What does commercial invoicing mean?

A commercial invoice is a document created for international shipments and orders. These are typically prepared by the seller and include details such as an invoice number, payment terms, due date, itemized summary of shipment, etc. An invoice in itself does not guarantee transfer of ownership, unless there’s a proof that the payment has been made.

What should a commercial invoice include?

A commercial invoice should include the full name and address of the buyer. It should also have an invoice number, payment terms, due dates, etc. a commercial invoice also includes a summary of all items that have been purchased along with the price of those items. The invoice ends with an acceptance form and signatures.

What is the difference between an invoice and a commercial invoice?

A regular invoice is prepared for domestic and international orders. A commercial invoice, on the other hand, is only prepared when the shipment is international. Many businesses prefer to use commercial invoice for international shipments as it provides more information than a regular invoice.

This is a Commercial Invoice Template. A Commercial Invoice is a special type of invoice used in cross-border goods transactions to allow customs officials to calculate proper import tariffs and taxes based on the value of the goods being shipped (or in other circumstances where it is important to establish the commercial nature of a transaction, such as to rebut the presumption of a gift or benefit in kind). If you would prefer to start from a blank invoice you can use our Blank Invoice Template. If you need an invoice which includes sales tax or VAT you should use our Tax Invoice Template. If you are looking for an invoice suitable for the sale of domestics goods or services you can use our Sales Invoice Template or our Services Invoices Template. This Commercial Invoice Template is drafted for a natural person however if you wish to use it for a company you should include all details from your company’s letterhead (full company name, registration number, logo etc). Finally, if you want to raise an informal request for payment you can use our Proforma Invoice Template. More invoices here: PandaDoc Invoice Template Gallery.

[Sender.FirstName][Sender.LastName]

[Sender.Address]
[Sender.Phone]

Commercial Invoice

Invoice No.:[Invoce.No]
Payment terms: [Invoice.Terms]
Due date: [Invoice.DueDate]

Bill to:

[Client.FirstName][Client.LastName]

[Client.Address]
[Client.Phone]

Many people get confused about what invoice number to choose. The only requirement is that each invoice should have a unique reference number (otherwise things get very confusing when it comes to doing accounts). The simplest way to number invoices is numerically starting from 1 (1, 2, 3, etc) and this is also the easiest method from a bookkeeping point of view however some people prefer not to use this approach since it gives their clients an indication of their number of transactions. Other options include using larger numerical increments (137, 146, 154, etc), using the year as part of the invoice numbers (2015/0001, 2015/0002, 2015/003 etc), using the client’s name as part of the invoice number (Jones001, Jones002, Jones003). If you are worried about keeping track of the numbers the simplest option is just to use the date in reverse (e.g. Invoice Number 140704 for an invoice raised on 4th July 2014).

Name	Price	QTY	Subtotal
	$0.00	1	$0.00
	$0.00	1	$0.00
	$0.00	1	$0.00
	$0.00	1	$0.00
$0.00
Subtotal			$0.00
Discount			$0.00
Tax			$0.00
Total			$0.00

I, the undersigned [Client.FirstName][Client.LastName], do hereby confirm that this invoice relates to a commercial transaction and this document contains a fair, complete and accurate description of that transaction and the relevant goods and/or services provided as well as a true and realistic description of their value.

Signature

MM / DD / YYYY