Glossary term
DDP
Incoterms rule: the seller bears everything to the buyer’s door, including import clearance, duty and taxes.
Delivered Duty Paid. The maximum obligation on the seller: cost and risk to the named destination, plus import clearance and payment of duty and import taxes.
It reads simply and is the hardest rule to perform. The seller must be able to act as importer in a country where it may have no legal presence, and in many jurisdictions a non-resident cannot register for or recover import VAT or GST - which turns a recoverable tax into a real cost. Some countries do not permit a non-resident importer of record at all.
Sellers agree to DDP more often than they should. It should be quoted only after checking that the seller can actually clear goods in that destination.