Commercial Invoice Template

A commercial invoice records the goods sold, their value, and origin so customs officials can assess duties on an international shipment.

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How to fill in a commercial invoice

Complete your invoice in three short steps.

1

Open the invoice template

Open our commercial invoice template to start recording a shipment's details.

2

Fill in the invoice template

Enter the seller, buyer, goods, quantities, and value for the shipment.

3

Download the invoice template

Download the completed invoice as a document ready for customs review.

What is a commercial invoice?

A commercial invoice is a document a seller gives a buyer when goods cross an international border. It lists what was sold, how much of it, at what price, and where it came from, so customs authorities on both sides can calculate duties and confirm the shipment matches what was declared. Without one, a package can be delayed or held at the border until the paperwork is sorted out.

Key Takeaways

  • A commercial invoice lists exported goods
  • Buyer and seller details sit up top
  • Customs uses it to assess duties

What does a commercial invoice look like?

The header carries the seller's and buyer's names, addresses, and an invoice number and date. Below that sits a table listing each item, its quantity, unit price, country of origin, and line total. A summary shows the total value, currency, and shipping or insurance charges, and a signature line at the bottom confirms the details are accurate.

What information must a commercial invoice include?

A fillable commercial invoice PDF lets you type values directly into the fields, keeping formatting locked and consistent, while a commercial invoice template Word document suits sellers who prefer to edit text and formatting by hand. Both formats cover the same required customs details, so you can choose whichever workflow fits your shipping process, whether that means quick digital entry or fully customizable manual editing before printing or exporting.

What formats are available for a commercial invoice?

A commercial invoice template Excel spreadsheet suits shippers who need to calculate totals automatically across many line items, saving time and reducing manual math errors on larger shipments. Meanwhile, a blank commercial invoice template gives you a clean starting point for a new shipment, letting you add your own branding, product details, and shipping terms from scratch without unnecessary preset fields getting in the way.

Why use a commercial invoice for shipping?

A commercial invoice for customs template includes the extra detail — harmonized codes, country of origin, and terms of sale — that a standard sales invoice skips. For smaller shipments, a simple commercial invoice template covers just the essentials. The format doesn't only apply to trade: a commercial cleaning invoice template uses the same basic layout for a completely different kind of business, and our library of templates covers both.

Frequently asked questions

FedEx asks for the same core details any commercial invoice needs — buyer and seller information, item descriptions, values, and origin. Fill in our commercial invoice template with those details and attach the finished document to your FedEx shipment, rather than searching for a carrier-branded version.

A UPS shipment needs the standard commercial invoice fields: shipper and receiver details, a full description of the goods, quantities, values, and country of origin. Our commercial invoice template covers all of that, so you can complete it and hand it over with your UPS package.

DHL requires the same information any customs authority looks for on a commercial invoice — item details, values, origin, and terms of sale. Complete our commercial invoice template with those fields, then include it with your DHL shipment paperwork.

It is a commercial invoice formatted to give US Customs and Border Protection what it needs to clear a shipment: a full description of the goods, their value, country of origin, and the terms of the sale. Our template includes these fields so you can complete one for an incoming or outgoing US shipment.

A non-commercial invoice covers items with no sale value, such as gifts, samples, or personal belongings being shipped abroad. It still lists the goods and an estimated value for customs purposes, but it states clearly that no payment changed hands, unlike a commercial invoice tied to an actual sale.

Yes — the same commercial invoice fields apply for shipments crossing into Canada: seller and buyer details, item descriptions, values, and country of origin. Canadian customs may also ask for a tariff classification, so double-check the goods description matches what you're declaring before you send it.