Documentation/ Document types/ Customs documents (DUA)
Customs documents (DUA)
The single administrative document records an import being cleared through customs. What is particular about it is who is who: the issuer is the customs agent, not the overseas supplier, who appears separately as the exporter.
On this page
Who is who on a customs document
| Role | Who it is | Where it is recorded |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | The customs agent handling the clearance. | As the document's supplier |
| Recipient | The importing company. | As the recipient |
| Exporter | The overseas seller of the goods. | In fields of its own: name, reference and country |
This is what causes most of the confusion: the supplier on a customs document is the customs agent. The overseas seller does not take the issuer's place, because it is the agent who bills the clearance and the duty. The invoice for the goods is a separate document, issued by that seller.
Where it is handled
It appears in the menu as DUA (Customs) and uses the same screen as purchase delivery notes, with the DUA type selected. Whether it is in the menu depends on how the account is set up.
The customs fields
As well as the usual header data, the clearance details are pulled out:
| Field | What it is |
|---|---|
| MRN | The movement reference number for the customs entry. |
| Acceptance date | When customs accepted the declaration. |
| Customs office | The office where it was cleared. |
| Customs procedure | The procedure the goods were cleared under. |
| Gross weight | The weight declared. |
| Parcels | Number of packages. |
| Currency | The currency of the transaction. |
| Customs value | The value the duty and tax are worked out on. |
| TARIC | The commodity code for the goods. |
| Country of origin | Where the goods came from. |
| Customs agent | Name and tax reference. |
| Importer | Name and tax reference. |
| Exporter | Name, reference and country of the overseas seller. |
| Tax type | What kind of tax or duty was charged. |
How it relates to the supplier's invoice
An import produces at least two documents, and they go in separately:
- The overseas supplier's invoice, for the goods. That goes in the purchase invoice list.
- The customs document, for the clearance and the duty. That goes in its own list.
Usually there is a third: the customs agent's invoice for their fee, and often a fourth for the international carriage.
What the amounts actually are
A customs document is not shaped like an ordinary invoice: the amounts are the duty and tax charged at the border, import VAT and customs duty, on the customs value, which does not have to match what the supplier invoiced.
That is why the document records the customs value and the tax type outright: they are what let you reconcile the charge.
Whether you have it
The customs type is switched on per account. On accounts without it, these documents are usually treated as expense invoices, which means losing the customs fields.