Create and Manage Your Invoice Document for Export Effortlessly

Invoice document for Export

[Music] hopefully you've already watched our video 11 documents required for exporting it's linked below if you haven't in this video I'll provide a step-by-step look at how to use those documents throughout the shipping process before we get started make sure you subscribe to this channel so you don't miss any of our basics of exporting videos sharing practical advice for exporters and [Music] importers [Music] here's what the export shipping documentation process should look like great you have a potential buyer when someone expresses interest in your products they will often send you a letter of inquiry outlining the terms of their interest along with a request for an informal or formal quote after you receive an inquiry from a buyer you need to make sure you can do business with them that means screening them against denied and restricted party lists you can manually screen their name their company name and their address by checking each of the scores of lists published by the US government the easier way is to automate that process by using software like shipping Solutions I'll link to our restricted party screening wizard below your buyer made it through screening now you'll need to provide a proforma invoice for the transaction the proforma invoice is the first impression you will make on your buyers so make sure you do it right it acts like a quote and looks like a commercial invoice and it can be used to arrange financing for the purchase if the proforma invoice results in an order the final commercial invoice will closely resemble the proforma invoice that means all the costs included in the quotation are firm and may not vary beyond the terms outlined in the letter of credit after you send the proforma the buyer will either reject or accept your proposal as part of the acceptance process they will most likely want to negotiate the terms of the sale this will result in a verbal or written contract these negotiations include a discussion of the price to be paid the payment terms you'll be using whether it's cash in advance open account or something in between the term of sale you'll be using typically one of the 11 inco terms 2020 rules there's a link below to a chart breaking down each of these terms how your goods will be shipped who's responsible for shipping the goods who's responsible for hiring the freight forwarder or Carrier who's responsible for filing the electronic export information through AES how the transaction will be paid if you're using a letter of credit you need to make sure you have the necessary documents to satisfy its requirements what documents need to be provided by which party as the exporter you'll need to meet whatever regulations your buyer may have in their own country as well as the documentation and regulation requirements of the US once you have finalized your sale and prepared your goods for export you need to prepare the proper shipping shipping documents your export shipment may require you to include these five export forms the first form you almost always need to include as the commercial invoice it is used by several parties throughout the shipment US Customs and Border Protection May review it for export control purposes the Customs Authority in the destination country requires the invoice to clear the goods for import the buyer may use the invoice to release funds through its Bank to the seller and the exporter may need it to make an insurance claim if any damage occurs during the shipment an exporter typically includes three copies of the invoice with the original signed in blue ink you typically include a packing list to provide the freight forwarder carrier and ultimate conse with information about your shipment the packing details and the marks and numbers noted on the outside of the boxes a packing list is also used by Customs authorities in importing countries to assess security and compliance and it is a required document to find file a claim with the carrier or insurance company in the event of cargo damage or loss while some countries will accept a statement of origin on the commercial invoice the Customs authorities of other countries may require a separate document titled a certificate of origin the certificate of origin is documentary evidence that the goods originated in the country stated on the certificate commercial invoice or packing list if the United States has negotiated a free trade agreement with the country you're exporting to you may want to provide the specific form for that trade agreement you'll find free pdf samples of many of these FTA certificates of origin on the shipping Solutions website or linked Below based on the discussions you had with your buyer in step four about the type of export and who is filing through AES you may need to prepare a shipper's letter of instruction an SLI provides your company with a written record of who received the shipping documents who to contact for questions who to contact for proof of export and who issued the export control information that was used to support the decision to export the goods if your agent will be filing through AES for you you must include power of attorney for them to file on your behalf you will need at least one but you may need several bills of lading to accompany your export for example you may need an inland bill of lading to move your goods to a port or airport for moving Goods out of the United States you will need a separate bill of lighting which is usually filled out by your Freight forwarder if necessary you will also need to complete a dangerous goods form at this point right before the Goods ship for export run one last restricted party screening to make sure nothing has changed on any denied or restricted party list there may be other specific documents to prepare before you can export your goods these might be identified in the sales contract you negotiated with your buyer documents required under the terms of a letter of credit or other payment options or forms requested by the freight forwarder these additional documents may include a bank draft or for a temporary export an ATA carne once all your documents are accurately completed and you have fulfilled the steps of this export process go ahead and ship your goods finally don't forget that in addition to Preparing these shipping documents it's also your responsibility to keep copies of all your documents and other correspondents throughout the sale including phone calls emails Etc after all it's your job not your buyers your forwarders or anyone else's to document the whole process and shipping Solutions is here to help if you liked this video like it share it and make sure you're subscribed to our Channel watch for more videos sharing real practical advice about export documentation compliance and the latest changes affecting exporters you'll also find hundreds of articles calls about every aspect of exporting on our blog shippings solutions.com blog you'll find a link below