Guides
Export and trade documentation guides
Proforma invoices, Incoterms, letters of credit, HS codes, certificates of origin and landed cost, written for small businesses that buy and sell across borders.
The proforma invoice
Proforma invoice meaning: an offer to sell in invoice form. What it must contain for customs, banks and import licences, how long it stays valid.
A proforma invoice is an offer; an invoice is a demand for payment. Legal effect, tax, accounting and numbering compared, with a table and examples.
Quotation or proforma invoice? What each one commits you to, what buyers and banks expect, and when to send one after the other. With a comparison table.
Which document does customs need, and which does the bank? A field-by-field comparison of proforma and commercial invoices, and errors that delay shipments.
Three filled proforma invoice examples: an export from Kenya in US dollars, a GST proforma in India and a VAT proforma in Nigeria, every line explained.
How to make a proforma invoice step by step: details to collect, lines, currency, tax, terms, validity and signature, in Word, Excel or online.
How to request an advance payment with a proforma invoice: what to write, sample wording, what to issue when the money arrives, and tax on advances.
Customs clears goods on the commercial invoice, but proformas are accepted for licences, samples, temporary admission and free-of-charge shipments.
When DHL, FedEx and UPS accept a proforma invoice, what it must show (value, reason for export, HS code, origin, signature) and how many copies to send.
By country
Proforma invoice format for India under GST: GSTIN, HSN or SAC, place of supply, CGST and SGST or IGST, and when the tax invoice follows. Word, Excel, PDF.
How to write a proforma invoice in Nigeria: TIN, VAT at 7.5%, naira amounts, and the proforma your bank needs for Form M imports. Free Word, Excel, PDF.
How to make a proforma invoice in Kenya: KRA PIN, VAT at 16%, shillings, and why the tax invoice must go through eTIMS. Free template in Word, Excel and PDF.
How to write a proforma invoice in the UAE: TRN, VAT at 5%, dirham amounts, and when the tax invoice is due. Free template in Word, Excel and PDF.
How to make a proforma invoice in South Africa: VAT number, rand, VAT at 15%, and when SARS needs a full tax invoice. Free Word, Excel and PDF template.
Make a proforma invoice in Ghana under the VAT Act 2025: VAT 15%, NHIL 2.5%, GETFund 2.5% on the same value, TIN, cedis. Free Word, Excel, PDF template.
How to make a proforma invoice in Pakistan: NTN and STRN, rupee amounts, sales tax at 18%, and the proforma your bank needs to import. Free template.
What the EU, US, Gulf, Nigeria, Kenya, North Africa and India expect before shipment: licences, exchange control and pre-shipment inspection.
Free templates
An export version with Incoterms, origin and HS codes, and a simple version. No sign-up.
Free quotation template in Word, Excel and PDF: quotation number, validity date, lines, tax, total, payment terms and the customer's signed acceptance.
Free purchase order template in Word, Excel and PDF: PO number, delivery date and address, lines, tax, total, payment terms and supplier confirmation.
Free invoice template in Word, Excel and PDF: tax IDs, invoice number, due date, lines, tax, total and bank details. For any country and currency. No sign-up.
Free commercial invoice template for export in Word, Excel and PDF: HS codes, origin, Incoterms 2020, weights, transport document and signed declaration.
Free export packing list template in Excel, Word and PDF: package numbers, contents, net and gross weights, dimensions, marks and transport document.
Free delivery note template in Word, Excel and PDF: order number, quantities ordered and delivered, carrier, packages and signed proof of delivery.
Free payment receipt template in Word, Excel and PDF: payer, invoices paid, amount, payment method and reference, balance due and signatures. Any currency.
Trade terms and payment
EXW to DDP explained with a worked cost table: who pays freight, insurance and duty, where risk passes, and what changed from Incoterms 2010.
How a documentary credit works, the documents banks examine, why presentations are refused, and how to word your proforma so the credit is workable.
Commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, certificate of origin and destination-specific papers, with the consistency rules that prevent port delays.
Classification, origin and costs
How Harmonized System codes are built, what the six digits mean, the rules that settle classification disputes, and a practical method for finding your code.
Non-preferential vs preferential origin, who issues the certificate, what it must match on your invoice, and the errors that trigger duty demands.
FOB or CIF, which supplier is really cheaper? A worked landed cost calculation with duty, freight, destination charges and the costs importers forget.
Six documents, one app
From the quote to the receipt
One customer file, one product list and your own layout serve all six documents. An accepted quote or proforma becomes an invoice without retyping.
1. The price
Quote
QUO-2026-0012
Your price for the job, with a validity date and space for the buyer to accept it.
2. The firm offer
Proforma invoice
PI-2026-042
What your buyer’s bank, their forwarder or their purchasing team asks for before the order.
3. The order
Purchase order
PO-2026-0007
What is ordered, how many and for which delivery date, signed by the buyer.
4. The delivery
Delivery note
DN-2026-0007
It travels with the goods; the consignee signs it and writes down any reservation.
5. The sale
Invoice
INV-2026-0031
The accepted proforma or quote becomes the invoice, with the same lines and currency.
6. The payment
Payment receipt
REC-2026-0019
Proof of a payment, linked to its invoice, with the method and the balance still due.
3 free documents to try it, no card required.
Your next proforma invoice, already in your colours
Three free documents, no card required. Your tax IDs, bank details and payment terms are typed once, then printed on every PDF.