Section 1 Several Basic Concepts
What is foreign trade?
Foreign trade is doing business with foreigners.
What are the requirements for doing foreign trade business?
Know a little English. It doesn't have to be as good as CET-4 ... You can read three or five hundred words such as number, year, month, day and length, and "hello, thank you, goodbye", plus some nouns related to your products, and then you can buy a Chinese-English dictionary and a computer dictionary software called Kingsoft (if you don't know this software, you can start foreign trade). Of course, the better your English, the more convenient it is to do business, so you should pay attention to accumulation and take time to learn some culture when you are free. There is a computer with internet access. Doing foreign trade without computers will be looked down upon by peers. Besides, it is much cheaper to collect information and send and receive e-mails on the Internet by computer than to make phone calls, send faxes and write letters.
What is the whole process of foreign trade export?
Talk about business-delivery-taking money-reporting transactions to relevant departments.
Why report the transaction?
Because the international management of foreign trade is strict, goods often go through inspection and approval when they go abroad; The money you get should be declared and so on. In addition, the state encourages exports and can enjoy preferential policies by declaring transactions.
Reporting the transaction status is not final, but runs through the whole foreign trade process. Mainly dealing with four departments:
Import and export commodity inspection and quarantine bureau: ask them to inspect the goods before delivery and issue a quality certificate. This process is called commodity inspection.
Customs: after commodity inspection, declare the export to the customs and then ship it out. This process is called "customs declaration".
Administration of foreign exchange: report to the administration of foreign exchange after receiving the money. This process is called "logout"
Tax official: declare after export and get preferential treatment such as tax refund. This process is called "tax refund".
There is not much difference between foreign trade and domestic trade, but it is necessary to deal with several government departments in foreign trade operation.
How to find customers and negotiate business in the second quarter (1)
First, the way to find customers
People engaged in export trade mostly seek customers through various fairs (such as the famous twice-yearly Canton Fair and the East China Fair in Shanghai, etc.). ) and the internet. The effect of attending the fair is faster, and it is more accurate to exchange information with foreigners face to face, but it is expensive. It costs 58,000 yuan to go to an exhibition. The network is much cheaper, and you can start working anytime and anywhere, so let's focus on the network.
There are two ways to find customers online. One is to advertise and shout to let everyone know about you. The second is to search for purchase information to see who looks like a buyer.
Second, how to find the information you need online? (The key points of the exam must be reviewed)
Advertisements must know where to send, and purchasing information must know where to receive. So first, let's practice how to find the information we need online. There's everything on the Internet, so it's no good stirring it up and wandering around. Therefore, we need an important tool called "search engine" to lead the trend on the Internet. Tell it what you are looking for, and it will lead you to it.
If you sell eggs and want to know who wants to buy eggs, how to find them? It is not difficult to imagine that people who want to buy eggs will shout to buy eggs online. As long as you find their post about buying eggs, you can get in touch. Ok, let's write "buy eggs" in the blank space of the search engine, and then click "search". Well, a new page has opened-I see it-hehe, the basic operation is as simple as that.
The word "buy eggs" here is called the keyword, which is what the search engine finds the answer based on. The choice of keywords is a bit particular, the same meaning, different keywords, search results will be very different. Because the content on the Internet is vast, you only need a cup of tea, but the Internet will bring you a pot of soup and a pot of water. You can try to enter "buy eggs" and "I want eggs" and see the results.
How to find customers and negotiate business in the third quarter (2)
Where do foreign trade novices find customers? The last book said that the Internet is the most economical and convenient way at present. There are two ways to find customers online: one is to advertise to let everyone know about you and let buyers come to you themselves; The second is to search the buyer's information and sell it by email. Looking for customers online is called e-commerce (in fact, e-commerce does not mean this). Hehe, anyway, as long as they do business with the internet, they all claim to be e-commerce, which is good enough.
How to write letters?
The simplest letter begins: weareaotco. , China Limited. wesupplyapplewithgoodqualandlow price。 pleasecontacustoknowdetails。
We are AOT company in China. We sell apples with good quality and low price. Please contact us for details. )
(Contact) Contact: Mr. Octopus
Tel: 86-2 1-88888888 Fax: 86-02 1-66666666
E-mail:8@888.com
The fourth quarter how to find customers and negotiate business (part two)
Last section, we talked about how to make a letter (that is, recommend an advertisement). Next, we can send advertisements that provide information. Where to send it? Of course, it would be better to send it to a place where businessmen gather. The place where online merchants gather is called the trading platform website. For example, Alibaba's website is a typical trading platform. Here, you can register your company's information for free (called free membership registration) and publish the source information. If you are willing to spend some money, you can become a paid registered member and get more information and services. ...
Although Alibaba is the best trading platform website in China, we can't wait here. There are many similar trading platform websites, which are characterized by storing a large amount of supply and demand information. So you can find many similar websites by typing "supply and demand information" in the search engine. Although the good and the bad are mixed, idleness is also idleness. "There are also mistakes that have not been spared." Usually, such websites will provide limited free information release and company registration services. As long as it's free, just publish it.
Compared with advertising, it is more direct and effective to actively search the buyer's information and contact information and send emails to promote them one by one.
This has been done for two months in a row, and basically customers will send emails to ask for prices, which is called "inquiry" in jargon. The word query usually appears in the title and body of e-mail. Friends with poor English should pay special attention when they see this word: business is coming.
If a foreign businessman wants a price, he will quote the foreign businessman. This is a quotation. Be careful in your quotation, and lose money to earn money. How to calculate the price for exporters?
Understand a little common sense first, first of all, the exchange rate.
Section 5 Foreign Trade Exchange Rate
Domestic use of RMB, foreign use of dollars. When RMB is converted into US dollars, the exchange rate is called the exchange rate. In the foreign trade business, the previous exchange rate was basically fixed, 8.26 RMB 1 USD. Therefore, if the value of your goods is 100 yuan, you should quote the customer 100 yuan /8.26 exchange rate = 12. 1 USD; Now the exchange rate fluctuates, but the reason is the same. You can divide it by what it is.
Section 6 Export Tax Refund
How much is the tax refund? According to your product category, there are different tax rates, which are called tax refund rates. Then, what is the tax rebate rate for the products you handle? Click here to view:/tsl.jsp.
How to calculate the tax refund? Simply put, it is: tax-free price × tax refund rate.
However, it should be noted that the price excluding tax here refers to the "pre-tax price" shown on the VAT invoice.
The department responsible for tax refund is the IRS. Before the tax refund, you must give the VAT invoice you got from the factory to the IRS as evidence.
Frequently asked questions about tax refund:
1. Is the price of tax refund based on the price I got from the factory? For example, the price I got from the factory is 1 1,000 yuan, and the tax rebate rate is 13%. To get a tax refund is to get a refund of this 1000 yuan 13%?
A: No. For the export of trading companies, the calculation basis of value-added tax is the price excluding tax. So the tax refund rate should be multiplied by the amount shown on the VAT invoice (pre-tax amount).
Simple formula: the purchase price includes tax ÷ 1. 17× tax rebate rate.
That is to say, if the VAT rate is 17%, the tax refund rate is 13%, and the purchase price includes tax 1000, then the tax refund amount is:
1000/1.17×13% =11yuan.
2. If some factories are unwilling to issue VAT invoices, the price he gave me will become 854.7 yuan. Isn't this price more cost-effective than returning 13% without tax?
A: No, there will be no VAT invoice without tax, and in general, according to national regulations, it is impossible to export without VAT invoice (and there is no tax refund). Therefore, when the factory sells you goods at a price excluding tax, you have to find ways to get VAT invoices from other channels, which costs money (this is illegal operation), and the final cost is the same as buying goods at a price including tax.
Will it hurt us if the factory doesn't invoice?
A: Indeed, in practice, many small factories do not issue VAT invoices to you because they are not qualified to issue VAT invoices. It can also be operated in this case, because you can get the same VAT invoice from other channels. So if the factory doesn't invoice, the damage will increase your workload (of course there is legal risk), hehe.
Section 7 General Price Terms and Conditions
In international trade, it is customary to use ports and docks as delivery places, so there are three main price terms:
1. Domestic dock delivery: the term is FOB, also called "FOB".
For example, the agreement for delivery in Shanghai Port is called FOBSHANGHAI.
In this way, in addition to the value of the goods themselves, you have to add the freight for transporting the goods to the Shanghai dock, the customs declaration and export fees and the miscellaneous fees generated on the Shanghai dock, which is the total cost price.
FOB is the most basic price.
Simple formula: FOB= price of goods+domestic freight and miscellaneous fees.
2. Delivery at foreign terminals: the term is CNF.
For example, it is called CNFNEWYORK to make delivery at new york Port in the United States.
In this way, in addition to the FOB price, the freight and miscellaneous expenses of the goods shipped to new york, USA are added.
Simple formula: CNF=FOB+ sea freight
3. Deliver the goods at foreign docks, and at the same time buy insurance for the goods to avoid damage on the way: the term is CIF, also known as "CIF".
Similarly, the agreed delivery at new york Port is called CIFNEWYORK.
This way is to add a little insurance premium on the basis of CNF price. How much is the insurance premium? It is decided by the insurance company, which varies slightly according to the type of goods and the place of delivery. Call the insurance company and tell them the type, value and destination of your goods, and they will tell you how much the insurance premium needs. There are several kinds of insurance, but they are usually all risks: the insurance company will cover everything for you-at least that's what the book says, hehe.
The insurance premium is not expensive. Take the goods exported to America as an example, and insure against all risks. Goods with a selling price of 1000 yuan will be 5 yuan insurance premium. If you want to be safe, bite your teeth and buy it.
Please refer to for different insurance rates.
/EXPORTBOX/EI_EXPOR。 Suffix of html file
Simple formula: CIF=FOB+ sea freight+insurance premium.
Section 8 Quotation Methods and Skills
We spent a lot of time researching and calculating FOB, CNF and CIF prices, and we also learned about the composition of freight and miscellaneous fees in prices by making friends with freight forwarders. But for us novices, in most cases, the price is not calculated by us, but given by the boss. Because the most basic ex-factory price in FOB price is often only known by the boss. The boss or sales manager gave the bottom line of the cost. If you sell more, it will be a profit, and we will get a commission. To be honest, the "cost bottom line" cannot be *. A boss likes to keep his hand, but when he does it, he refuses to admit it and deducts the commission of the salesman. I can't help it All small bosses in the world have the same virtue. We can only endure it first, and when we become the boss-or at least a senior business manager who has the capital to compete with the company, we can also exploit employees.
After calculating the price, you can sell it everywhere. Before, we said that we could build a website online or publish news on other B2B trading platforms, but some lazy people simply listed the price on it-this is a very bad way. First, all the prices are exposed to competitors-remember, competitors often prefer to visit your website and steal your hard-earned pictures and materials than your customers. Secondly, the so-called "business talk" is to strive for the opportunity to "talk". The price is so transparent that people think that we are "one price at a time". It's boring when the price is low. If the price is high, people will turn around and run. More importantly, the price is negotiable according to the difference of shipment, delivery time and payment method. Therefore, unless you really don't want to live a life of "jumping off a building to sell", it's better not to disclose the price. First, use advertising words such as "the price is very competitive" to lure customers to ask, and then make one-on-one quotations.
Report "true" or "false"?
Note that foreign trade has its own unique quotation method. This term is called quotation, but in real life, most customers will use quotation or simple lowest price instead. A formal foreign trade quotation should include not only the complete price terms (FOB or something), but also the name and quantity. In particular, it is necessary to add the effective time of quotation, because the international market changes greatly and the price often has to be adjusted with the market. In addition, specifying the effective time can also play a role in urging customers to place orders as soon as possible. The subtext is "this price is very cheap, so hurry up if you want to buy it, and it may not be this price in a few days."
In many cases, customers will ask about more than one product. When determining how many products customers will order, we, as salesmen, can't be too rigid in price. We can work harder and combine according to the quantity and unit price ordered by customers. As long as the total value is roughly the same, the unit price of a certain product can be handled flexibly. But when doing this kind of matching, remember to implement the quantity with the customer-many salesmen have suffered such a flat loss.
Section 9 Foreign Trade Documents
I talked a lot before, such as what to prepare for foreign trade, how to find customers online, how to calculate product prices, how to quote, and so on. These things are not difficult. Only when customers really have purchasing intentions can foreign trade really enter the substantive stage. As long as you know how to do the previous work, you need a little theoretical basis. We need to know "why are you doing this" so that we won't be confused by various procedures. Secondly, you can also know where you need to abide by the rules and where you can play tricks-how can you compete with those fierce competitors in the foreign trade industry if you are not flexible? Rest assured, the "theoretical basis" mentioned here is not the daunting formula in the textbook. But then again, if you have studied international trade seriously, it will be of great benefit to know these things. Four years of college didn't come for nothing.
"file":
1. bill of lading, abbreviated as bill of lading, is called bill of lading in English and "B/L" in jargon. Because foreign trade focuses on saving money by sea, the bill of lading usually refers to the ocean bill of lading. After the goods are delivered to the ocean shipping company, the shipping company will issue a bill of lading to the shipper, and the shipper will give it to the buyer according to the transaction, and the buyer will pick up the goods accordingly. Bill of lading is the core and most important of all documents, because it directly represents the ownership of goods and has legal effect. It is called "certificate of title" in Mandarin.
2. Business voice. It is completely different from the concept of invoice in our country. An invoice in foreign trade is a document prepared by the seller of the goods, which indicates the name, quantity, unit price, total value, buyer and seller of the goods. The function is similar to the identity letter of introduction of this batch of goods. Commercial invoices are usually written in English. The format is informal, but it must contain the above contents.
3. packing list. Similar to the commercial invoice, it is also compiled by the seller of the goods. Mainly used to describe the packaging of goods, including name, quantity (number of pieces or cases), weight (net weight), volume, buyer and seller, etc. It is also written in English, and the format is informal.
4. Other documents describing the goods, such as the inspection certificate certifying the quality of the goods and the certificate of origin certifying the place of origin. According to national regulations, certain types of products must be subject to compulsory inspection before export, which is the responsibility of the State Administration of Import and Export Commodity Inspection and Quarantine. The certificate of origin is also issued by the Commodity Inspection Bureau, because China is a developing country, and many countries reduce or restrict goods made in China. The certificate of origin is used to prove the "origin" of goods.
In a complete set of documents, invoices and packing lists can be written by themselves. If it is necessary to change hands, the middleman can also write another one instead of the original one. The bill of lading is naturally issued by the freight company, and the inspection certificate and certificate of origin are generally issued by the State Commodity Inspection Bureau.
Section 10 Letter of Credit (1)
Why do you need a letter of credit?
It is not difficult for us to imagine and understand that international trade is indeed a risky business. Commodities and currencies are transferred and traded internationally. Businessmen in different countries have different languages and laws, and are separated from Wan Li. They never even met during the transaction, and the transaction took a long time. The business field is originally a battlefield of intrigue, not to mention facing distant and strange customers.
As a seller, the first thing is to worry that the buyer has booked a contract, and then he doesn't want the goods. It should be noted that the general volume of international trade is quite large, and it takes time and energy for the seller to prepare the goods. In case the buyer defaults by then, there will be a large backlog of goods. What's more, many times the goods are customized according to the requirements of buyers, and it is very troublesome to resell them to others. Secondly, I am worried that after the goods are delivered to the buyer, the buyer will delay payment or even default. After all, the freight is high. For example, a 20-foot standard container of goods is transported from Shenzhen to a European port, and the one-way sea freight far exceeds 6,543,800 yuan. Even if we can keep the goods from being cheated, we can't afford the round-trip freight. Because of these concerns, the seller naturally hopes that the buyer can pay part of the down payment after signing the contract or settle the payment before delivery and transportation.
As a buyer, I'm afraid that the seller can't deliver the goods on time, with good quality and quantity. At the same time, I don't want to pay the seller in advance, which will occupy funds and affect business turnover; Secondly, if the seller makes a mistake, it is difficult for the buyer to recover it across Qian Shan. Therefore, contrary to the seller, the buyer naturally wants to deliver the goods first and then pay after inspection.
Of course, there are international trade practices, arbitration and laws in theory, but businessmen all know that it is a waste of money to go to court unless absolutely necessary. Besides, most of them are limited liability companies now, so it is easy and fun to register a company. If something really happens, who should we go to? In the final analysis, the biggest headache in international trade is a "credit". However, it is difficult to solve the problem of payment and payment through negotiation only by the commercial credit of both parties, especially for customers who have just been in contact for a long time.
What shall we do? Find an intermediary guarantor. Who will be the guarantor? Looking for a bank. Why the bank? Because banks are rich, powerful and trustworthy, they can withstand problems. Moreover, the management and requirements of banks all over the world are generally relatively high, and they know the root of the problem, unlike ordinary limited liability companies, which are relatively safe and sound. Therefore, a unique practice has been formed in international trade: after the buyer and seller negotiate the transaction, the buyer comes forward and lists the contents and requirements of the transaction, such as product name, quantity, quality requirements, amount, delivery date and other terms, and gives them to a bank (usually the buyer's bank), asking the bank to act as an intermediate guarantor and issue a certificate to the seller according to these terms. As long as the seller delivers the goods with good quality and quantity on time, the bank will supervise the buyer's payment. Because the buyer himself has opened an account in this bank or paid a certain deposit, it is very secure to collect money under the supervision of this bank. On the other hand, for the buyer, the seller does not need to pay any advance payment before delivery. If the seller fails to deliver the goods in time or the quality is unqualified, he can refuse to pay, which is also very safe and both parties are happy. In this way, the commercial credit between international traders is proved by the guarantee of the bank. This document that proves "credit" is the legendary "LetterofCredit". Its full English name is Leterofcredit, and its jargon is L/C for short.
For letters of credit, documents are the core part. The main content of the letter of credit is precisely the subtle provisions of the documents. Including what documents are needed, how many copies of each document are needed, who will send it, when, and even how to express the words on the document in detail. This cautious approach is to make this set of documents accurately reflect the situation of the goods themselves and the delivery process to the greatest extent, and to limit the possibility of fraud by the seller.
What is a letter of credit?
A letter of credit is such a thing: it lists the requirements of the terms and conditions of the transaction and is guaranteed by the bank. After the seller gets the letter of credit, he can get the payment safely and smoothly as long as he delivers the goods according to the requirements of the letter of credit and prepares all the documents stipulated in the letter of credit to the bank.
Theoretically, there are many types of letters of credit, which are classified as "transferable/non-transferable letters of credit" according to whether the beneficiary allows the transfer of others, "sight/forward letters of credit" according to the payment terms, and "revocable/irrevocable letters of credit" according to whether it can be cancelled halfway. In fact, the most commonly used letter of credit is "irrevocable letter of credit at sight". There is a simple reason. As exporters, we certainly don't like deferred payment, and once the letter of credit is opened, we don't want to cancel it halfway, otherwise it will lose its practical significance. As for whether the transfer is allowed, it is freely mastered according to the export channels. What kind of letter of credit it belongs to will be clearly stipulated in the terms of the letter of credit itself.
If the letter of credit is used well, our payment will be guaranteed; If it is not handled properly, there will be mistakes and it must be treated with caution. Caution means two levels. First, carefully examine the letter of credit before opening the letter of credit to ensure that all documents are reasonable and feasible. Second, when preparing delivery documents according to the letter of credit, we should establish the concept of letter of credit first and documents first and strictly follow it. In addition, learn some flexible remedial skills to prevent possible discrepancies.
Section 11 Letter of Credit (Chinese)
There are three basic criteria to measure the validity of a letter of credit: being opened by a well-known big bank, reasonable and feasible document requirements and no "soft terms".
Well-known big banks opened
Well-known big banks open it, which is easy to understand: since the principle of letter of credit is "the bank acts as the intermediate guarantor", then the guarantor must be able to * first. Different from domestic banks, many foreign banks are private, with large and small scales, and their credit ratings are naturally mixed. Not to mention those who closed down overnight, blatantly colluded with customers (L/C applicants) and set traps for exporters. Well-known big banks, because of their long history and good reputation, can basically be fair and reasonable in the operation of letters of credit, and their services to buyers and sellers are also more thoughtful.
Generally speaking, banks in developed countries such as Europe and North America have a good reputation, because European and American countries have sound market economic systems and relatively perfect financial supervision. The most common well-known banks in foreign trade are Citibank, BNP Paribas, Chase Bank, Deutsche Bank and Hong Kong Bank. It's not hard to find the top bank names in the world 100 on the Internet. You can directly search for the bank name in Google to see if the customer's card issuer is on the list. In addition, there is a trick to check the bank's credit, such as consulting official website of the Chinese Embassy in that country according to the country and region where the issuing bank is located.
The issuing bank of the letter of credit is so important that when negotiating the settlement of the letter of credit with customers, it is usually stated in advance that "the letter of credit should be opened through a well-known bank". Merchants in Southeast Asia, Africa, South America and other regions sometimes really cannot open letters of credit through well-known banks. In order to promote the transaction, when it is really not possible, you can also accept letters of credit from small banks with miscellaneous brands, provided that they are "confirmed". Confirmation means that after an unknown small bank opens a letter of credit, another bank can guarantee it. This kind of "re-guarantee" bank is called a confirming bank. If a small bank defaults and fails to fulfill its due responsibilities, the confirming bank must bear the responsibility for it. Confirming banks are usually well-known third-party banks or advising banks (that is, our bank)-in practice, advising banks are mostly confirming banks. Of course, banks charge a confirmation fee (the amount of confirmation fee varies from bank to bank according to the situation, generally 0.2% of the total amount, and the specific amount can be consulted in advance), which is generally borne by exporters. This increases the transaction cost, but at least solves the contradiction that exporters don't trust the importer's issuing bank. If confirmation is needed, just explain to the customer in advance that "the letter of credit must be confirmed", and there is no other special operation. For a confirmed letter of credit, there will be a corresponding "confirmed" clause. However, it should be noted that "confirmation" means that the confirming bank will bear the payment under the condition that the documents are flawless and the issuing bank fails to perform its responsibilities, but it does not mean that the confirmation will lead to "world without thieves"-the refusal of payment caused by discrepancies can be ignored by the confirming bank.
Whether it is confirmed or not depends entirely on our own weighing judgment. After all, this is a safe way, not absolutely necessary.
The customer has agreed to settle by letter of credit, so we will give the bank information to the customer. The customer will open a letter of credit through his bank and forward it to our bank. After receiving the letter of credit, our bank will inform us and let us review the terms of the letter of credit. If there is any objection, the letter of credit will be returned to the bank for amendment; If there is no objection, accept the letter of credit and perform it on time. Therefore, it is a very important and hard work to examine the letter of credit. It is a foreshadowing for us to have a solid understanding of L/C knowledge.
Section XII Letter of Credit (Part II)
A letter of credit looks like an A4-sized English document with five or six pages or even a dozen pages. If faxed, it looks like Hada in Tibet. The content is complicated, including the delivery and document preparation instructions directly related to us, as well as the terms of inter-bank cooperation. For us beginners, it is not necessary to study its meaning one by one. It's like using money. We just need to know how to distinguish the amount on the banknote from the authenticity of the banknote. As for the coding rules, the meaning of the pattern, the president's seal and so on. We are interested in thinking slowly about banknotes.
If you export directly, the foreign L/C is opened in your own name, and your bank will inform you directly after receiving the L/C and give you the original or copy (usually the copy, if it is not necessary, it is recommended to leave the original in the bank). If you export through an agent and the letter of credit is issued to the agent, you should promptly urge the agent to make an inquiry and let the agent fax it to you after receiving it. In practice, because the agent is unfamiliar with your customers, it is easy to have problems in the handover. The agent received the letter of credit, but he didn't know who it was, which caused the delay. Therefore, once you know that the customer has opened a letter of credit, you should tell the export agent the name and amount, and keep an eye on the progress at any time. Generally speaking, from the time when a customer opens a letter of credit to the time when he receives our letter of credit, it takes one week at a time and ten days at a time.
Together with the letter of credit, there is usually a letter of credit notice issued by your bank, which mainly lists the basic information of this letter of credit, such as the letter of credit number, issuing bank, amount, validity period and so on. , and seal it at the same time. In addition to the official seal of the bank, there will be a seal of "sealed distribution" or "sealed distribution, please contact us before shipment". What do you mean? Because at present, letters of credit are generally transmitted by telegraph (SAIFT telex, the bank's professional telecommunications service agency, has a specific coding format), theoretically there is a risk of forgery, pretending to be a bank to open letters of credit. Therefore, passwords and seals will be reserved between banks for verification. But this phenomenon is rare in real life, because letters of credit can be opened through SWIFT, which is basically true. I'm afraid the reason for the inconsistency of seals is mostly the handover operation. Therefore, there is no need to be nervous in case of "seal mismatch". You can consult the bank if necessary.
In particular, we should pay attention to several places that are easily overlooked and often make mistakes in the letter of credit:
1. First, check whether the name and address of the payee (that is, you) are complete and correct. There must be no typos, otherwise the payment will be in trouble, and the export documents will not be made because they do not match your seal.
2. See if the product description is too simple. Customers often write abbreviations in letters of credit, sometimes too general, which will affect the issuance of relevant commodity inspection documents.
3. Check whether the quantity of goods is consistent with the total amount. In practice, there are often partial prepayment and partial letter of credit settlement operations. At this time, it is often the full amount of goods that can only show part of the amount.
4. Whether the delivery date is timely and reasonable. The common delivery date is generally more than 15 days, but letters of credit from Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asian countries sometimes only give 12 days or even less, so it should be considered clearly. Especially when the customer specifies the forwarder or the forwarder is not in the same city as you, the bill of lading is easily delayed, so you should reserve time. In addition, sometimes letters of credit stipulate "overseas expiration", which is unacceptable as far as possible, because it is difficult for us to control the time when documents are delivered abroad.
Another mistake that is particularly easy to make is that when customers are required to modify the delivery date or delivery date, the validity period of the letter of credit must be modified accordingly. For example, it is stipulated that the shipment date10/0/October 65438, the delivery date 12 days, and the validity of the letter of credit is 65438+1October 22. Now changing the presentation date to 15 days, but forgetting to change the validity of the letter of credit accordingly, will lead to the consequence that "although documents are presented during the presentation period, the validity of the letter of credit is still exceeded".
5. Whether the cost sharing is reasonable. Clause 7 1B specifically stipulates the allocation of the operating expenses of the letter of credit. Generally speaking, it is fair to say that "the expenses incurred by the applicant outside China shall be borne by the beneficiary", but at present, some demanding customers will require that "all expenses except the opening fee shall be borne by the beneficiary". This will bring us dozens or even two or three hundred dollars of extra expenses. This should be agreed with the customer in advance, or if possible, quietly increase the price.
According to the letter of credit, it is best to make documents that are slightly different from the actual situation, and also to ensure that the documents are completely consistent with the letter of credit literally. Once the letter of credit is confirmed, it must be fully implemented. Even if there are typos in the letter of credit (there are more typos in the letter of credit than you think), you have to bite the bullet and correct them to make the documents consistent. To put it bluntly, if you forge documents, the bank doesn't care (that's a police matter), as long as the words match; But even the real documents are inconsistent as long as they do not meet the requirements of the letter of credit, ranging from fines to refusal to pay.
Section 13 Several Common Foreign Trade Documents
The most basic documents in foreign trade are invoices, packing lists and bills of lading. These three documents are the basis for customs declaration.
Among them, the most important is the bill of lading, because it is the proof of delivery, and the legal "certificate of title" is issued by the regular shipping company of international ocean transportation (or by the freight forwarder, referred to as "certificate of title")