Under the Incoterms rules, what does FOB stand for?

Under the Incoterms rules, FOB stands for Free on Board.

FOB is an Incoterm used for maritime or inland-waterway transport. Under FOB, the seller delivers the goods on board the vessel nominated by the buyer at the agreed port of shipment. The seller handles export clearance, while the buyer arranges the main carriage and bears risk once the goods are loaded onto the vessel.

FOB is often confused with CIF, another maritime Incoterm. Under CIF, the seller also arranges and pays for carriage and insurance to the destination port, although risk transfers earlier when the goods are loaded. FOB should not be used for air, road, rail or multimodal shipments; FCA is generally the appropriate alternative for those movements.

The International Chamber of Commerce publishes Incoterms rules, which allocate costs, risks and responsibilities between buyers and sellers. The current edition is Incoterms 2020, which entered into effect on 1 January 2020.