Trade Paperwork
Proforma Invoice or Commercial Invoice
A proforma invoice is a preview of a sale. A commercial invoice is the bill. Mixing them up stalls payment and clearance.
Trade Paperwork
Trade Paperwork
A Checklist Before Export Documents Go Out
Before an export set leaves the office, match names, weights, originals, and dates. One mismatch can hold the cargo.
Trade Paperwork
How to Read a Quantity Clause
A quantity clause sets the amount, the tolerance, and who chooses the final figure. The price means little without it.
Trade Paperwork
Paperwork Mistakes That Hold a Cargo
Cargo waits on mismatched names, missing originals, and dates that disagree. The grain can be fine and still not move.
Trade Paperwork
Packing Lists for Bagged Specialty Grain
A packing list counts bags, marks, and lot codes so a specialty grain shipment can be checked piece by piece.
Trade Paperwork
Shortage Claims Without the Courtroom
A shortage claim starts when delivered weight and loaded weight diverge. The contract, not the louder email, decides what counts.
Trade Paperwork
Why a Weight Certificate Follows the Grain
A weight certificate records how a grain cargo was measured. Shore scales and draft surveys answer different questions.
Trade Paperwork
When Buyers Ask for a Certificate of Origin
Why grain buyers request a certificate of origin, who usually issues one, and how it can clash with the invoice.
Trade Paperwork
What a Grain Commercial Invoice Should Show
What a commercial invoice on a grain sale should name: parties, quantity, price, currency, and origin.
Trade Paperwork
FOB, CFR and CIF: Incoterms for Grain Sales
Plain-English guide to FOB, CFR and CIF in bulk grain sales: who pays freight and insurance, where risk passes, and a simple cost example.
Trade Paperwork
Phytosanitary Certificates Explained for Grain Shipments
What a phytosanitary certificate is, who issues it, and how exporters can avoid delays by matching it to the importing country's rules.
Trade Paperwork
Reading a Bill of Lading for Bulk Grain
What a bill of lading says on a bulk grain shipment, why it works as a receipt and title document, and the mistakes that cause costly delays.