International courier is a process of importing and exporting products/services worldwide by road, sea, or air. The process is quite complicated as it has several rules and regulations to be followed. Besides following them, you should do relevant paperwork for the successful import/export. You can always go for internal courier services in India to avoid experiencing such complications when shipping your freight. Shipping connects products with global markets, products, and people.
The international shipping of goods and services involves multiple processes. Courier services pick the parcels from a country and deliver them to an address. International courier services are expensive and involve more complications than domestic deliveries due to the number of involved resources. Here are the main players in the global shipping process:
- Importer
The buyer ensures the customer receives the products at the destination at the right time.
- Exporter
An exporter sells products/services to an importer.
- Bank
A bank functions as a financier in international trading by offering loans and LOC.
Are you wondering about the procedures involved in international courier services? Check the steps below:
- Ask for the Freight Quotes
Requesting for the freight quote is the first step in international shipping. Before that, you will have to share details, such as the date of shipping, pick-up location, destination, products, packing details, and parcel type with the freight forwarders in the network. After doing that, you can get quotes from freight forwarders or go for digital freight forwarders to automate shopping and get quotes instantly.
- Select the Freight Forwarders
Once you get the quote, you will have to confirm the freight carrier/forwarder with delivery charges, support, and network suited to your shipping requirements. You can find numerous traditional and digital freight forwarders. The digital freight forwarder delivers the quotes in real-time. The digital app tracks the entire shipping process, which helps exporters stay updated with the supply chain.
- Arrange the Most Important Documents
You will have to arrange the required documents after selecting the freight forwarder. Here are the most important documents to keep ready:
- Certificates of Origin
This legal document validates that the specified country in the packing list and commercial invoice is correct.
- Performa Invoice
The requested quote would act as a proforma invoice in the international transaction. It can be utilized for arranging finances, opening a LOC, applying for import licenses, and many more things. Some of them are below:
Shipper’s Letter of Instruction
It includes the required information to shift parcels from one location to another.
Bills of Lading
The carrier issues this legal document to a shipper, which specifies the type, amount, and location the products are to be shipped.
Packing List
This list identifies the amount of shipment, dimensions, and weight.
Bank Draft
A bank draft is a document used to transfer ownership of the exported products from the seller in place of funds from a buyer.
Dangerous Goods Form
It’s a document issued for the goods considered dangerous by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
- Commercial Invoice
After the Performa invoice is sent, the order gets received. Then, you should prepare the products and required documents for shipping. Here are the required documents:
- Place and time of selling
- Buyer details (Name, Address and Contact Number)
- Seller details (Name, Address and Contact)
- Country of Shipment
- Description of Merchandise
- Date of Signing, title of the signer, and a signature
- Extra information provided in the document’s terms and conditions
- Confirm and Double-Verify the Shipment Details
You should confirm and double-verify the shipment details when you finish preparing for the international courier services. Ensure you verify the B/L number, location of shipment, type, and number of containers, reference number, and type.
- Request for Booking or Delivery Order to the Carrier
You can book a freight provider after confirming all the required things. You are only required to update all the required details with the chosen freight forwarder. The required details are origin place, origin date, destination place, destination date, and type of container. Then, you should wait for the documents to submit the booking to the shipping line when they have finished the booking and payment.
- Track Your Shipment
You can initiate tracking your shipment when you get the booking confirmation email from the shipping company. Some freight forwarders allow tracking the shipment online and that too in real-time. Besides allowing real-time management and online tracking, they also have other features, such as contract, document, and invoice management.
- Pass Good Shipment via Customs at the Entry Port
Customs evaluate the shipment and will verify if the requirements set by them are met. No issues will arise on your shipment and they can pass through if the requirements are fulfilled. Otherwise, your shipment will be on hold under customs custody until the balance gets paid.
- Reimburse the Shipment Bills for Custom Taxes and Duties
Courier bills include taxes and duties from the forwarder, and you should pay them directly to the forwarder. You can find many forwarders not accepting payments via bank transfer and cheques. The charges will be billed directly to your name whenever a request is made for inspection assistance.
- Accept the Shipment
You will receive the parcel once it reaches the port after following all the steps above. You can find international courier services in India where booking features and instant rate search work for LTL freight. With the help of the best courier service provider, you can book LTL freight or any other tracking services for the final delivery.
The Bottomline
So, these are the procedures involved in international courier. If you want to import/export parcels intentionally without experiencing any complications, you should hire an international courier service. They do what it takes to deliver your products to the right destination at the right time without any complications. Even if there is any complication, you get to know about it immediately as they track and notify you about all the updates.