LogisticsDocuments1Chapter12chapteroutlinePartIGovernmentDocumentsOverviewofLogisticsDocumentsTypesofGovernmentDocumentsImportLicenseExportLicenseGeneralizedSystemofPreferences

CertificateofOriginFormACertificateofOriginInspectionCertificateInspectionCertificateofWeight/QuantityInspectionCertificateofQualityVeterinaryInspectionCertificateOverviewofcommercialdocuments BillofExchangeInvoice PackingListWeightList InsurancePolicy/InsuranceCertificate

PartIICommercialDocuments(1)

PartIIISupplementaryReading

CommercialDocuments(2)LetterofCreditShipper’sExportDeclaration(SED)SpecimenIrrevocableDocumentaryCreditApplicationSpecimenLetterofCreditAlargenumberofdocumentsareneededintheglobaltransport.Logisticsdocumentsareindispensableinthelogisticsservices,whichhavethemainfeaturesofaccuracy,completeness,conciseness,andpromptness.1．Accuracyreferstothedetailsinlogisticsdocumentsmustbeinstrictcompliancewiththoseinthesalescontract,andnovaguewordsorexpressionsshouldbeused.PARTIGovernmentDocuments

OverviewofLogisticsDocuments2．Completenessmeanseverynecessarydetailshouldbeincludedineachlogisticsdocument.3．Concisenessdenotesnoredundantwordsorexpressionsshouldbeused,andnocorrectionshouldbemadeonthelogisticsdocuments.4．Promptnessmeansthelogisticsdocumentsshouldbereadywhentheyareneeded,andunnecessarydelayorconfusionshouldbeavoided.Therearethreekindsofcommonlyusedlogisticsdocuments,thatis,governmentdocuments,commercialdocumentsandtransportdocuments,whichareclassifiedroughlyaccordingtothedocumentsource.TypesofGovernmentDocuments

Governmentdocumentsareissuedbygovernmentbodiesconcerned,andincludeimportlicence,exportlicence,inspectioncertificate,certificateoforigin,andgeneralizedsystemofpreferencescertificateoforiginFormA,etc.ImportLicence

Importlicenceisapermitissuedbyanationalgovernmentallowinganimportertobringaspecificquantityofcertaingoodsintoacountry.Eachlicensespecifiesthevolumeofimportsallowed,andthetotalvolumeallowedshouldnotexceedthequota.Themainfunctionsofimportlicencesareasfollows:1．Itfunctionsasameansofexchangecontrol,thelicencebothpermittingimportationandallowingtheimportertopurchasetherequiredforeigncurrency.Manycountriesuseimportlicenseandforeignexchangeauthorizationsystemtorestrictimports.2．Importlicensesareconsideredtobenon-tariffbarrierstotradewhenusedasawaytodiscriminateagainstanothercountry'sgoodsinordertoprotectadomesticindustryfromforeigncompetition.3．Itisusedtocontrolentryofdangerousgoods.Importershavetopresentproformainvoicestotheirlicensingauthoritiesortotheircentralbanks,orsometimestobothtoapplyforthelicence.Licensescanbesoldtoimportingcompaniesatacompetitiveprice,orsimplyafee.Iftheplannedimportationislegalandmeetscurrentrequirements,thelicencewillbeissued.Therefore,exportersshouldnotshipthegoodstotheimporterswhoneedlicencesuntilthelicensesareactuallyinhand.

ExportLicenceExportlicenceisanexportcontroldocumentissuedbyanationalgovernmentrequiredbeforegoodscanbeexportedfromacountry.Exportlicenceismostoftenusedtomonitortheexportofsensitivetechnologies,prohibitedgoods,dangerousgoods,strategygoods,orgoodsinshortsupplyinthehomemarket.GeneralizedSystemofPreferencesCertificateofOriginFormAissuedbytheinspectionagencyintheexporttradeisanimportantpartoftheofficialdocuments.GeneralizedsystemofpreferencesisreferredtoasGSP.GSPisasystemofgeneral,non-discriminatoryandnon-reciprocaltariffpreferences,underwhichdevelopingcountriesenjoypreferentialtariffsontheexportsoffinishedandsemifinishedproducts(includingsomeprimaryproducts)todevelopedcountries.GSP’sobjectivesaretoincreasetheexportearningsofdevelopingcountries,realizetheindustrializationandaccelerateeconomicgrowthindevelopingcountries.GeneralizedSystemofPreferencesCertificateofOriginFormAisusedtocertifythecountryoforiginofexportgoodsenjoyingtheGSPtariffpreferences.GeneralizedSystemofPreferencesCertificateofOriginFormACertificateofOriginCertificateoforiginisadocumentissuedbyacertifyingauthoritysuchasachamberofcommerceorotherauthorizedbodyintheexporter’scountrystatingthecountryoforiginofthegoods.Itisusuallyrequiredbycountrieswhichdonotusecustomsinvoiceorconsularinvoicetosettheproperdutiesfortheimports.Certificateoforiginusuallyincludesthefollowingelements:keydetails(typicallyconsignor,consignee,anddescriptionofgoods)regardingtheshipmentandsuchdetailstobeinaccordancewithotherdocumentssuchasdocumentarycreditandcommercialinvoice;astatementoforiginofthegoods;thename,signatureand/orsealofthecertifyingauthority,etc.

Inspectioncertificateisadocumentissuedbyanauthoritytoindicatethatthegoodshavebeeninspectedpriortoshipmentandastatementoftheresultsoftheinspection.Itisgenerallyissuedbyaneutral,independentthird-partyinspectionserviceoragovernmentagency.Inspectioncertificatetakesmanyforms,suchasinspectioncertificateofquality,inspectioncertificateofweight,inspectioncertificateofquantity,veterinaryinspectioncertificate,inspectioncertificateofsanitary,disinfectioninspectioncertificate,inspectioncertificateoforigin,inspectioncertificateofvalue,inspectioncertificateondamagedcargo,inspectioncertificateofpacking,andinspectioncertificateoffumigation.InspectionCertificateInspectionCertificateofWeight/QuantityInspectioncertificateofweight/quantityconfirmsthatthegoodsareinlinewiththeweight/quantityspecifiedonthebilloflading,commercialinvoice,insurancepolicy/certificateorotherspecifieddocuments.Insodoing,itconfirmstotheimporter,theexporter,theinsurancecompanyorotherspecifiedpartiesthatthegoodswereataspecifiedweight/quantityatthetimeofshipment.Inspectioncertificateofweight/quantityisusuallyrequestedbytheimportertoconfirmthattheweight/quantityofthegoodsisinconformitywiththeexportsalescontractatthetimeofshipment.

InspectionCertificateofQualityInspectioncertificateofqualityconfirmsthatthequalityandspecificationofaparticularconsignmentofgoodsisinconformitywiththesalescontractatthetimeofshipment.Itmaybeissuedbytheexporterorarelevantgovernmentdepartmentasrequiredundertheletterofcreditorsalescontractterms.Itisessentialthatcargodescriptioninthequalitycertificateconformtoitstermsfoundinotherrelevantdocuments,suchascommercialinvoice,L/C,insurancepolicy,etc.VeterinaryInspectionCertificateVeterinaryinspectioncertificatecertifiesthatashipmentofliveanimals,fresh,chilledandfrozenmeats(andsometimesevencannedmeats)hasbeeninspectedfordisease.Thiscertificateisgenerallyissuedbyathird-partyindependenttestingcompanyorgovernmentauthority.

NewWordsandExpressions

Commercialdocumentsareissuedbyvariousbusinessessuchastheexporter,theimporter,theinsurancecompany,theshippingcompany,andthebanktodefinethebusinessrelationsbetweenthepartiesconcernedandprovideanaccountingrecordofindividualtransaction.Commercialdocumentstakemanyformsincludingbillofexchangeordraft,insurancepolicy/insurancecertificate,proformainvoice,commercialinvoice,consularinvoice,customsinvoice,packinglist,weightlist,measurementlist,beneficiarycertificate,creditnote,debitnote,letterofcredit,etc.PartIICommercialDocuments(1)OverviewofCommercialDocumentsBillofExchangeBillofexchange,alsoknownasdraft,isanunconditionalorderinwriting,signedbyaperson(drawer)suchasanexporter,andaddressedtoanotherperson(drawee),typicallyabank,orderingthedraweetopayastatedsumofmoneytoyetanotherperson(payee),oftentheexporter,ondemandoratafixedordeterminablefuturetime.Themostcommontypesofdraftsaresightdraftswhicharepayablewhenpresented,andtimedrafts(alsocalledusancedrafts)whicharepayableatafuturefixed(specific)dateordeterminable(e.g.30,60,90days)date.InvoicesInvoiceisadocumentofferedbytheexportertotheimporterregardingthesoldgoods.Therearefourinvoicesmainlyusedininternationaltrade:proformainvoice,commercialinvoice,consularinvoiceandcustomsinvoice.Proformainvoiceisapreliminaryinvoicemadeoutbyanexporterattheimporter’srequestbeforeasaleorshipmentofthegoods,informingtheimporterofthekindsandquantitiesofgoodstobesent,theirvalue,shippingcosts,andimportantspecificationssuchasweight,size,andsimilarcharacteristics.Proformainvoiceisusedbytheimportertoseewhatthepurchaserwillcost,obtainanynecessaryimportlicensesandforeignexchangeapproval,andapplyforaletterofcredit.Commercialinvoice,issuedbytheexportertotheimporter,providesdetailsofatransactionandformsthebasisofthetransactionbetweentheimporterandtheexporter.Itisoneofthemostimportantdocumentsusedininternationaltrade.Itprimarilyfunctionsasacheckfortheimporteragainstchargesanddeliveryandasthedeterminationofvalueofgoodsfortheassessmentofcustomsduties,preparationforconsulardocumentation,insuranceclaimsandpackingpurposes.Insomecases,itmayformasalescontractifitisinwritingandcontainsallthematerialtermsThemainpartsonacommercialinvoiceusuallyincludetheissuedate,theimporter,theexporter,theinvoicenumber,shippingmarks,descriptionsandquantitiesofthegoods,prices,deliverytermsandotherimportantinformationconcerningthetransaction.Commercialinvoicehasdifferentmeaningstodifferentpartiesinvolved.Forexample,itisasalesinvoicefortheexporter,apurchaseinvoicefortheimporter,andadocumentrequiredbycustomstodeterminetruetransactionvalueofgoodsfortheassessmentofcustomsduties,topreparecustomsdeclaration,torecordtradestatistics,andtoexerciseimportcontrol.Consularinvoiceisanexportinvoicecoveringashipmentofgoodscertifiedintheexportingcountrybytheconsuloftheimportingcountry.Thisinvoiceisrequiredbycustomsofcertainimportingcountriestoverifythevalue,quantity,andnatureofthegoodsimportedandtoenablethemtochargethecorrectimportduties.Acertificateoforiginmayalsoberequired.Theinvoicemustbepurchasedfromtheconsulateoftheimportingcountrytowhichthegoodsarebeingshippedandusuallyispreparedinthelanguageofthatcountry.Customsinvoiceisaninvoicemadeoutonaspecialformstipulatedbythecustomsauthoritiesoftheimportingcountrytoallowimportstoenterthecountry.Thisinvoiceincludesinformationthatthecountrydesiresandisnotfoundontheordinarycommercialinvoice.Itisonlyusedinafewcountries.Customsinvoiceisrequiredbytheimportingcountryinordertoclearthecustoms,toverifycountryoforiginforimportdutyandtaxpurpose,tocompareexportpriceanddomesticprice,andtofixantidumpingduty,etc.

Packinglist,alsoknownaspackingslip,isadocumentpreparedbytheshipper,i.e.theexporteratthetimethegoodsaredispatched,givingdetailsoftheinvoice,theshipper,theconsignee,countryoforigin,vesselorflightdetails,portorairportofloadinganddischarge,placeofdelivery,shippingmarks,containernumber,weightand/orvolume(cubic)ofgoods,etc.,butitdoesnotcontainprices.Itsprimepurposeistogiveaninventoryoftheshippedgoods,anditisusuallyrequiredbythecustomsforclearancepurposes.PackingListPackinglistaccompaniesthegoodsandthecarrier’sdocumentsthroughoutthetransit.Acopyofthepackinglistisoftenattachedtotheshipmentitselfandanothercopysentdirectlytotheconsigneetoassistincheckingtheshipmentwhenreceived.Today,theprovisionofapackinglistdocumentismandatoryforcustomsandbanksunderdocumentarycreditsystems.Packinglistmaybeusedbydifferentpartiesindifferentaspects.Forexample,itisusedbytheshippertoevidencethedetailedweight,volume,size,packingandpackagingofthecargodelivered;itisusedbytheshipmentweightandvolumeandwhetherthecorrectcargoisbeingshipped;anditisusedbythecarriertocalculatefreightorcarriage.

WeightListWeightlist,sometimesknownasweightnote,weightmemo,orweightcertificate,isusuallyissuedbytheexporterdescribingtheweightofeachpieceofgoods,andalsoashippingdocumentthataccompaniesdeliverypackages.Weightlistmaybeusedbydifferentpartiesindifferentaspects.Forexample,itisusedbytheshippertoevidencethegrossweightandthenetweightofeachunitofpackage,andthetotalweightofthecargodelivered;itisusedbythefreightforwardertodeterminethetotalshipmentweight;anditisusedbythecarriertocalculatefreightorcarriage.

InsurancePolicy/InsuranceCertificate

Insurancepolicyisadocumentconfirminginsuranceofcargoandindicatingthetypeandamountofinsurancecoverageinforceonaparticularshipment.Itisusedtoassuretheinsuredthatinsuranceisprovidedtocoverlossofordamagetocargowhileintransit.Thisdocumentisnormallyissuedtothepartybuyingtheinsurancebyaninsurancecompanyoritsagent,whichmayincludeacarrier,freightforwarder,customsbrokerorlogisticsfirm.Insurancepolicyusuallyincludesthename,addressandsignatureoftheinsurer;policynumber;thenameandtheendorsementoftheassured;pointsoforiginanddestinationoftheshipment;conditionsofcoverage,exclusions,anddeductible,ifappliable;adescriptionoftheriskscoveredandtheinsuredtime;adescriptionoftheconsignment;thesumorsumsinsuredandpremium,etc.Insurancecertificate,asimplifiedinsurancepolicy,usuallycontainssimilardataasaninsurancepolicy,butitexcludesthedetailedrightsandobligationsofbothsidesatthebackofthedocument.

NewWordsandExpressionsPartIIISupplementaryReadingCommercialDocuments(2)LetterofCredit

Letterofcredit(L/C)isawrittenpromisewhichisissuedtotheexporter(i.e.thebeneficiary)bytheopeningorissuingbankupontherequestoftheimporter(i.e.theapplicant),promisingtopayacertainsumofmoneywithinacertainperiodoftimeagainstthestipulateddocuments.Thedocumentstheimporterrequiresinthecreditmayvary,butataminimumincludeacommercialinvoiceandabilloflading.Otherdocumentstheimportermayspecifyarecertificateoforigin,consularinvoice,insurancepolicy/certificate,inspectioncertificateandothers.Ls/Carethemostcommonmethodofmakinginternationalpaymentsbecausethetransactionrisksaresharedbytheimporterandexporter,andtheyaremoreformallycalleddocumentaryLs/Cbecausethebankshandlingthetransactiondealindocumentsinsteadofingoods.

ThereareanumberofdifferentkindsofLs/C,suchasirrevocableL/C,documentaryL/C,cleanL/C,confirmedL/C,unconfirmedL/C,transferableL/C,acceptanceL/C,sightL/C,usanceL/C,deferredpaymentL/C,back-to-backL/C,revolvingL/C,redclauseL/C,standbyL/C.EachtypeofL/Chasitsownadvantagesanddisadvantagesfortheimporterandfortheexporter.Ofallthetypes,twobasicformsofLs/CaretherevocableL/CandirrevocableL/C.TherearealsotwotypesofirrevocableL/C:theirrevocableL/Cnotconfirmed,andtheirrevocableconfirmedL/C.Shipper’sExportDeclaration(SED)Shipper’sexportdeclarationisadocumentpreparedbytheshipperandpresentedtoagovernmentauthorityspecifyinggoodsexportedalongwiththeirquantities,weight,valueanddestination.TheSEDisusedbyanation’scustomsauthoritytocontrolexportsandcompiletradestatistics.SomecountriessuchastheUnitedStatesareinthecourseofinstitutingnewproceduresthatwillrequireexporterstosubmittheirSEDselectronically,whichinvolvesusingacomputerwithamodemandspeciallydesignedformssoftware.SpecimenIrrevocableDocumentaryCreditApplicationBeneficiary(fullnameandaddress)L/CNO.Ex-CardNo.ContractNo.

DateandplaceofexpiryofcreditPartialshipments□allowed

□notallowedTransshipment□allowed

□notallowed□Issuebyairmail□Withbriefadvicebyteletransmission□Issuebyexpressdelivery□Issuebyteletransmission(whichshallbetheoperativeinstrument)Amount(bothinfiguresandwords)Loadingonboard/dispatch/takinginchargeat/fromNotlaterthanfortransportationto

Descriptionofgoods:

Packing:Creditavailablewith□bysightpayment

□byacceptance□bynegotiation□bydeferredpaymentatagainstthedocumentsdetailedherein□andbeneficiary’sdraftfor

oftheinvoicevalue□FOB

□C&F

CIF□orothertermsDocumentsrequired:(markedwith×)1.(

)Signedcommercialinvoicein

copiesindicatingL/CNo.andcontractNo.2.(

)Fullsetofcleanonboardoceanbillsofladingmadeouttoorderandblankendorsed,marked“freight[

]tocollect/[

]prepaid[

]showingfreightamount”notifying3.(

)Airwaybillsshowing“freight[

]tocollect/[

]prepaid[

]indicatingfreightamount”andconsignedto4.(

)Memorandumissuedby

consignedto5.(

)Insurancepolicy/certificatein

copiesfor

oftheinvoicevaluesho