How do I work out the real cost of imported goods after freight and customs?
| Intagya ERP
The real cost is the vendor price plus the product share of freight, customs and clearance. You spread these costs across the shipment by value, quantity or weight. In Intagya ERP you press Add an import cost on the done receipt, write the amount and the sharing method, and each product cost grows by its share, with stock value changing with it.
An importer of kitchen appliances prices a blender at 20% above the vendor price. Six months later the accountant asks why the books show far less profit than that.
The answer sat in the freight and customs invoices, paid from another account and never added to the cost of a single blender.
Why is the vendor price not enough to cost imported goods?
Because the goods do not reach your warehouse at the vendor price. Between you and the vendor are freight, insurance, customs, clearance and trucking from the port, and together they can be a large part of the shipment price.
If those costs stay outside the product cost, every sale shows more profit than it made, and you set prices on the wrong number. You find out late, when profit and the bank balance do not match.
How do I spread freight and customs across the products in a shipment?
Pick the method that matches why you paid the cost.
- By value: the usual and fairest for customs, which is normally charged on the value of the goods.
- By weight: for freight charged per kilo, so heavy products take more.
- By quantity: when the products are close in size and value.
- Equally: for a small fixed charge, such as one clearance fee on a two-product shipment.
A made-up example: a shipment worth 30,000 and a freight and customs bill of 6,000. A product worth 20,000 takes 4,000 when shared by value, and the other takes 2,000.
How do I add an import cost in the system?
From the receipt itself, once the goods have arrived and the receipt is done.
- Open the done receipt and press Add an import cost at the top. The button is for inventory managers.
- Write the description, such as Freight and customs, and the amount.
- Choose Share by: value, quantity, weight or equally, and check the table showing each product share.
- Press Share the cost.
Each product cost then grows by its share, stock value changes, and the next sales invoices carry the new cost. The receipt log notes what was added with a link, so your accountant sees where the difference came from.
The freight invoice often arrives days after the goods. Do not hold the receipt for it: validate the receipt today and add the cost when the invoice comes.
Does an import cost work with every costing method?
No. It works when the product category uses average cost or first in, first out. Standard price is a fixed number you set by hand, it does not move with a shipment, and the system refuses the cost with a message asking you to check the costing method.
If you import regularly, average cost usually fits best: each new shipment comes in at its full cost and the product cost moves with it.
What do I gain from knowing the real cost?
Prices that do not fool you. Once you know the blender really costs more than the vendor invoice says, you know whether 20% is a real margin or a hope. And you see which vendor is cheaper after freight, not before: the dearer vendor may be closer and cheaper in the end.
In Intagya ERP the import cost is part of the receipt, stock value and cost of sales in one system, so you never rebuild a shipment in a spreadsheet.
Take your last import, add up everything you paid on top of the vendor price, and add it to that receipt. Compare the product cost before and after, and review its selling price the same day.
Read the import cost steps in the guide
FAQ
Can I add the import cost days after the receipt?
Yes. The button shows on the receipt once it is done, so you add the cost when the freight or customs invoice arrives.
What is the best way to share customs?
Usually by value, since customs is normally charged on the value of the goods. Freight charged per kilo is shared by weight.
Why did the system refuse the cost?
Because the product category uses standard price. Switch it to average cost or first in, first out, then try again.
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