On the operations desk, DDP tells a freight forwarder that the seller carries the whole journey, arranging and funding carriage, completing both export and import customs formalities, and paying the duties and taxes due at destination, with risk passing to the buyer only once the goods arrive ready for unloading. The decision the term drives is whether the seller can lawfully and practically act as importer in the destination country, since some import authorities restrict who may clear the goods, which can leave the seller exposed. The clean line to draw is against DAP (Delivered at Place): both are any-mode rules under which the seller delivers the goods ready for unloading at the named destination, but under DDP the seller clears the goods for import and pays the duties and taxes, whereas under DAP the buyer handles import clearance and bears those charges. The line is simply who clears import and pays duty, the seller under DDP and the buyer under DAP.
Glossary
DDP (Delivered Duty Paid)
Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) is the any-mode Incoterm under which the seller bears all costs and risks of delivering the goods to the named place of destination, including import clearance and the payment of import duties and taxes, making it the maximum obligation placed on the seller.