1. The comparison that matters
A shipment of machinery worth several hundred thousand dollars is not a shipment of small hardware worth a few thousand.
The document set has to be sized to the transaction.
2. What the first buyer asks for
A certificate of origin, a commercial invoice, and a conformity certificate.
Certification of the invoice by CCPIT, because the buyer’s customs broker expects it.
3. What that costs
Certification is inexpensive.
The conformity certificate is the significant item: testing, inspection, and time.
4. The document set for machinery
Certificate of origin
Preferential or non-preferential, depending on the destination.
Commercial invoice
Detailed enough to satisfy the destination’s valuation requirements. Machinery invoices often need to itemise principal components and optional equipment.
Packing list
Machinery packing is often non-standard: crates, skids, loose items.
Weights and dimensions per package matter more than in containerised consumer goods.
Insurance certificate
For CIF and CIP terms.
Conformity or inspection certificate
Where required.
5. The installation and commissioning question
Where the contract includes installation, the invoice may need to separate goods from services.
Mixing the two distorts the customs value.
6. A scenario
An exporter invoiced machinery and installation as a single CIF figure.
Customs assessed duty on the full amount, and the service element was included in the duty base.
Re-assessing afterwards required an amended declaration and a refund claim.
7. The lesson
On capital goods, the invoice structure is as important as the amount.
8. Closing view
The document set scales with the transaction. The standards do not.
*This article is based on standard export documentation practice and Chinese customs valuation rules.*