EXPLANATION OF ISBP 821 PARAGRAPH C10

QUESTION

Dear Mr. Old Man,

I’m having trouble understanding ISBP C9, about additional charges and costs in the invoice.

Could you kindly explain it?

Regards,

Siva

——

ANSWER

Hi Siva,

I believe you’re referring to paragraph C10 in ISBP 821, not C9. (C9 in ISBP 745 was renumbered as C10 in the latest ISBP 821.) It reads:

“Additional charges and costs, such as those related to documentation, freight or insurance costs, are to be included within the value shown against the stated trade term on the invoice.”

In simpler words:

Any extra costs must be included in the invoice price.

No separate lines, no surprise add-ons.

Why?

When you issue an invoice under a Letter of Credit (LC), and that invoice uses a trade term like FOB, CIF, or CIP, that trade term already covers specific costs according to Incoterms.

C10 says:

If you want to add anything extra — like:

• a documentation fee,

• shipping cost,

• or insurance premium —

then you must include it in the main invoice amount, not as a separate charge.

Example

If the LC says:

“Invoice showing CIF Da Nang, Vietnam – USD 10,000”

Then the invoice must show exactly:

CIF Da Nang – USD 10,000.

You are not allowed to list:

• CIF Da Nang – USD 10,000
• Documentation fee – USD 200
• Total – USD 10,200

Nor are you allowed to show:

CIF Da Nang – USD 10,200

That way, everything is already included in the CIF price. That’s what C10 wants.

Hope that clears things up!

Best regards,

Mr. Old Man