How to Prepare a Proforma Invoice
A proforma invoice has all the familiar components of an ordinary domestic invoice -- a description of the product, an itemized listing of charges, and sales terms. I detailed a substantial portion of this subject in my book, "Start and Run a Profitable Exporting Business." Let's say you want to get your customer a landed price quote for a shipment of hairbrushes to their port of entry, in this case CNF (cost and freight) Rotterdam:
U.S.A. Widgets to Rotterdam via Ocean -- Calculating Landed Price per Unit
Here's a look at how you prepare a proforma invoice on an export sale.
You have 100 cases of hairbrushes, packed 12 units to a case. Each case is priced $120, or $12 per unit. Total cost for the order is $12,000.
Selling price: $12,000 -- F.O.B. factory door in U.S.A.
Inland transport: $700
Ocean transport: $1,500
Duty: $300
CAF: $1,250
Documentation: $125
TOTAL LANDED PRICE (or Total CNF Rotterdam): $15,875
The selling price is your cost to buy the product from the manufacturer, plus your markup. Add that figure to the total shipping costs and divide that total by the number of cases. That gets you your landed price per case. Divide that figure by the number of units in a case. That gets you your landed price per unit. In front of the word "invoice," type "proforma."
You have now finalized your price quotation and created a proforma invoice. Don't forget to specify a precise time period during which your quote is valid, and add the freight forwarder's (logistics specialist's) quote reference number.
Once your customer approves the proforma invoice, it will become your actual invoice for the order. The customer will also use the proforma invoice to obtain any necessary funding or import licenses. Your customer should communicate acceptance in a short written sentence or two such as the following (usually via email or fax), with a signature: "We accept your proforma invoice No. 1234 against our P.O. No. ABCD." You will then respond: "Acknowledge and confirm your P.O. No. ABCD against our proforma invoice No. 1234."
That's it. You have a sale. You're in business! From this point on, no additional changes should be made to the transaction by you or your customer until after the expiry date given on the proforma. Before you release the order, though, you and your customer must negotiate terms of payment. There are many factors to consider when choosing an export payment method. Be sure to examine all of them before finalizing your transaction.
