Commercial Invoice Requirements for Export Shipments

The commercial invoice is the document customs authorities use to decide what your goods are, what they are worth and what duty applies. It is also the document your buyer pays against. When those two purposes conflict, shipments stop.

What the invoice must show

• Seller and buyer, with full legal names and addresses
• Invoice number and date
• Ship-to party, if different from the buyer
• Full description of the goods, in plain language
• Quantity, unit of measure and unit price
• Total value and currency
• Country of origin of the goods
• Incoterm and named place
• Terms of payment
• Marks and numbers matching the packaging
• Commodity classification, where known

For US imports, the description has to be specific enough to support classification. "Parts", "gifts", "samples" and "goods" are the descriptions that generate requests for information and, in ocean freight, hold containers. The same discipline applies to the AMS manifest, which draws on the same words.

What US customs requires on an import invoice

19 CFR 141.86 lists the minimum content of an invoice for merchandise entering the United States. Beyond the buyer, seller and price, the invoice must set out:

• the port of entry the merchandise is destined for;
• the time and place of the sale, or of shipment when there is no sale;
• a detailed description with the name by which each item is known, its grade or quality, and the marks and numbers of the packages;
• quantities in the weights and measures of the country of export or of the United States;
• the purchase price of each item in the currency of the purchase, and the kind of currency;
• every charge itemized by name and amount, including freight, insurance, commission, cases, containers, coverings and packing;
• every rebate, drawback and bounty allowed on exportation, itemized separately;
• the country of origin;
• all goods or services supplied for production and not included in the price, such as dies, molds, tools and engineering work, with those furnished in the United States excluded;
• the name of a responsible employee of the exporter who knows or can readily learn the facts of the transaction.

The invoice and every attachment must be in English or carry an accurate English translation. Each invoice must also state in adequate detail what merchandise is in each individual package, and must list every discount from the list or base price. When one entry covers several invoices, they are numbered consecutively starting at 1, and pages are numbered in one series, unless the invoice data is transmitted electronically.

Value is a legal concept, not a preference

Customs value is the price actually paid or payable, adjusted for specific additions. Under 19 CFR 152.103, packing costs the buyer incurs, assists, and certain royalties and license fees are added when they are not already in the price. Assists include materials, tools, dies and molds that the buyer supplies to the producer, and the value added is the buyer's acquisition or production cost. A royalty for a patented manufacturing process is dutiable, and one paid to a third party for US trademark or copyright use is a selling expense of the buyer and is not added. Proceeds of a later resale that accrue to the seller are also added. Discounts have to be genuine and applied before shipment. Free of charge goods still have a value for customs purposes: when there is no purchase, the invoice states the value for each item, or the price the seller would have received in the ordinary course of trade.

What stays out of customs value

Costs that are identified separately from the price are excluded from the transaction value under 152.103(i): reasonable costs of construction, erection, assembly, maintenance or technical assistance after importation into the United States, and the customs duties and other federal taxes payable on the goods because of importation, including the federal excise taxes for which US vendors are ordinarily liable. Charges for the right to reproduce the goods in the United States are not added either. The condition is the same each time: the item is shown as its own line on the invoice. An amount buried in the unit price is part of the value.

Sales between related companies

A sale between a related buyer and seller is not rejected for that reason alone. CBP accepts the transaction value when an examination of the circumstances of sale shows the relationship did not influence the price, or when the value closely approximates the value of identical or similar goods sold to unrelated buyers. The invoice for an intercompany sale carries the same lines as any other invoice, and the file behind it has to show how the price was set.

Understating value is not a saving. It is a misdeclaration, and the exposure includes penalties, interest and a compliance record that follows every future entry. The calculation is set out in how to calculate US import duty.

Separate the freight and insurance

Show international freight and insurance as separate lines when they are part of your selling price. Because the United States values imports on an FOB basis, separately identified freight and insurance are not dutiable. Bundled into a single CIF figure with no breakdown, they become part of the value and you pay duty on your own freight. The same rule governs foreign inland freight: when the price includes it, it is part of the transaction value, unless it is identified separately and incurred after the sale for export to the United States.

Invoice and packing list have to agree

The invoice states value and description. The packing list states how it is packed: cartons, pallets, weights and dimensions. Piece counts, weights and marks must match across both, and match what the consolidator counts at the warehouse. A mismatch on a consolidated container triggers an examination for everyone in the box. Our note on packing list requirements covers the detail.

Export side: Electronic Export Information

When the goods leave the United States, the commercial invoice supplies the data for the Electronic Export Information (EEI) filed in the Automated Export System. Under 15 CFR 30.37, EEI is not required when the value of the commodities under one Schedule B number, shipped from one exporter to one consignee on one conveyance, is $2,500 or less. The threshold applies per Schedule B number, so a shipment of several commodities can need EEI for only some of its lines. The exporter or its agent gives the carrier the filing citation at least 24 hours before loading on a vessel. A value on the invoice that differs from the value in the EEI creates the discrepancy that holds cargo at the port, so the invoice is finalized before the filing.

Origin marking and informal entries

Under 19 CFR 134.11, every article of foreign origin, or its container, imported into the United States must be marked legibly, indelibly and permanently with the English name of the country of origin, unless a legal exception applies. The country of origin on the invoice has to agree with the marking on the goods.

Shipments valued at $2,500 or less can be entered under informal entry (19 CFR 143.21), with the exception of certain articles classified in Chapter 99 of the tariff. The invoice still carries the same description, origin and value, so a low-value shipment is not exempt from invoice discipline.

Letters of credit make the invoice unforgiving

Under a documentary credit, the invoice must match the credit exactly: the description of goods word for word, the currency, the Incoterm and named place, and the amount within tolerance. Banks check documents, not cargo. A perfectly shipped consignment can go unpaid because the invoice describes the goods differently from the credit. Read the credit before invoicing.

Common failures

Address on the invoice not matching the buyer's customs registration. Currency stated in the header but unit prices in another. Origin declared as the country of shipment rather than the country of manufacture. Sequential invoice numbers reused across years. Signatures missing where the destination requires them. Each is small and each stops a shipment.

FAQ

Is a commercial invoice the same as a proforma invoice?

No. A proforma is an offer used to arrange payment or permits. The commercial invoice records the actual transaction and supports the customs entry. US customs also has its own pro forma form, 19 CFR 141.85, which an importer submits as an importer's statement of value when no seller's invoice exists.

Does the commercial invoice need to be signed?

Some destinations require a signature and some require consular or chamber certification. Confirm the requirement for the destination country before shipping. A US import invoice must name a responsible employee of the exporter.

What if goods are free of charge?

Declare a realistic value for customs purposes and state the reason. US rules require a value for each item even when there is no purchase, so "no commercial value" is not an acceptable declaration.

Can I show the HS code on the invoice?

Yes, and it helps when it is correct. An incorrect code on the invoice creates a discrepancy with the entry.

Which currency should I invoice in?

The currency of the sales contract. Keep it consistent across the invoice, the credit and the transport documents, and state the kind of currency on the invoice.

Does the invoice have to be in English?

For US imports, yes. The invoice and every attachment must be in English or carry an accurate English translation with enough information to examine the goods and determine duties.

Who is responsible for the accuracy of the invoice?

The seller prepares it. The invoice names an employee of the exporter who knows the transaction. The ISF rules follow the same logic for data one party receives from another: CBP considers how the filer acquired the information and whether the filer could verify it.

Can a low-value shipment skip the invoice?

No. Shipments of $2,500 or less can use informal entry under 19 CFR 143.21, and the invoice still states description, origin and value. Exports at or below $2,500 per Schedule B number skip the EEI filing, but the buyer's customs authority still receives the invoice.

Exporting into markets where documentation stops cargo? Ask us to review your document set before the container is booked.