Proforma invoice from a China supplier: what to check first

The proforma invoice from a China supplier is what your bank, your clearing agent and any dispute rest on. The fields it must carry, and what suppliers leave out.

A proforma invoice from a Chinese supplier is one document you should never skim.

For a Nigerian commercial import, it helps start the Form M process. The price, product description, quantity and shipping terms on it become the starting point for paperwork that follows.

Nigeria Customs currently lists the proforma invoice, insurance certificate and applicable regulatory certificates among the documents required for Form M processing.

So before paying a deposit, make sure the PI describes the transaction you actually intend to make.

What should be on the proforma invoice? #

At minimum, check these details.

Supplier details #

You want:

• supplier/company name
• address
• contact details
• invoice number
• invoice date

Then separately verify the supplier's Chinese legal identity.

Ask for the Chinese business licence and check the legal Chinese company name and Unified Social Credit Code against China's official enterprise information system. China's State Administration for Market Regulation describes the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System as the official public platform for company-registration information.

Do not rely only on the English company name.

A Chinese company's English name may be a translation or trading name rather than the exact legal name appearing on its licence.

Your Nigerian company name must be correct #

The buyer should be shown as the same legal entity you are using for the import.

If your CAC registration says:

Bright Home Nigeria Limited

do not let the PI say:

Bright Home Enterprises

because that is what the supplier remembers from WhatsApp.

Your Form M, banking documents and later shipping documents need a clean trail back to the importer.

Copy the legal name directly from your CAC/bank documents and send it to the supplier.

Describe the product properly #

Avoid descriptions like:

Electronics

Shoes

Machine

Accessories

Nigeria Customs' import guidance requires sufficiently detailed goods descriptions, including information such as product type, brand/model where applicable, specification, capacity, size, quantity and packing.

A better line is:

LED bulb, 9W, E27 base, 6500K, 220–240V, 100 pcs/carton

or:

Ladies synthetic upper casual shoes, sizes 37–42, 12 pairs/carton

The description should tell Customs what the product actually is.

Settle the HS code before Form M #

The Form M system requires an HS code for the goods, together with information including description, quantity, unit of measurement, unit price, package details, weight and freight.

So do not simply accept whatever HS code the Chinese supplier sends.

China and Nigeria use the same international HS structure at the global level, but national tariff subdivisions can differ.

Send:

product photo + specification + intended use

to your Nigerian clearing agent and confirm the Nigerian classification.

Then make sure that is the code being used for your Form M.

Putting the agreed HS code on the PI helps keep the paperwork consistent.

A wrong code can change:

duty + SON/NAFDAC requirements + PAAR + examination risk + landed cost.

Use our Nigeria Customs duty calculator to see why that matters.

Quantity, unit price and total #

This sounds obvious.

Still calculate it yourself.

The PI should show:

quantity × unit price = line total

and then:

grand total + currency

For example:

5,000 pcs × RMB 18.50
= RMB 92,500

Make sure you know whether the supplier means:

piece, pair, set, carton, roll, dozen or kilogram.

“500 sets” and “500 pieces” can be completely different orders.

The Incoterm must include the place #

Do not accept:

FOB

or:

CIF

with nothing after it.

You need to know where responsibility changes.

Examples:

EXW Foshan factory

FOB Shenzhen

FOB Nansha

CIF Apapa, Lagos

The Incoterm changes what you still need to pay.

With EXW, you may be responsible for getting the goods out of the factory and through China's export side.

With FOB, the supplier covers more of the China side.

With CIF, the supplier also arranges the main freight and insurance to the named destination, subject to the agreed terms.

If the trade term is unclear, your freight calculation is unclear.

Get the packing information before ordering #

You need:

• units per carton
• number of cartons
• carton dimensions
• gross weight
• net weight where applicable

The Form M system captures package numbers, gross/net weight and quantity information.

More importantly, you need those numbers to calculate freight.

A supplier offering you a fantastic unit price but refusing to give carton dimensions has not given you enough information to decide whether the order is profitable.

For sea freight, use our cost per CBM guide.

For air cargo, use shipping cost per kg from China to Nigeria.

Put the payment terms in writing #

Do not let:

“30/70”

be the entire payment agreement.

Write what it actually means.

For example:

30% deposit after PI approval

70% after production and successful inspection, before shipment

or whatever terms you have agreed.

Also state:

• payment currency
• beneficiary
• bank
• account details where appropriate
• when the balance becomes due

Then compare those details with what the supplier sends when payment day comes.

If the salesperson suddenly says:

“Please use this new bank account instead.”

stop.

Verify the change independently.

Our China payment scam guide explains why changed beneficiary details are one of the points where importers lose money.

What if the bank account is in another company's name? #

Do not automatically call it fraud.

Chinese manufacturers sometimes use:

• trading companies
• affiliated export companies
• payment agents
• Hong Kong entities

for legitimate reasons.

But you need to understand the structure before paying.

Ask:

Why am I buying from Company A but paying Company B?

Then request written documentation connecting the two entities and verify it separately.

For a first transaction, the cleanest structure remains:

verified supplier → invoice → documented beneficiary → payment evidence.

The more unexplained companies appearing between those four points, the more checking you should do.

Does the PI need the red Chinese company chop? #

A stamped PI is useful.

But do not describe a red chop as a Nigerian Form M requirement.

Nigeria Customs' published Form M requirements focus on the PI and the transaction information, not on requiring a particular Chinese corporate chop.

For supplier verification, however, asking for a company-stamped PI can help you compare the company issuing the document with the business licence and other supplier records.

A stamp does not by itself prove the supplier is genuine.

Verification comes first.

Your PI must be recent #

This one is important.

The current Form M application manual says the accepted proforma invoice date must be less than 90 days old.

Older CBN guidance also requires the supplier to state the validity period of the price on the PI.

So make sure the document shows:

invoice date

and preferably:

Valid for 30/60/90 days

depending on what the supplier agrees.

If you have been negotiating for four months using the same PI, ask the supplier to issue an updated one before Form M processing.

Production time belongs on the document too #

Write:

Production lead time: 25 days after deposit

rather than:

Delivery: soon

If the supplier says 20 days on WeChat but the PI says nothing, the promised date becomes harder to enforce commercially.

For customised products also record:

sample approval date

artwork approval

packaging specification

production lead time

The more customised the order, the less you should depend on a one-page PI alone.

Use a purchase agreement or detailed order specification as well.

A proforma invoice is not automatically a contract #

This is worth correcting.

A PI is normally a preliminary commercial document showing what the seller proposes to supply and at what price.

Your acceptance, payment, purchase agreement, messages and applicable law can create contractual obligations around the transaction.

But do not assume:

“The PI says it, therefore I have a perfect enforceable contract.”

For a straightforward order, a detailed PI plus payment and written agreement may be enough commercially.

For an expensive custom order, use a proper purchase contract/specification.

What comes after the proforma invoice? #

The document chain is easier if you understand the order.

1. Proforma invoice #

Before the order/shipment.

Used to establish the intended transaction and support Form M.

Current Customs service standards require a proforma invoice for Form M processing.

2. Commercial invoice #

When the actual shipment is ready.

This should reflect what is actually being shipped:

• final quantities
• product description
• unit price
• total value
• applicable HS information
• seller/buyer details

For PAAR, Customs currently requires the commercial invoice, packing list, transport document and certificate of origin, together with the registered Form M and applicable regulatory certificates.

The commercial invoice is therefore much more important to the final Customs valuation process than the original estimate on your PI.

3. Packing list #

This tells Customs and your clearing agent:

how many cartons + what is inside + weights + packing configuration.

It should agree with the commercial invoice.

4. CCVO #

Nigeria Customs guidance still lists the Combined Certificate of Value and Origin — CCVO among import documents, identifying the seller as the provider and describing it as confirmation of the goods' value and origin.

The PAAR application manual also lists the CCVO among mandatory PAAR attachments.

So tell the supplier early that Nigerian clearance may require it.

Do not start explaining CCVO to a Chinese supplier after the container has already sailed.

What if the final quantity changes? #

This happens.

You ordered:

10,000 units

but inspection finds defects and the supplier finally ships:

9,760 units.

Do not simply leave every Nigerian document showing 10,000.

The final commercial invoice and packing list should show the actual shipment.

There is some tolerance in the PAAR system, but changes still need to remain consistent with the Form M and be handled properly. The PAAR validation system warns when consignment values exceed permitted amounts relative to the Form M.

Tell your bank/clearing agent before arrival when the final shipment materially differs from the PI.

Do not let Customs discover the difference during examination.

The 10-minute PI check #

Before sending a deposit, check:

SUPPLIER
Correct company?
Business licence checked?

BUYER
Exact Nigerian registered name?

PRODUCT
Precise description?

HS CODE
Confirmed for Nigeria?

QUANTITY
Unit clearly stated?

PRICE
Correct currency and arithmetic?

INCOTERM
Named port/place?

PACKING
Cartons, dimensions and weights available?

PAYMENT
Deposit, balance and beneficiary clear?

PRODUCTION
Lead time stated?

DATE
PI less than 90 days old for Form M?

If one of the important lines is wrong, ask for a revised PI.

Do that before payment, not after.

The mistake to avoid #

Do not let this happen:

Supplier sends PI.

You pay.

Clearing agent sees it later.

Agent says HS code is wrong.

Bank asks for correction.

Supplier changes description.

SONCAP is now required.

Freight is higher because carton size was never checked.

The order is already in production.

You have lost your negotiating position.

The better order is:

product → supplier verification → PI → HS code/compliance check → landed-cost calculation → Form M → payment.

That is why ChinaBridge treats the proforma invoice as a checkpoint, not just another PDF from the supplier.

If you already have a PI, check the supplier, product description, quantity, HS code, trade term, packing and beneficiary before the deposit moves.

Next, read Form M for Nigerian importers.

Then check how to pay a Chinese supplier from Nigeria.

And before deciding the order is profitable, put the PI into the landed cost from China to Nigeria calculation.

First published 20 Sep 2026. Last checked 23 Sep 2026 by The ChinaBridge desk. Something here out of date? Tell us in the comments and we will fix it.