When you buy jewelry from an overseas supplier, “shipping included” does not answer every cost question. You also need to know who handles import clearance and the related duties and taxes. DDP puts those import responsibilities on the seller; DAP generally leaves them with the buyer. Both need an agreed destination.
All JBD website orders are DDP and ship by air; buyers order and pay online. The DAP comparison below helps you read other suppliers' quotations, where a lower initial price may leave import charges to pay later.
Read the goods, delivery location, included charges and remaining buyer actions together. The abbreviation only works when those details are agreed.
What DDP and DAP mean in everyday buying
DDP means Delivered Duty Paid; DAP means Delivered at Place. These Incoterms® rules allocate delivery tasks, costs and risks between seller and buyer.
The ICC Academy's DAP/DDP explanation describes the basic distinction. Under both rules, the seller arranges carriage to the named destination. Under DDP, the seller also handles import clearance and the associated duties and taxes. Under DAP, import clearance is the buyer's responsibility.
| Question | DDP | DAP |
|---|---|---|
| Who arranges carriage to the named destination? | Seller | Seller |
| Who handles export clearance? | Seller | Seller |
| Who handles import clearance and its duties/taxes? | Seller | Buyer |
| Where is normal delivery under the rule? | At the named destination, ready for unloading | At the named destination, ready for unloading |
| What should be checked about unloading? | Buyer normally unloads after delivery; unloading charges may already be included in the seller’s carriage contract | Buyer normally unloads after delivery; unloading charges may already be included in the seller’s carriage contract |
| Does the abbreviation set the payment method or invoice due date? | No | No |
Check the chosen rule, named place, version, contract and agreed buyer obligations, including necessary information. ICC's public checklist and flowcharts give further guidance, particularly the buyer discussion on printed page 10.
“Delivered” has a specific meaning
For these rules, normal delivery and the normal transfer of transit risk are at the agreed destination when the goods are available to the buyer, ready for unloading. That is different from saying the seller's responsibility ends when a parcel is first handed to an airline. The ICC explanation also notes that neither DDP nor DAP obliges the seller to buy insurance for the buyer.
The normal destination-risk summary has exceptions. Under DAP, the buyer's import-clearance obligations carry risk consequences; ICC Academy discusses B3(a) for that stage. Under DDP, the buyer must assist with necessary import documents or information under B7. A delay connected to an unmet buyer obligation needs assessment against the chosen rule and contract; “DDP” does not make every consequence unconditional.
For a small parcel, confirm the delivery service and address. DDP does not mean the carrier will unpack jewelry, stock your shelves or provide unlimited shipment insurance.
DDP, free shipping and door-to-door are different statements
Free shipping is a pricing statement. It can mean no separate transport charge is shown to the buyer. It does not, by itself, identify who handles import taxes.
Door-to-door describes the service route. Delivery to a shop address can still leave the buyer with import obligations under DAP.
DDP allocates delivery responsibilities. A separately disclosed delivery charge can be part of the agreed price while the seller still arranges carriage and import clearance.
Check whether the agreed total covers those delivery obligations, rather than judging the arrangement by the presence of a shipping line on the invoice.
Check your JBD online total alongside the delivery option offered. Consult the JBD shipping information page for service and timing information applicable to the order.
Read a quotation as a list of included and unresolved costs
Put the offer into a few plain fields before comparing suppliers:
- Goods: which items, quantities, materials and variants are included?
- Delivery: which destination and delivery service does the quoted amount cover?
- Import charges: who handles the import process and pays applicable duties and taxes?
- Handling charges: are customs-processing, advancement or other carrier charges included where applicable?
- Other buyer costs: are payment fees, currency conversion or a requested optional service separate?
Confirm whether the last two cost categories apply; not every shipment carries every fee. Carrier labels vary: DHL's international-shipping FAQ explains its duties-and-taxes billing terms. Retain the agreed sale terms and named destination alongside the billing arrangement.
A carrier's duty-billing instruction identifies whom the carrier bills. It is not, by itself, the buyer–seller sale contract or proof that a complete named-place Incoterms rule was agreed. Check the two records together and resolve any mismatch with the seller.
Use three labels in your record: included, separate, unknown. If a fee is included, do not add it again to the comparison. If it is unknown, do not enter zero merely to make the spreadsheet complete. That one distinction prevents an incomplete quote from looking artificially cheap.
To move an unknown import amount toward a usable comparison, give the responsible quotation or clearance party the destination, exact goods/material description, quantity, declared value, origin and proposed classification. Ask it to confirm the classification, valuation basis, relevant duties/taxes and handling scope for that shipment, with a dated reference. If that information is unavailable, leave the total open; this guide supplies no destination tax rate.
A worked quotation comparison
Hypothetical teaching example—not JBD prices, a customs assessment or a recommended tax estimate. Two fictional offers cover the same USD 240 goods and the same destination. Every number below is invented, including the later import charges.
| Cost field | Offer A: DDP | Offer B: DAP |
|---|---|---|
| Goods | USD 240 | USD 240 |
| Quoted delivery | USD 24 | USD 12 |
| Amount paid with the order | USD 264 | USD 252 |
| Import duties/taxes and clearance-related charges | Included in the DDP offer; embedded amount not separately known | Not included; amount initially unknown |
| Later charges introduced only for this exercise | No additional import charge to this buyer in the stated example | USD 12 duty + USD 8 import tax + USD 3 handling = USD 23 |
| Buyer outlay for these stated goods/delivery/import items | USD 264 | USD 275 |
Offer B first looks USD 12 cheaper: USD 264 − USD 252 = USD 12. With the invented later charges, its comparison total becomes USD 252 + USD 23 = USD 275, or USD 11 more than Offer A. Before those later charges were supplied, the correct result for B was USD 252 plus an unknown amount, rather than USD 252 all-in.
Compare the same goods, service and cost scope; a complete DAP offer can be competitive. Resolve unknown import charges before committing cash or setting a resale price. This example does not establish a universal cost advantage for DDP.
What the buyer still needs to do under DDP
Supply an accurate recipient name, address and contact details. For any information request, verify the order and official process it concerns before responding through the appropriate route.
ICC's DDP guidance explains that the buyer may need to supply information or documents for import formalities while the seller remains responsible for clearance. What is requested depends on the goods and destination.
Keep the order confirmation and shipment reference together so that JBD support can link a delivery question to the purchase.
If an unexpected payment request arrives
Identify the requested payment: import charges, an address service, storage or something unrelated to the order. Verify the sender and shipment reference through an established seller or carrier contact. Send JBD support the order number and request so it can be checked against the DDP arrangement; use the JBD FAQ for support.
A carrier logo does not authenticate a request, but DDP is no reason to ignore a genuine request for information. Verify the sender, charge category and responsible party before paying a charge or treating it as an agreed cost.
Other delivery terms worth recognizing
Use the terms below to recognize which tasks another supplier's proposal would assign to you.
| Term | The first question a small buyer should ask |
|---|---|
| EXW — Ex Works | Am I being asked to organize pickup and most of the onward arrangements from the named location? |
| FCA — Free Carrier | At which named place and handover point does the seller deliver to the carrier or other nominated party? |
| FOB — Free On Board | Is this actually a sea or inland-waterway shipment with delivery on board the vessel at the named shipment port? |
| CIF — Cost, Insurance and Freight | Which destination port is named, and do I understand that paid carriage is not the same as arrival-risk responsibility? |
The International Trade Administration's Incoterms overview separates any-mode rules from the sea/inland-waterway group, including FOB and CIF. Payment method, payment timing and ownership transfer remain separate. For an unfamiliar offer, ask the supplier to state the intended terms clearly in writing.
For an air shipment, clarify what a supplier means by “buyer pays freight” rather than accepting a loose FOB label.
Watch the official Incoterms introduction
The International Trade Administration's Manage Export Shipping Costs and Risk with Incoterms video explains delivery responsibilities and risk from an exporter's perspective. It provides context for the comparison above, rather than instructions for a particular small online order.
International Trade Administration: Manage Export Shipping Costs and Risk with Incoterms
Loading this video connects to YouTube. You can also use the original video link below.
Watch the Incoterms introduction on YouTube.
Turn a short question into a useful supplier reply
Ask for the delivery term and cost scope, rather than only “Is shipping included?”:
Please confirm the delivery term, named destination and included charges for this order. Identify any import, clearance or delivery charges that I would pay separately, and any information you need from me.
A complete format is DDP [exact named point], Incoterms® 2020. For example, an entirely invented teaching agreement could read: “DDP Shop Example, receiving entrance A, 18 Example Lane, Exampletown EX1 2AB, United Kingdom, Incoterms® 2020.” This fictitious address is a format demonstration, not a JBD delivery point. Use the actual agreed address and receiving point in a real order; changing DDP to DAP changes import responsibilities even at the same named point.
The template above is not a quotation from a standard. Keep the supplier's reply with the quote revision, including any change to price or delivery destination.
Download the delivery-cost and responsibility record. It includes blank fields and the two explicitly hypothetical offers above. It separates an included embedded cost from a known later charge, and preserves the amount that was unknown at the quotation stage. It is not a customs form or a tax calculator.
Use the payment-methods guide for how and when money moves, and the small-order shipping guide for the parcel journey. At receiving, use the sample inspection record to document what arrived.