-only exporter a problem if I have never imported?
An EXW-only exporter is not a problem once a forwarder is in place, and the forwarder is the easy part. Freight forwarders that move cargo out of China work in every importing country, and many already collect from Dalian every week. The forwarder, not the seller, is the right party to clear import customs in your country, because the forwarder knows your local rules and can act for you there.
If you do not have a forwarder, we recommend one that delivers DAP or DDP to your country. You contract the forwarder directly and get an itemised invoice. On a DDP quote you receive the servers at your door with duty and VAT already handled.
Questions people ask
Should I ask for FOB or CIF instead of EXW?
FOB and CIF are written for sea freight loaded on a vessel, and servers fly. For air cargo the meaningful choice is who controls the forwarder. With EXW you choose and pay the forwarder yourself, so you see the real freight cost. We sell EXW Dalian only.
Can a courier like DHL, FedEx or UPS collect an EXW order?
Yes, if you hold an account that allows pickups in China, the courier acts as your forwarder. For multi-server pallets a cargo forwarder is usually cheaper, and either option needs the commercial invoice and packing list we prepare.
Who is the importer of record on an EXW shipment?
You are, or the forwarder acting for you under a DDP arrangement. In the EU and UK you need an EORI number to import. Give it to your forwarder before the servers fly.
Who insures the servers during the flight?
Under EXW the seller has no duty to insure. Ask your forwarder to add cargo insurance to the quote. The cost is low compared with the value of a server order.