Proforma invoice FAQ: what exporters and importers ask

It is not always legally required, but omitting it is a false economy. The HS code determines duty, taxes, licences and prohibitions at destination, and without it your buyer cannot calculate landed cost or complete their import file. Give the six-digit international subheading for each line and note which country’s tariff you used. See the HS code guide.

FCA at a named place is usually the safest starting point: you handle export clearance, which only you can do, and the buyer’s forwarder takes over from there. Avoid EXW, which obliges a foreign buyer to file an export declaration in your country and leaves you without proof of export. Avoid DDP unless you have confirmed you can act as importer of record at destination. The 11 rules, with a worked cost example, are in the Incoterms 2020 guide.

Because the letter of credit is drafted from it. The bank copies your goods description, amount, currency, Incoterms rule, shipment period and required documents into the credit. Anything vague or wrong in your proforma becomes vague or wrong in the credit, and your shipping documents will later be examined against that text. See letters of credit for small exporters.

No. Use a separate series with a distinct prefix, such as PI-2026-041. Sharing the sequence with your legal invoice numbering breaks the audit trail, confuses your buyer’s accounts payable team and can lead to a document being paid twice. Add a line stating that the document is not a tax invoice and that no payment is due against it.

Legally, rarely. Practically, yes. Banks and licensing authorities in many markets — particularly where exchange controls apply — will not accept an unsigned or unstamped document, and a signature reassures a new buyer that the offer is genuine. Sign it, stamp it, and export it as a PDF rather than an editable file.

Yes, provided the currency is stated clearly and your buyer can obtain it. US dollars and euros dominate cross-border trade, but some markets restrict which currencies can be remitted, and a licence or bank registration may lock the currency for the whole transaction. Agree it before issuing, because changing it later usually means amending the buyer’s licence or credit, not just reissuing your document.

Exports of goods are commonly zero-rated or exempt, but the rule depends on your own country’s law and on your ability to prove the goods left. A proforma is not a tax document in any case, so it should show the tax treatment you intend to apply rather than charge tax. Confirm the position with your accountant and keep your export declaration and transport documents as evidence.

A quotation is a commercial, often informal price indication addressed to a purchasing manager. A proforma invoice is a firm offer laid out as an invoice, complete enough to be lodged with a bank or a government authority. In practice, buyers in international trade ask for a “PI” precisely because their bank or their customs regime needs the fuller document.