{"id":12133,"date":"2026-03-05T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-05T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/?p=12133"},"modified":"2026-03-27T13:49:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T12:49:10","slug":"when-perceived-and-rule-based-contract-performance-dont-align","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/when-perceived-and-rule-based-contract-performance-dont-align\/","title":{"rendered":"When \u201cPerceived\u201d and Rule-Based Contract Performance Don\u2019t Align"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Incoterms in Practice:<\/u><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When \u201cPerceived\u201d and Rule-Based Contract Performance Don\u2019t Align<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Incoterms provide clarity in both international and domestic trade. They define the rights and obligations of buyers and sellers in a uniform, globally recognized way and are regularly reviewed and updated by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). What Incoterms do not regulate, however, are payment terms or internal processes such as invoicing and document flow. This is precisely where misunderstandings often arise in day-to-day business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In practice, two perspectives frequently collide: rule-based contract performance<\/strong> and perceived contract performance<\/strong>. This becomes particularly evident with delivery terms such as CPT<\/strong> or CIP<\/strong>. From a legal standpoint, the seller has fulfilled their contractual obligations once the goods are handed over to the first carrier\u2014regardless of whether the buyer physically receives the goods days or even weeks later, for example in maritime transport. At the same time, invoicing today is often digital and almost instantaneous. As a result, the invoice may arrive while the goods are still at sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Here is an overview of the most commonly used Incoterms of WTH GmbH with its business partners. Graphic: WTH<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This can be irritating\u2014but it is not an error. Rather, it reflects clearly defined Incoterms and modern, efficient processes. Complaints about \u201cearly invoicing\u201d are usually rooted in the expectation that contract performance is only completed once the buyer can physically dispose of the goods. Incoterms take a different approach\u2014and this transparency is one of their greatest strengths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIncoterms help remove emotion from the interpretation of contracts and replace it with clear rules\u2014creating fairness and reliability for all parties involved<\/strong>,\u201d says Gero Thieme, Managing Director of WTH GmbH.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At WTH GmbH, we therefore place great emphasis on regularly training our employees in delivery terms and their practical implications. This ensures that our teams act competently, objectively, and in a legally sound manner in day-to-day operations\u2014even when perceived and formal contract performance occur at different times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the WTH Blog<\/strong>, we will take a closer look at Incoterms and their practical application throughout the second quarter of 2026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Incoterms provide clarity in both international and domestic trade. They define the rights and obligations of buyers and sellers in a uniform, globally recognized way and are regularly reviewed and updated by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). What Incoterms do not regulate, however, are payment terms or internal processes such as invoicing and document flow. This is precisely where misunderstandings often arise in day-to-day business.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":12164,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[162],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12133","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hauptbeitraege-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12133","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12133"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12133\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12254,"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12133\/revisions\/12254"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12133"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12133"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wthgmbh.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12133"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}