Beyond facilitating customs clearance, commercial invoices serve as essential records for both buyers and sellers. They aid in accounting, tax reporting, and resolving any transactional disputes. Ensuring the accuracy and completeness of your commercial invoice is not only a regulatory requirement but also a best Statement of Comprehensive Income practice for sound financial management.

Receipt of names, physical characteristics, and condition of the shipped goods

Commercial invoices, or bills of sale, are used for billing and will include the name and address of the customer and seller, product name, and quantity. Shipping invoices, trucking invoices, and freight invoices include greater detail than most invoices generated by businesses. They have detailed information about the shipment’s size, weight, packaging, and contents. The shipping invoice sample prepared by UPS below will help you better understand all the information that must be included when shipping goods internationally.

How do I make an invoice as a shipping business?

• When a buyer purchases more than one item from you, you can combine their purchases into one invoice.
• The platform offers 66+ personalized invoice templates that ease the invoice-making process.
• Also known as a bill of lading, this invoice ensures the smooth transition of goods from one point to another, in turn promoting inventory accuracy and streamlining vendor relations.
• Every invoice number must be unique, so it’s helpful to implement a sequential numbering system for your invoices.
• A proforma invoice is a projected bill of sale, or preliminary bill of sale, given to the client before the shipment of goods.
• Creating an effective shipping invoice template that integrates with your other business tools is a crucial part of running your company.

There is a section on the bill of lading that leaves room for special instructions and notes for the carrier about the specific shipment. Your bill of lading must also include the receiver or consignee’s contact details written clearly, with the full name and mailing address. Outline agreed-upon payment terms and conditions (something you’d discuss before processing the order and generating the receipt). When adding terms, identify the payment methods you accept, such as cash, card, and check.

Additional Resources for International Shipping and Invoicing

• Furthermore, in an overseas shipment, it serves as a legal contract provided by the supplier (exporter) to the buyer (importer).
• If you notice a discrepancy between a recipient’s billing and shipping addresses, contact the client to verify where they want the goods sent.
• The details are related to product type, quality, quantity, product price, and shipment charges.
• Don’t forget the receiver’s address, phone number, and email, as this is necessary for the carrier to deliver the shipment accurately.

Make sure to include your company’s name, logo, address, contact number, and email. If you have a website, adding the link can be helpful for both the buyer and the carrier to contact you. If you select multiple orders, a “Buy Labels” button will appear, allowing you to purchase multiple shipping labels at once. A Customs Form declares all items in a shipment when it crosses international borders. Customs agencies require Customs Forms to help them regulate the flow of goods in and out of each country. You must create customs declarations for each unique item in your shipment.

Download free Special Purpose invoice templates

This feature is great for catering to global clients and reducing potential currency discrepancies. Later, review the details and save or download the final invoice. Notably, you can share invoices with clients or vendors through WhatsApp or Email, eliminating the need for conducting physical meetings. With a Wise Business account you can get local account details for a country even if you don’t live there.

If you prefer automated calculations and team Certified Public Accountant collaboration, an Excel or Google Sheets invoice template is a great choice. For simple, cloud-based editing, a Google Docs invoice template ensures quick and accessible invoicing. With the right approach and tools, you can spend less time on paperwork and more time serving your clients. Easy way to create billing template downloading any template you like from our website in xls, doc or pdf format. The Automated Export System (AES) is a system used by the U.S. government to collect electronic export information from shipping documentation. The commercial invoice is an important component of the AES, providing crucial data about the exported goods that is required by the system for export control purposes.

A Commercial Invoice must be provided for all seafreight and airfreight shipments. For example, if you are sending airfreight shipments with FedEx or DHL you will have to provide to FedEx a Commercial Invoice, or provide to DHL a Commercial Invoice. When a buyer purchases more than one item from you, you can combine their purchases into one invoice. It’ll save you time, and you can offer the buyer a shipping discount. Download and save all of your finished shipping invoice invoices in PDF format for easy emailing and printing.

• A bill of lading is another term for a shipping invoice; it’s a legal accounting document that contains all the information on a freight shipment.
• Shipping invoices are more detailed than commercial invoices, providing a thorough description of the shipment, including payment terms.
• Also, companies disclose the condition of the goods on their invoices.
• Shipping with Square Invoices allows you to streamline your shipping process and manage it efficiently.
• The customizable invoice templates enable you to add your company logo, choose specific colors, and adjust fields to reflect your brand image.

Shipper and Consignee Details

• Secondly, a commercial, or a business invoice, is required to identify the products being sent.
• Typically, only one carrier will be responsible for the delivery.
• Listing what the order entails allows the carrier and buyer to verify that the invoice matches the goods received.
• If your client is a business, put the company name and your point of contact (POC).
• Creating a shipping invoice is easy with invoicing software like Moon Invoice.
• If the courier finds any broken or flawed items, the bill of lading is “claused” as the opposite of a “clean” invoice.

The clarity in details makes it easy for the receiver to contact the seller in case of any query. This is the date when the items are picked up by the carrier and the duty for their safety is handed over to them. Further, this date will be used to track your package as a starting point. If your customer is a company, you should mention the firm name as well as the name of the contact person.