The goods are ready to ship. One wrong tariff code is enough to stop them.
The invoice, the packing list, and the customs declaration have to agree down to the last digit before a shipment leaves the building. This page shows where that actually goes wrong in practice, and what a pre-check catches before it becomes a hold at the terminal.
Why a single mistake gets expensive
A customs authority that finds an inconsistency between the invoice, the packing list, and the declaration holds the shipment for inspection. From that moment, demurrage and storage charges run while you file the correction and wait for a new inspection slot.
Illustrative depiction of the process, not measured averages. Procedures and timelines differ by customs authority, mode of transport, and type of goods.
Three steps, no preparation needed
You upload the invoice and packing list
Commercial invoice as a PDF, with the packing list and one transport document (bill of lading, air waybill or CMR) optional alongside it. You confirm the country of origin and destination manually - deliberately not an automatic guess, but a statement you can stand behind.
You see every line before anything is checked
Goods description, quantity, weight, HS/tariff code per line - anything uncertain is marked. Freight, packaging, and insurance lines are recognized and excluded from the HS code check instead of being wrongly flagged as missing a classification.
You get a list you can finish the declaration from
Every finding with the affected line, the value found, the value expected, and a concrete fix - plus, for US, UK and EU destinations, the official tariff entry and an estimated duty per line, and optional research on the tariff code and import duties for other destinations.
This is what you get back
A worked example of a single finding, with made-up documents and figures. Every entry in your result list has exactly this shape.
Packing List
Example Textiles Ltd
- Packing list no.
- PL-1001
- Invoice ref.
- INV-1001
- Date
- 01 Jan 2026
Shipper
Example Textiles Ltd
1 Sample Street
Exampletown
Consignee
Sample Import GmbH
Musterstraße 1
12345 Musterstadt
| No. | Description | Cartons | Net weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cotton T-shirts | 20 | 245.00 kg |
| 2 | Denim trousers | 18 | 312.80 kg |
| 3 | Knitted pullovers | 12 | 147.00 kg |
| 4 | Cotton scarves | 8 | 107.60 kg |
| 5 | Cotton scarves | 8 | 107.60 kg |
| Total net weight | 66 | 920 kg |
Packing List
Net Weight
Found
920 kg
Expected
812.40 kg (sum of invoice line items, ±16 kg)
Net Weight
The total weight on the packing list deviates by more than the tolerance from the sum of the weights on the commercial invoice.
920 kg
812.40 kg (sum of invoice line items, ±16 kg)
The tolerance is 2% of the invoice weight, never less than 5 kg and never more than 1,000 kg. Here 2% of 812.40 kg is 16.25 kg, shown rounded as 16 kg, and 920 kg is 107.6 kg above the invoice weight.
Suggested fix: Check whether an item was double-entered on the packing list, or a weight was transcribed incorrectly, before filing the declaration.
The part that matters is again the last one: not just “this doesn't match”, but a concrete starting point for the correction - while the declaration hasn't gone out yet.
What actually gets checked
Fixed checks, no guessing: the same documents give the same finding, and every finding names the rule it rests on.
Numbers that have to agree
- Invoice total value against the sum of its line items
- Packing list net weight against the sum of the invoice line items, within 2% of the weight (at least 5 kg, at most 1,000 kg)
- Net weight against gross weight on the packing list
- Country of origin on the invoice, and on each line, against the origin you confirmed
Transport document (optional)
- Bill of lading, air waybill or CMR against the packing list and the invoice
- Gross weight against the packing list, within the same tolerance
- Consignee against the buyer, shipper against the seller
- A shipment date on the document
HS/tariff code per line
- Present, and in the right shape (6-10 digits)
- Freight, packaging, and insurance lines correctly excluded
- US, UK and EU destinations: looked up in the official tariff (USITC HTS, UK Trade Tariff, EU tariff through the UK service for Northern Ireland); a code that is not listed is flagged
- Other destinations: format and completeness only, plus optional research on classification and import duties, labelled as unverified
Duty and preference
- US, UK and EU destinations: estimated duty per line where the tariff gives a percentage rate, on the line's invoice value
- A preferential rate for the origin you confirmed, with the saving and the proof of origin it needs
- Not included: freight and insurance in the customs value, import VAT, anti-dumping and countervailing duties, duties set per unit
Declaration data
- EORI numbers of exporter and importer (EU and UK)
- Incoterm and its named place
- The customs value build-up: freight and insurance to add (EU, UK) or to deduct (US)
- Net mass per item, gross mass, number and kind of packages, mode of transport
Export control
- A prompt to check the control list for goods under HS headings that often hold dual-use items
- A warning when such goods go to a restricted destination, and a reminder of the CN-code export bans for Russia and Belarus
- A hint, not a licensing decision; a heading that is not listed is not a clearance
Destination documents
- Typical extra paperwork for 22 destination markets, such as importer registrations, conformity certificates and pre-arrival filings
- Dated and worded as "typically", not as a complete legal list
Sanctions & embargo pre-screening
- Origin, destination, and both seller and buyer automatically checked against the EU Consolidated Financial Sanctions List, the US Consolidated Screening List (incl. OFAC's SDN list) and the UK Sanctions List, plus the vessel if you enter it
- A comprehensively embargoed country is a hard stop, not just a warning
- Runs automatically on every check, no extra click needed
Before you file
- A flag on high value or weight, without assuming any specific legal threshold
- Origin and destination country must be manually confirmed by you before anything runs
- Every rule check is deterministic: same input, same result
- The goods lines as a CSV for your broker, and the result as a PDF report
What this check is not
For US, UK and EU destinations the HS/tariff code is looked up in the official tariff (USITC HTS, UK Trade Tariff, and the EU tariff through the UK service for Northern Ireland). For other destinations only format and completeness are checked. Whether the code is the correct classification remains your customs office's or customs broker's call in every case.
Duty figures are estimates, based on the percentage rate and the invoice value of each line. Freight and insurance in the customs value, import VAT, anti-dumping and countervailing duties, and duties set per unit are not included.
Export-control hints and destination document lists are prompts to check, not a licensing decision and not a complete legal list.
It does not replace customs filing software or an ATLAS-style connection. It is a pre-check step for your own paperwork, before that data goes into your filing system.
It is not a promise that customs will release the shipment. “No discrepancies found” means nothing was found in the checks performed.
It is not customs, tax, or legal advice.
Check your next shipment
Upload the invoice, confirm origin and destination, read the result.