SHIPPING DOCUMENTS

The documents required for all commercial shipments to the Kingdom of

Saudi Arabia, irrespective of value or mode of transportation, are: a
commercial invoice, a certificate of origin, a bill of lading (or an airway
bill), a steamship or an airlines company certificate, an insurance
certificate (if goods are insured by the exporter) and a packing list. Depending
on the nature of goods being shipped, or upon certain requests from the Saudi
importer or in a letter of credit (L/C), or according to clauses in a contractual
agreement, specific additional documents may also be required (see "Special
Documents" below).

It is important to note that authentication of the certificate of origin, the

commercial invoice, and any special document is the responsibility of the
exporter, who must make sure that they are certified in the following
specified order:

(1) Notarized by a Notary Public.

(2) Sealed and certified by a local U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
(3) Sealed and certified by a representative of the U.S.-Saudi Arabian Business
Council located at any of the Consulates General of Saudi Arabia in the U.S.
(4) Legalized by one of the Consulates General of Saudi Arabia in the U.S.
(see appendix II for addresses).

The Saudi Arabian Consulates legalize only one copy. Additional copies
will be legalized upon request. The Saudi Arabian Consulates will legalize
the respective documents for $8.50 per document or page (an original or a
copy). All fees must be submitted in the exact amount. No cash or personal
checks will be accepted. Payments should be made by a company’s check,
a cashier's check, or a money order payable to the Royal Embassy of Saudi
Arabia, or to the relevant Saudi Arabian Consulate. Companies’ checks,
money orders or cashier's checks must be signed.

Each document should be prepared in (at least) one original and one copy. The
certifying U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce will retain the copy. The original
is legalized and returned. All documents (originals or copies) should bear the
handwritten signature of the person issuing the document. Facsimile signatures
are not accepted.

All documents sent in by mail must include a self-addressed stamped envelope.

Saudi Arabian Consulates will not return any documents without a self-
addressed stamped envelope. Documents presented by hand will only be
released upon presentation of the consular receipt.

Description of Shipping Documents:

• Commercial Invoice:

All commercial invoices must be on the letterhead of the exporting

company. The invoice should contain names and addresses of consignor and
consignee, accurate description of goods and components (trademarks, name
of the vessel or airlines) and the date of sailing, port of loading and port of
discharge, net and gross weight, quantity, unit price and extended price of each
type of goods, total value of the shipment, contents of each package and
container, currency, number of L/C (if applicable) and freight and insurance.

As of 1/1/1417 H., corresponding to May 18,1996, the Saudi customs

authorities have emphasized that commercial invoices issued by exporters
should contain accurate description of goods being exported to the Kingdom,
for example:

A) For equipment:

- Line, number, and size of exported item.

- Model number.
- Trade marks.
- Manufacturer’s complete name.
- Any other information helpful in identifying the exported equipment.

B) For other exported products:

- Complete material description including type, size, weight, and percentage of

its components if possible.
- Complete name(s) of manufacturer(s) or producer(s).
- Trade marks.
- Any other information pertaining to the type of the exported item to the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

In addition, all commercial invoices should be certified by a responsible official

of the exporting firm as follows:
"I certify this invoice to be true and correct and in accordance with our books,
also that the goods referred to are of ...........origin."

• Certificate of Origin:

This certificate must be issued by the manufacturer (or the exporting firm). In
addition to the name of the vessel (airlines) and the date of sailing, name(s),
nationality(ies), and full street address(es) of the manufacturer(s) of all items to
be shipped to Saudi Arabia, and components thereof, must be declared.
Furthermore, the origin of each item or component must be specified. A signed
statement to the effect that the document is true and correct must be given.

If the merchandise to be shipped to Saudi Arabia is not solely and exclusively

originated in the U.S., then a notarized "appended declaration to certificate
of origin" (available at any Saudi Consulate), must be attached to the certificate
of origin.

In addition, the certificate of origin must include name and address of the Saudi
importer, description of the goods, and address of the shipping company.

• The Bill of Lading (or Airway bill):

One non-negotiable copy of the bill of lading is to be presented to a Saudi

Arabian Consulate. The bill of lading should agree with the commercial invoice
and show description, value, net and gross weight of shipped goods. Likewise,
volume and measurement, marks, number of packages, name and address of
consignee (Saudi importer) and consignor, name and address of shipping
company and/or shipping agent, name of vessel and date of sailing, port of
loading and port of discharge, etc., should be mentioned. Marks and numbers
should agree with those on invoice and containers.

• Steamship (or airlines company) certificate:

This certificate (which is an appended declaration to bill of lading or the

airway bill) should be issued by the steamship (or airlines) company in at least
one original. It must be notarized and contain the following information about
the vessel (or plane), named in the Bill of Lading or the airline company
certificate:
(1) Name of vessel (plane), and previous name (if applicable).
(2) Nationality of vessel (plane).
(3) Owner of vessel (plane).
(4) Name(s) of ports (airports) that Vessel (plane) will call on en route to the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

A- Port (airport) of loading ...................

B- ..........................................................
C- ..........................................................
Port (airport) of discharge..................

Further, the steamship (airlines) company certificate should declare that said
vessel (plane) shall not anchor or call on any other ports (airports) than those
mentioned in it, and that all information provided in the certificate is true and
correct. The standard form of the Appended Declaration to the Bill of Lading or
airway bill is available at any Saudi Arabian Consulate.

• Insurance Certificate:

This certificate (issued by an insurance company in at least one original) must

contain the following information: actual amount of insurance, description and
value of insured goods, name of vessel, port of loading and Saudi port of
discharge, and name and address of beneficiary. Moreover, the appended
declaration to insurance policy (form of which is available at any Saudi
Arabian Consulate) should state that the insurance company has a duly
qualified and appointed agent or representative in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia, giving his name and full address.

Note: If the shipment is insured by an insurance company in Saudi Arabia, the

exporter, on his letterhead, must state the name and address of said company.

• Packing List:

This includes names and addresses of consignor and consignee, description and
value of the exported goods, net and total weight, number of packages and their
contents, number of containers and contents, numbers of seals, and number of
L/C (if applicable).

Export Documents.
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• Introduction
• Shipping Bill / Bill of Export
• Customs Declaration Form
• Dispatch Note
• Commercial invoice
• Consular Invoice
• Customs Invoice
• Legalised / Visaed Invoice
• Certified Invoice
• Packing List
• Certificate of Inspection
• Black List Certificate
• Manufacturer's Certificate
• Certificate of Chemical Analysis
• Certificate of Shipment
• Health/ Veterinary/ Sanitary Certification
• Certificate of Conditioning
• Antiquity Measurement
• Shipping Order
• Cart/ Lorry Ticket
• Shut Out Advice
• Short Shipment Form

Introduction
An exporter without any commercial contract is completely exposed of foreign exchange risks
that arises due to the probability of an adverse change in exchange rates. Therefore, it
becomes important for the exporter to gain some knowledge about the foreign exchange rates,
quoting of exchange rates and various factors determining the exchange rates. In this section,
we have discussed various topics related to foreign exchange rates in detail.

Export from India required special document depending upon the type of product and
destination to be exported. Export Documents not only gives detail about the product and its
destination port but are also used for the purpose of taxation and quality control inspection
certification.

Shipping Bill / Bill of Export

Shipping Bill/ Bill of Export is the main document required by the Customs Authority for
allowing shipment. A shipping bill is issued by the shipping agent and represents some kind of
certificate for all parties, included ship's owner, seller, buyer and some other parties. For each
one represents a kind of certificate document.

Documents Required for Post Parcel Customs Clearance

In case of Post Parcel, no Shipping Bill is required. The relevant documents are mentioned
below:

• Customs Declaration Form - It is prescribed by the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and
international apex body coordinating activities of national postal administration. It is
known by the code number CP2/ CP3 and to be prepared in quadruplicate, signed by
the sender.
• Despatch Note- It is filled by the exporter to specify the action to be taken by the
postal department at the destination in case the address is non-traceable or the parcel
is refused to be accepted.
• Commercial Invoice - Issued by the exporter for the full realisable amount of goods as
per trade term.
• Consular Invoice - Mainly needed for the countries like Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania,
Mauritius, New Zealand, Burma, Iraq, Ausatralia, Fiji, Cyprus, Nigeria, Ghana, Zanzibar
etc. It is prepared in the prescribed format and is signed/ certified by the counsel of
the importing country located in the country of export.
• Customs Invoice - Mainly needed for the countries like USA, Canada, etc. It is prepared
on a special form being presented by the Customs authorities of the importing country.
It facilitates entry of goods in the importing country at preferential tariff rate.
• Legalised / Visaed Invoice - This shows the seller's genuineness before the appropriate
consulate or chamber or commerce/ embassy.
• Certified Invoice - It is required when the exporter needs to certify on the invoice that
the goods are of a particular origin or manufactured/ packed at a particular place and
in accordance with specific contract. Sight Draft and Usance Draft are available for
this. Sight Draft is required when the exporter expects immediate payment and Usance
Draft is required for credit delivery.
• Packing List - It shows the details of goods contained in each parcel / shipment.
• Certificate of Inspection – It is a type of document describing the condition of goods
and confirming that they have been inspected.
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