Cost insurance and freight

Cost, insurance and freight (CIF) is an Incoterm under which the seller contracts and pays the ocean freight to the named destination port and takes out marine cargo insurance for the buyer’s benefit, yet risk passes to the buyer when goods cross the ship’s rail at loading. CIF is a maritime-only term, valid for sea and inland waterway carriage, not container or multimodal moves, where CIP replaces it. The seller’s insurance duty is minimum cover, Institute Cargo Clauses (C), unless the contract says otherwise. CIF prices land the goods at the discharge port but leave unloading and import clearance to the buyer.