Pro forma invoice
A pro forma invoice is an invoice-like document without a demand for payment; it serves customs declaration, the declaration of value for sample shipments, or presentation to the customer, and is not booked as turnover.
Definition
In export it is the document customs uses to establish the value of a shipment where no commercial invoice exists — for samples, repair shipments or warranty replacements. It has to contain the description of goods, the value, the origin and the reason for the shipment.
The most frequent error is using it as an advance invoice. Whoever wants money issues an advance invoice; whoever only wants to inform issues a quotation. The pro forma invoice is neither.
What the software must be able to do
It should exist as a document type of its own, without entering open items or turnover, and carry the customs-relevant fields. Whoever recreates it with a normal invoice and then reverses it distorts their turnover statistics.
Checked Aug 2026
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