Shipping samples or promotional materials

Much of cargo exchange in international freight is B2B transactions. It is simple: a company from one country sells goods to another company based in another country. The sold product is put on the sales invoice, based on which the importing company is charged the customs and tax fees, if applicable. Obviously, there are also other kinds of transactions, including B2C, C2B and C2C, where ‘C’ stands for a private customer), but these are less frequent than the said B2B model.

Since shipping that involves various national markets requires a document that states the value of the cargo, the question is how to solve the problem if a business ships out the goods that it does not sell?

A good example can be the shipping of samples or promotional materials. A Polish manufacturer wants to sell their products in the American market. They have already found a potential buyer, but the American company is not willing to buy the goods they do not know. The Polish manufacturer offers to ship the samples, something obvious for larger purchases. What documents should be attached in this case if the cargo is not being sold? The answer and solution can be a document such as a pro forma invoice.

A pro-forma invoice is issued to state that a transaction, in our case samples, has been executed. This document will contain sender’s and recipient’s details as well as the list of items and their declared value. Importantly, the invoice should also say that the items are not subject to sales and are only the samples of products offered to the recipient.

Such an invoice will suffice to execute the shipping order. The samples can be shipped, and the recipient will not be required to pay any fees. If they like the items, the next step for them will be to normally buy the products.

Get a quote on shipping samples or promotional materials with USBOX:

Link to to the quote form