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When importing or exporting goods abroad, there are many documents that are involved in this process. These can either be border measures or domestic requirements of the importing or exporting country.
Here are the following documents that may be needed for International Trade:
Inspection Certificate
An inspection certificate certifies that certain goods have been manufactured or produced in conformity with the specifications as made in the sale of goods agreement pertaining to the goods. The goods will be inspected to ensure conformity with all specifications including with regards to quality, quantity and tariff classifications.
Proforma Invoice
The purpose of a proforma invoice is to provide the buyer with a precise price payable for the goods being purchased. A proforma invoice is also used by customs to determine whether any duties are payable on the goods.
Bills of Exchange
This is a written document where an exporter requests the importer a certain amount of money in the future. The importer also agrees to pay this sum of money on a particular date or before that.
Commercial Invoice
This document should be provided by the seller to the buyer. The custom authorities of the importing country will use this document to evaluate the good imported into the country for the purposes of tariff classification.
Packing List
This document records important information about goods being shipped including descriptions, weight, quantity and dimensions of the good being shipped. This information is important to the different parties to the international trade transaction including the exporter, consignee and forwarder.
Weight List
A weight list is a document that records the weight of goods being shipped as part of an international trade transaction. It is particularly common in international trade transactions for commodities – such as cocoa, rice, coffee, sugar etc. This is because, weight is the key metric to quantify the number of goods being sold/shipped when it comes to commodities, unlike other goods, where the quantity or the number of goods is the key metric.
Purchase Order
A purchase order is a document sent from a buyer to a supplier in order to place an order for specific goods to be delivered to the buyer at a later date. Purchase orders are often important to help track delivery and payment for both buyers and sellers. They can also be an important document for the purposes of obtaining credit from suppliers or banks.
Key Takeaways
It is crucial to have these documents when the goods crosses the border, otherwise, business owners may incur additional expenses or the custom authorities of the importing country may even refuse the entry of these goods.
