Commercial Invoice Generator
A commercial invoice is the document customs officials read when your goods cross a border. It is not quite the same as the invoice you send a client for payment — it carries extra fields (country of origin, HS codes, Incoterms, reason for export) that exist purely so a customs officer can classify your shipment and calculate duties. Get it right and your goods sail through. Get it wrong and they sit in a warehouse while you answer questions by email.
The fastest way to produce one is a free commercial invoice generator: fill in the fields below, download the PDF, and attach it to your shipment. This guide walks through every required field and shows you how to fill the document out step by step.
Commercial invoice vs. regular invoice
A regular invoice says "you owe me this much." A commercial invoice says "these goods, worth this much, are moving from this seller to this buyer for this reason." The audience is different — a customs authority, not your customer — so the content is different too. Key differences:
- Customs-specific fields. Country of origin, HS (harmonized system) codes, Incoterms, and reason for export appear on commercial invoices and almost never on domestic ones.
- Declared value, not just price. Even free samples and warranty replacements need a declared fair-market value, because duties are assessed on value regardless of whether money changed hands.
- Signatures matter more. Many carriers require a signed commercial invoice; an unsigned one can be rejected at the border.
- Currency must be explicit. State the ISO currency code (USD, EUR, GBP) — customs will not guess.
Related but different: a proforma invoice is a preliminary quote sent before shipment, while the commercial invoice is the final customs document. Don't confuse the two — customs wants the commercial version.
Required fields on a commercial invoice
Customs requirements vary slightly by country, but these fields are expected virtually everywhere:
- Seller (exporter) details. Full legal name, address, phone, email, and tax/EORI number where applicable.
- Buyer (importer) details. Full name, address, phone, and tax ID. This must match the consignee on the shipping label.
- Invoice number and date. Unique and sequential, like any invoice.
- Detailed goods description. Not "parts" — "stainless steel hex bolts, M8 × 30mm, 500 units." Vague descriptions are the number-one cause of customs inspections.
- HS codes. The 6-to-10-digit Harmonized System code classifying each product. Your country's customs site has a lookup tool; get this right, because the code determines the duty rate.
- Quantity and unit of measure. Pieces, kilograms, liters — whatever fits the goods.
- Unit value and total value. Per-line values plus the shipment total, in an explicitly stated currency.
- Country of origin. Where the goods were made — not where you shipped them from. These can differ, and customs cares about the former.
- Incoterms. The three-letter trade term (EXW, FOB, DAP, DDP, etc.) defining who pays freight and insurance and where risk transfers. Our guide to invoicing international clients explains how Incoterms interact with your payment terms.
- Reason for export. Sale, sample, gift, warranty replacement, repair and return — pick the honest one.
- Freight, insurance, and packaging costs. Itemized separately where possible; some countries assess duties on the CIF value (cost + insurance + freight).
- Signature and declaration. A statement that the information is true and correct, with a signature and date.
How to fill out a commercial invoice, step by step
- Start with the parties. Enter your full exporter details and the buyer's details exactly as they appear on the shipping documents. Mismatches between the invoice and the air waybill trigger holds.
- Number and date it. Use your normal invoice sequence — customs doesn't care about your numbering scheme, only that it's unique.
- List each product on its own line. Description, HS code, quantity, unit of measure, unit value. One line per distinct product; never lump different products together.
- Add the totals. Subtotal of goods, then freight, insurance, and packaging as separate lines, then the grand total. State the currency code next to every amount.
- Declare origin and terms. Country of origin per line item (or once if all goods share it), the Incoterm for the shipment, and the reason for export.
- Sign and date. Print, sign, and include the declaration of truthfulness. Many forwarders accept a digital signature; check with yours.
- Attach copies to the shipment. The standard practice is three signed copies: one inside the shipment, one attached outside in a document pouch, and one for your records (plus the PDF you keep digitally).
Mistakes that get shipments held at customs
- Vague descriptions. "Electronic components" tells customs nothing. "Printed circuit boards, 4-layer, 10×8cm" tells them everything.
- Undervalued goods. Declaring $50 for goods worth $500 is fraud in most jurisdictions, and customs officers see real market prices every day. Penalties dwarf any duty savings.
- Missing HS codes. Without a code, an officer classifies the goods manually — slower, and sometimes at a higher duty rate than the correct code would give.
- Wrong country of origin. "Shipped from" is not "made in." Getting this wrong can mean the wrong trade agreement applies.
- No Incoterms. Without them, nobody — including you and the buyer — can agree on who pays when something goes wrong in transit.
- Forgetting samples need invoices too. "It's just a sample, no invoice needed" is how samples spend three weeks in a bonded warehouse. Declare the fair value and mark the reason for export as "sample."
Commercial invoice template: Word, Excel, or PDF?
If you only ship internationally once in a while, a commercial invoice template can work: a pre-formatted document with all the customs fields laid out, ready for you to fill in. Templates come in three common formats, each with trade-offs:
- Word template. Easy to edit and rebrand, but tables shift when you add line items, and there's no math — you calculate totals yourself.
- Excel template. Handles the arithmetic, but formatting breaks across versions and it prints unpredictably.
- PDF template. Looks identical everywhere, but editing means retyping or paying for a PDF editor.
Whichever format you pick, verify it includes the fields from the checklist above — many free templates floating around online skip HS codes, Incoterms, or the country-of-origin line, which are exactly the fields customs cares about most. If you ship more than a few times a year, a generator beats a static template: it does the math, keeps your data for repeat shipments, and exports a clean PDF every time.
Generate yours in under two minutes
You don't need freight software to make a compliant commercial invoice. A free commercial invoice generator gives you every field above — line items with quantities and values, currency selection, custom notes for Incoterms and HS codes, and your branding — then exports a clean PDF ready to attach to the shipment. No signup, no watermark.
If you regularly ship to specific countries, also check our guide on invoice requirements by country — some destinations (the EU, Brazil, India) have quirks worth knowing before your goods are already on a plane.
Commercial invoice FAQ
What is a commercial invoice used for?
A commercial invoice is the primary customs document for international shipments. It tells customs authorities what the goods are, what they are worth, who is sending them, and who is receiving them — and it is the document duties and taxes are calculated from.
Is a commercial invoice the same as a regular invoice?
No. A regular invoice is a request for payment between buyer and seller. A commercial invoice is a customs declaration document with specific required fields (country of origin, HS codes, Incoterms, reason for export) that a standard invoice does not include.
Do I need a commercial invoice for every international shipment?
In almost all cases, yes. Any shipment crossing a customs border needs one — including samples, gifts, and warranty replacements, which are declared at their fair market value even when no payment changes hands.
What happens if my commercial invoice has errors?
Errors cause customs holds, inspections, and delays — sometimes days or weeks. Inaccurate values can also trigger fines or seizure. The most common problems are vague goods descriptions, missing HS codes, and declared values that don't match the goods.
Can I make a commercial invoice for free?
Yes. PayMrBill's free invoice generator lets you create a commercial invoice with all the required fields and download it as a PDF — no signup, no watermark, no cost.