Amazon Ungating: Pro Forma Invoice vs Commercial Invoice

Posted by Big Brand Wholesale.com on 14th Feb 2020

Are you so totally beyond frustrated with trying to get Ungated on Amazon? Hopefully you already read our Step-By-Step Amazon Ungating Guide for Beginners. But, if your current Amazon Rejection Notice says the issue is that your invoice is "Pro Forma", here is what that means and how to fix it...

A Pro Forma Invoice and a Commercial Invoice look almost identical but they're actually two different things. Think of it like this; if you decide you want to get a new roof on your house, you call a company to come and give you an estimate. They write the estimate down on a Pro Forma invoice. This estimate isn't an actual bill, it's a "quote". If you wait a month to buy the roof the price might go up or it could decrease.

When it comes to wholesale, a Pro Forma invoice used BEFORE the merchandise is paid for whereas an Invoice is used AFTER payment has been made. Pro Forma is used in circumstances where the wholesaler cannot yet predict what the exact order total will be. As an example, let's say you contact us and ask if we can order you 500 kids Carters shirts. We could choose to provide you with an estimate that states the shirts will be approximately $4 each, with a 20% variable, meaning the shirts might end up being as low as $3.20 per piece or as much as $4.80 per piece. The benefit of a Pro Forma invoice is that the vendor can't change the price at the final moment and tell you "Sorry, these shirts are going to be $9 per piece". Here's an example of a Pro Forma Invoice:

Okay so now that you get a Pro Forma invoice is essentially a free estimate, let's discuss Email Confirmations vs Invoice.

An email confirmation is what you are automatically sent as soon as you place an order online. The purpose of an email confirmation is to tell you the order was successful. An email confirmation lets you know that you paid money to the seller for specific merchandise or services. Here's an example of an instant email confirmation:

As you can see, the order confirmation is typically a brief document that basically says "Thanks for your purchase at our company. Here's what ya bought..." The Order Confirmation is NOT an invoice. This is an example of our invoice:

Invoices can also show additional information, such as Payment Terms, contract terms, UPCs, PO numbers and more. An invoice is a detailed record that reflects all of the information regarding the order. Invoices are designed to be printed on 8.5x11" computer paper and are typically PDF files.

Next, check out our other Amazon & eCommerce detailed guides: