The declaration travels with the box
A CN22, a CN23, or a PS Form 2976 on a USPS shipment is short, printed at label creation, and physically attached to or inside the parcel. It is what a customs scanner reads first.
Paperwork, in full
What goes on a commercial invoice
A commercial invoice is the seller's own itemized bill for the goods inside a shipment: a description and value for every item, in a stated currency, next to the country where each item was made and who is paying duty on arrival. It is not the customs declaration stuck to the outside of the parcel — it is a separate document customs checks that declaration against, and on a private courier above minimal value it is required alongside the label rather than instead of it. SMKlog's own checkout now builds this document and the declaration together, before payment, on four countries: Canada, the UK, Germany and Australia.
19 CFR 141.86 citedDHL's own field list, datedAuto-built at SMKlog checkout
The invoice, not the label
Customs reads the invoice line by line. A vague description is what actually stops a box, far more often than a missing signature.
Every field it has to carry
Two sources agree closely on the shape of this document: US import regulation 19 CFR 141.86, which lists what an invoice must show for merchandise entering the United States, and DHL's own commercial-invoice guidance, written for the outbound side of the same shipment. Between the two, this is the full list.
| Field | What it has to say |
|---|---|
| Item description | What it is, what it is made of, what it is for — specific enough that a stranger could classify it. "Samples" and "parts" are not descriptions. |
| Quantity | By count or by weight, matching the unit the price is quoted in |
| Value and currency | A price per item, or a fair market value if it was not sold, stated in a named currency |
| Country of origin | Where each item was produced, which is not always where the shipment starts |
| Harmonized System code | The tariff classification customs uses to assess duty, searched on the item's material and function |
| Shipper and receiver | Full names and addresses on both ends of the transaction |
| Incoterm | Who pays freight, insurance and duty, and at what point risk passes from seller to buyer |
| Reason for export | Sale, gift, sample, return or repair — it changes how the value is assessed |
| Itemized charges | Freight, packing, commission and any rebate or discount, each stated separately rather than folded into one number |
| A named contact | 19 CFR 141.86 asks for the name of an employee who actually knows the transaction, not a general company line |
None of this is optional padding. A customs officer with a queue behind them reads the description and the value first, and those two fields are what decide whether the box clears on the first pass or gets pulled for a second look.
Not the same document as the declaration on the parcel
The customs declaration and the commercial invoice answer the same underlying question — what is this, and what is it worth — but they are two different pieces of paper with two different jobs.
The invoice is the seller's own record
Longer, itemized, usually on letterhead. On UPS, FedEx and DHL Express shipments above minimal value it is required in addition to the declaration, not as a substitute for it.
Which one applies at what value
The threshold where a short declaration stops being enough and an invoice joins it is a value question, not a carrier question, and it is covered in full on our customs paperwork ladder guide rather than repeated here.
A worked example
Take one item from SMKlog's own live checkout — a boxed ceramic coffee mug, quoted 2026-08-31 — and fill in each field the way it actually has to read, not the shorthand a seller reaches for by habit.
| Field | Habit | What actually clears |
|---|---|---|
| Description | "housewares" | Ceramic coffee mug, glazed stoneware, for retail sale |
| Value | rounded down "to help the buyer" | The price actually charged, in the currency you bill in — matched to the receipt |
| Country of origin | assumed from the ship-from address | Wherever it was made, confirmed against a maker's mark or the supplier's own paperwork |
| HS code | left blank for customs to fill in | Searched at hts.usitc.gov by material and function, chapter notes read before committing |
| Incoterm | not stated | Delivered Duty Unpaid, the default our own checkout bills on all four launched lanes today |
| Reason for export | not stated | Sale |
Nothing in the right-hand column is harder to write than the left-hand one. It just takes the extra four seconds most sellers skip, and it is the difference between a box that clears on the first pass and one that sits in a queue while someone emails the seller for the answer.
Built at checkout on four lanes
SMKlog's own checkout now fills in this document rather than leaving it to the shipper. On Canada, the UK, Germany and Australia, the declaration is completed before payment and a commercial-invoice pack is emailed once the label is bought, with duty left to the recipient. These are the cheapest live quotes returned on each lane, captured the same day.
| Lane | Carrier | Service | Price | Transit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | UPS | UPS Worldwide Economy DDU | 25.61 USD | 8 business days |
| United Kingdom | UPS | UPS Worldwide Economy DDU | 30.13 USD | 8 business days |
| Germany | FedEx | International Connect Plus | 39.41 USD | 8 business days |
| Australia | UPS | UPS Worldwide Economy DDU | 40.05 USD | 8 business days |
Every one of those four prices already includes the paperwork above — there is no separate line for the declaration or the invoice pack. Every other destination still routes to manual review, where a person prepares this paperwork the way the rest of this page describes rather than the checkout doing it automatically.
Where these numbers come from
- 19 CFR 141.86, Invoices for other than certain articles, Cornell Legal Information Institute — the required-field list for a US import invoice. Read 2026-08-31.
- DHL, The Commercial Invoice — the shipper-side field list and the description guidance. Read 2026-08-31.
- SMKlog's own checkout, live quotes for a boxed ceramic mug to Canada, the UK, Germany and Australia — the four prices in the table above. Captured 2026-08-31.
fedex.com returned an access-denied response when checked 2026-08-31, so nothing on this page is sourced from FedEx's own site directly; the FedEx price above comes from SMKlog's own live carrier account.
Commercial invoices, answered
What is a commercial invoice in international shipping?
The seller's own itemized bill for what is inside the shipment, not the customs declaration stuck to the outside of the parcel. Customs uses it to check the declaration against the actual transaction: a description and value for every item, the currency, the country of origin, and who is paying duty on arrival.
What fields does a commercial invoice need?
At minimum a full description of each item, a value and currency per item, the quantity, the country of origin, the shipper's and receiver's names and addresses, an incoterm, and a reason for export. US import regulation 19 CFR 141.86 adds a named contact at the shipping business with knowledge of the transaction, itemized freight and packing charges, and any discount stated separately rather than folded into the price.
How is a commercial invoice different from a customs declaration?
The customs declaration — a CN22, a CN23, or a PS Form 2976 on a USPS shipment — is the compact form filed with the parcel itself. A commercial invoice is the shipper's own longer document, and on UPS, FedEx and DHL Express shipments above minimal value it travels alongside the declaration rather than replacing it. Our paperwork ladder guide covers which document applies at what declared value.
Does SMKlog generate the commercial invoice automatically?
Yes, on the four countries SMKlog now sells self-service: Canada, the UK, Germany and Australia. The declaration is completed at checkout before payment, and a commercial-invoice pack is emailed once the label is bought, with duty left to the recipient on delivery. Every other destination still routes to manual review, where a person prepares this paperwork the way this page describes.
What happens if the invoice value does not match the declared customs value?
The shipment gets held for review. Customs cross-checks the invoice against the declaration, and a mismatch between the two is one of the most common reasons a parcel sits at the border instead of moving. Keep the description, the value and the currency the same on both documents.