Letter of credit document checks
Letter of credit document checking: join the waitlist.
A letter of credit document check compares the documents an exporter presents with the credit’s terms, and with each other, before the bank examines them. FlowDocs does not do this yet. Today it checks the commercial invoice against the packing list; join the waitlist and we will email you if we build the letter of credit check.
What a letter of credit document check involves.
Most letters of credit are issued subject to UCP 600, the ICC’s rules for documentary credits. A discrepancy found by the bank can delay or stop payment, which is why exporters check documents before presenting them.
| Rule | Source | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Documents, not goods | UCP 600, article 5 | The bank decides on the documents alone; it never sees the cargo |
| Five banking days | UCP 600, article 14(b) | Each bank involved has at most five banking days after presentation to decide whether the documents comply |
| No conflicting data | UCP 600, article 14(d) | Data need not be identical across documents, but must not conflict with the credit or with another required document |
| Invoice description | UCP 600, article 18(c) | The goods described on the commercial invoice must correspond with the description in the credit |
| Banking practice | ISBP 821 (ICC, 2023) | How banks apply UCP 600 when they examine each kind of document |
What FlowDocs checks today.
FlowDocs compares the commercial invoice with the packing list on order reference, consignee, packages and gross weight, and checks that the bill of lading or air waybill is in the pack. Agreement between the invoice and the packing list is one part of what a bank examines. FlowDocs does not read the credit itself, its dates or amounts, or the other documents it stipulates.
See the invoice and packing list checkJoin the letter of credit waitlist.
Tell us what you present under letters of credit and which discrepancies cost you the most. We will email you if we build the check.
Join the waitlistQuestions about letter of credit checks.
Can it check documents against a letter of credit?
Not yet. FlowDocs does not check documents against a letter of credit’s terms. You can join the waitlist on the letter-of-credit page.
What does FlowDocs check?
FlowDocs checks the commercial invoice against the packing list on four fields — order reference, consignee, packages and gross weight — and confirms that the commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading or air waybill are all in the shipment pack.
How does the free check work?
Send 3 recent shipment packs. We run each one through FlowDocs, review every result by hand, and email you the report within 24 hours. It is free and needs no account.
Check 3 shipment packs free.
Send the commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading or air waybill for 3 recent shipments. We review every result by hand and email you the report within 24 hours. No CargoWise, TMS or ERP access is required.
You can delete or paste over the names, values and routes first — FlowDocs still reads whatever is left. Use a tool that removes the text rather than a black box drawn on top: a drawn box hides it from you, not from a parser.