Table of contents:
1 / Basic Invoice Guide
1) Several situations where Amazon may ask you to provide an invoice
2) Detailed explanation of basic invoice requirements on the application page
3) Acceptable invoice types in the application
2 / Advanced Invoice Strategy
1) Invoice requirements in Mainland China
2) Inspection work before submitting application
3) Wrong invoice case
For Amazon's cross-border e-commerce sellers, invoices are not a trivial matter. In addition to being a proof of transaction, it is also the "golden signboard" of high-quality goods.
To ensure that buyers have a good shopping experience on the platform, Amazon is constantly working to provide consumers with better customer service. In order to ensure product quality, Amazon will impose some restrictions to screen high-quality goods for sale.
1 | Situations where Amazon may ask you for an invoice
During the account review phase after registration, when you first start uploading new products
When a seller triggers a product investigation due to a customer complaint, they need to provide an invoice as a proof of investigation document to support Amazon’s supply chain audit investigation.
When Amazon investigates your account due to product quality or counterfeit infringement
When sellers upload new products, they may need to provide a purchase invoice for the product if they encounter certain category restrictions.
Generally, Amazon divides category restrictions into four categories as shown in the following table
If you encounter applications for other categories, please read the application page carefully and submit documents that meet the requirements.
2 | Detailed explanation of the basic requirements for invoices on the application page
The editor has summarized the basic requirements of invoices:
Date set within 180 days of invoice date
Include your name and address
Include the name and address of the manufacturer or distributor
Display combined orders containing at least 10 items of the requested product (need to be kept as close to the backend inventory quantity as possible)
Omit pricing information (optional)
Editor's friendly reminder: When submitting an invoice from mainland China, it is recommended that you do not cover the pricing information.
We may contact the product supplier you indicate in your application to verify the documents you submit.
Before submitting the invoice, the editor needs to remind the seller to read the requirements on the application page carefully!
3 | Acceptable invoice types for your application
1) Under what circumstances do I need to submit an invoice from mainland China?
If you and your supplier are both from mainland China, please provide formal invoices that comply with the Invoice Management Measures of the People's Republic of China and other relevant regulations. Here are a few common examples. Amazon usually accepts ( but is not limited to ) the following invoices:
Special VAT invoice
VAT general invoice
General machine-printed invoice
VAT electronic invoice
2) If you are not one of the above, please provide an official invoice for the goods purchased from the manufacturer or distributor, which must comply with the relevant regulations of each country/region/company.
Q&A time
How to submit an application for category review?
You can submit an application through the Seller Platform.
And provide subsequent application materials.
For specific methods, please refer to the seller platform help page: Categories and products that require approval, check the steps of "Request Approval"
How do I check the status of my application?
On the Seller Central Add a Product page, check the status of your application by clicking "To manage your selling application, click here"
What does 180 days mean in the invoice requirement?
For example, if you submit your application on July 10, 2019, the date requirement on the application page is "The date must be set on or after January 11, 2019 (within 180 days)". As long as the invoice date is between -1-11 and July 10, it complies with Amazon's regulations.
Can I provide multiple invoices when the quantity on one invoice is less than 10 items?
Multiple invoices can be provided as long as the number of items on all invoices exceeds 10.
Note: The goods listed on the invoice must match the product categories you requested approval.
Under what circumstances is it not necessary to provide an invoice from mainland China? What kind of invoice is referred to as a “formal invoice”?
If one of you or your supplier is not registered with the Chinese Mainland Administration for Industry and Commerce, you do not need to provide a Chinese Mainland invoice. At this time, your supplier only needs to provide you with an invoice or sales invoice that complies with local laws and regulations.
Is there any introduction to VAT electronic invoice?
An electronic invoice is an invoice in the form of electronic information. Its invoice code, issuing agency, amount and other information as well as its printed format are the same as those of a paper invoice. Electronic invoices are more convenient to keep, query and review, and you can also verify the authenticity of the invoices through the IRS system. The legal effect and basic uses of electronic invoices are the same as those of paper invoices.
Policy announcement on VAT electronic general invoice (copy the link to open in your browser) :
http://www.chinatax.gov.cn/chinatax/n810341/n810755/c3526340/content.html
Now we will increase the difficulty and enter the learning time for experts!
Pay attention to the key points. Here we will provide more detailed invoice strategies so that you can quickly get how to submit an invoice that meets Amazon's requirements.
1 | Invoice requirements in Mainland China
If you provide invoices from mainland China, after the invoices meet the basic requirements of Amazon invoices, they must also comply with the Invoice Management Measures of the People's Republic of China and other relevant regulations. A qualified Chinese invoice must display information in Chinese and include the following:
Invoice Number
Invoice Code
Purchaser's Taxpayer Identification Number (Seller)
Seller's taxpayer identification number
Product Name
Stamp the correct invoice
2 | Check before submitting your application
Seeing this, you may be confused. My invoice already includes these contents, why was the previous application still not approved? If your invoice contains the basic requirements of Amazon invoices + the requirements of Chinese invoices, you can check it yourself through the following points to increase your chances of passing~ The editor has found relevant legal provisions here to help you quickly understand tax knowledge.
1) Language regulations for invoices
According to Article 29 of the Implementation Rules of the Invoice Management Measures of the People's Republic of China (State Administration of Taxation Order No. 25, which has been partially amended in accordance with State Administration of Taxation Order No. 48), invoices should be issued in Chinese. Ethnic autonomous areas may simultaneously use a single ethnic language commonly used locally.
2) Provisions on the purchaser’s taxpayer identification number (seller)
According to the "Announcement of the State Administration of Taxation on Issues Concerning the Issuance of Value-Added Tax Invoices" (Announcement of the State Administration of Taxation No. 16 of 2017): From July 1, 2017, if the purchaser is an enterprise, when requesting a general value-added tax invoice, it should provide the seller with its taxpayer identification number or unified social credit code; when the seller issues a general value-added tax invoice for it, it should fill in the purchaser's taxpayer identification number or unified social credit code in the "Purchaseer's Taxpayer Identification Number" column. Invoices that do not comply with regulations shall not be used as tax vouchers. The enterprises referred to in this announcement include companies, unincorporated legal persons, corporate branches, sole proprietorships, partnerships and other enterprises.
National Taxation Bureau website (copy the link and open it in your browser) :
http://www.chinatax.gov.cn/n810341/n810765/n812141/n812222/c1520609/content.html
3) Stamp the correct invoice
What stamp should be on the invoice?
According to the "Invoice Management Measures of the People's Republic of China" (State Council Order No. 587, some provisions have been amended in accordance with the State Council Order No. 709 of the People's Republic of China): Invoices should be issued in accordance with the prescribed time limit, sequence, and columns, all copies should be issued at one time, and the special invoice stamp should be affixed.
Please refer to the following document of the State Administration of Taxation and Shanghai Municipal Taxation Bureau for the "Invoice Management Measures of the People's Republic of China" (you can copy the link to open it in your browser) :
http://www.tax.sh.gov.cn/pub/ssxc/zlzy/zcgll/ptfpjbpz/pzxgwj/201203/t20120330_390024.html
How should the VAT invoice be stamped when it is issued on behalf of others?
According to the "Guidelines for Issuing VAT Invoices", Chapter 2, Section 2 "Basic Provisions for Tax Authorities to Issue Invoices on Behalf of Others", Article 4, Point 6 "Remarks" requires:
VAT taxpayers should stamp their unit's special invoice seal on the remarks column of the special VAT invoice issued on behalf of others (except in special circumstances when issuing invoices on behalf of other individuals). The tax authorities shall stamp the special stamp for issuing invoices on behalf of others on the remarks column of the VAT general invoices issued on behalf of others and the VAT special invoices issued on behalf of other individuals.
For the "VAT Invoice Issuance Guide", please refer to the following document from the Hainan Provincial Taxation Bureau of the State Administration of Taxation (you can copy the link to open it in your browser):
http://www.hitax.gov.cn/bsfw_6_2/10108206.html
Q&A session
1. If I provide a VAT invoice, how should I fill in the invoice information?
The invoice should contain the following (click to enlarge):
2. Which documents cannot be provided as invoices?
【 Negative example 1】 Business license.
【Bad Example 2】 Any type of contract.
[Negative Example 3] Screenshot of the Internet Platform Order Page
【Bad Example 4】 Warehouse order form, delivery note, shipment note of any form.
[Negative Example 5] Screenshot of the Invoicing System
[Negative Example 6] Voided Invoice
[Counter-example 7] The first copy of the invoice as the seller’s accounting voucher
The above is all the content we have summarized for you. Is it helpful for your application? Before you apply, the editor reminds you again that please refer to Amazon's latest application requirements and carefully read the content of the reply email to you. In addition, please keep your transaction evidence in case of emergency.
Source: Worry-free sellers
