Documents for each shipment

Updated

Every load of licorice root that leaves our site in Khorezm travels with a set of documents. Your customs broker needs them to clear the goods, and under a letter of credit or documents against payment your bank needs them before money moves. This chapter takes them one by one: what each document is, who issues it, and what to check on it. The list is the same as on our shipping page; this chapter explains it.

Export declaration

The customs declaration under which the goods leave Uzbekistan. It names the exporter, the goods and their customs code, and gives the quantity and the value; it is also the proof that the goods were exported. Under every Incoterm except EXW, export clearance is our job; under EXW it is the buyer's (see who does what).

Check: the description, the weights and the value agree with the commercial invoice.

Commercial invoice

Issued by us, the seller. It is the document customs in your country uses to assess duty and tax, so it is the one that must be right first.

Check:

  • seller, buyer and consignee as in the contract;
  • the product and grade, in the same words as the contract;
  • the lot number;
  • the net weight, the unit price and the total, in the contract currency;
  • the Incoterm with its named place, for example "FCA Urgench railway station";
  • the HS code your broker expects: 1211.90 for licorice root (see Import rules and HS codes).

Packing list

Issued by us. It lists what is physically in the load: the number of bags or bales, the net and gross weight of each and in total, and the lot number. Customs uses it to inspect the load, and you use it to check the delivery when it arrives.

Check: the number of packages and the weights agree with the invoice, and the lot number on the bags is the one on the list.

Phytosanitary certificate

An official certificate that the plant material was inspected before export and meets the plant-health requirements of the importing country. For our root it is issued by the Agency for Plant Protection and Quarantine under the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Requirements differ by country: some ask for an import permit before the goods ship, or for a particular treatment. Tell us your country's requirements before the order, so the certificate can be issued to match them.

Check: the importing country and the consignee, the botanical name Glycyrrhiza glabra, the quantity, and any treatment your country requires.

Certificate of origin

States that the goods originate in Uzbekistan. Customs in your country uses it for the duty rate and for trade statistics; where a trade agreement or preference scheme applies, the right form of certificate can lower the duty. Ours is issued by SCC LLC "Khorezmexpertiza" of JSC "Uzbekexpertiza" in Urgench, on Form A of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), with origin criterion "P": wholly obtained in Uzbekistan. Whether your country grants a preference to licorice root from Uzbekistan, and which proof of origin it accepts, is for your customs broker to confirm.

Check: the consignee, the description and the weights agree with the invoice. If your country asks for a different proof of origin, tell your broker and us before shipment, so the right one is issued.

Fumigation certificate

Every load is fumigated with phosphine (aluminium phosphide) before it leaves, and the load travels with a certificate of that fumigation. Some countries ask for it together with the phytosanitary certificate.

Check: the fumigant and the date, and that the certificate refers to this load.

Certificate of analysis

Every export load has a certificate of analysis (COA) from a professional laboratory in Uzbekistan, and you can choose the laboratory. It always covers glycyrrhizic acid, ash and moisture; name the laboratory, and any other tests your specification requires, in your enquiry. We keep a sample of each shipment for one year. For what each line of a COA means, see Reading a specification.

Check: the lot number and the product are the ones on the invoice and the packing list, and the laboratory and the tests are the ones agreed.

Sales contract

Each order is made under a written sales contract. It sets the product and its specification, the quantity, the price, the Incoterm and named place, the payment method and currency, the delivery time and the documents to be supplied. A copy comes with the shipping documents on request.

Documents on request

  • A copy of the sales contract, with the shipping documents.
  • Our company registration documents: the VAT certificate, the registration certificate and the registration ID are on our About page.
  • Anything your customs or bank asks for. Tell us before the order which documents your country requires, so they are prepared together with the load rather than after it.

Before you pay: a checklist

Under a letter of credit, banks pay against documents that match the credit's terms; a discrepancy, even a spelling, can hold up payment. Under documents against payment, your bank releases the documents when you pay. Either way, check the set before you pay or accept it:

  • The lot number is the same on the invoice, the packing list, the bags and the COA.
  • The product, the grade and the quantity match the contract.
  • The net and gross weights agree between the invoice and the packing list.
  • The HS code is the one your broker expects.
  • The consignee and the destination are right on the phytosanitary certificate and the certificate of origin.
  • The Incoterm and named place on the invoice match the contract.
  • Under a letter of credit: every document matches the credit's wording.

If anything does not match, write to us before the goods arrive, so it can be put right in time.