13.1.2.4　Proforma invoice形式发票

Despite the name,a proforma invoice is not an invoice,but a“preview”provided by the exporter to the importer of what the actual invoice would be like.As parameters abound for international transactions,it is often difficult for an importer to visualize what his/her final cost will be like.A proforma invoice,literally an invoice “as a matter of form”,helps the importer see in advance what the actualinvoice would be like if the transaction were to take place.

As an invoice “in form”,it also enables the importer to set about a number of things that he/she could not without such a device,such as applying for the import license,the import quota,foreign exchanges or opening a letter of credit,which are often granted on condition of a commercial invoice.

Thanks to the customer-friendly feature,proforma invoices are widely used as quotes or sales confirmations as clients from certain countries prefer to use a confirmed proforma invoice as the contract.When it is used this way,however,a term of validity should be specified,as in the case of an offer.And it should be noted that an unconfirmed proforma invoice should never be allowed in applying for a letter of credit! This may result in serious problems as the actual commercial invoice has to be precisely consistent with the proforma invoice,otherwise,it constitutes discrepancies with the letter of credit and the bank shall refuse to pay!

The format of a proforma invoice is quite similar to that of a commercial invoice so that you can almost substitute a commercial invoice for a proforma invoice merely by changing the title of the former into “Proforma Invoice”.Figure 13-5 is a sample proforma invoice.