The first page of the document DocMake makes from the sample values on this page.
Finance
Proforma Invoice
A proforma invoice is an offer to sell on stated terms, issued before the goods exist as a shipment. It creates no receivable and demands no payment, which is precisely why a buyer can take it to a bank to open a letter of credit, to an authority to support an import licence application, or to their own finance team to release a prepayment.
Because those readers are outside the sales conversation, the document carries more than a quotation would: full identification of both parties, item lines with their commodity code, the country of origin stated once for the consignment, unit and extended prices in the trading currency, the Incoterms rule and named place, lead time counted from order, how the goods will be packed and shipped, the account that should receive the funds, and a date after which the prices lapse. Several revisions before both sides agree are normal, so the revision marker earns its place in the header.
One template covers that whole negotiation. Increment the revision field and render again rather than editing a PDF, drive the validity date from data so it is never quietly stale, and reuse the accepted version as the input that produces the commercial invoice once the order is firm.
Blanks to fill
| proforma_number | Proforma number |
| revision | Revision |
| issue_date | Issue date |
| valid_until | Valid until |
| seller_name | Seller |
| seller_address | Seller address |
| seller_contact | Seller contact |
| seller_tax_id | Seller tax number |
| buyer_name | Buyer |
| buyer_address | Buyer address |
| buyer_contact | Buyer contact |
| port_of_loading | Leaving from |
| port_of_discharge | Arriving at |
| incoterms | Delivery rule and place |
| country_of_origin | Country of origin |
| lead_time | Lead time from order |
| packing_method | Packing |
| currency | Currency |
| subtotal | Goods subtotal |
| freight_estimate | Freight, estimated |
| total_amount | Total, estimated |
| payment_terms | Payment terms |
| bank_name | Bank |
| bank_account | Account number |
| bank_swift | SWIFT or BIC |
| notes | Notes |
| lines[] | One per item, so a row is added for every item in the list |
The data behind the preview
This is the exact JSON that produced the document above. Change the values, POST them to the API, and you get your version back as DOCX or PDF. Lists grow and shrink with your data; the layout adapts.
- 01 Sign up free and duplicate this template into your workspace.
- 02 Adjust the wording and branding in the visual editor.
- 03 Fill it in the app, share it as a form link, or call the API.
{
"proforma_number": "PI-2026-0207",
"revision": "Revision 2",
"issue_date": "August 6, 2026",
"valid_until": "September 5, 2026",
"seller_name": "Northwind Instruments SRL",
"seller_address": "Str. Fabricii 118, 400632 Cluj-Napoca, Romania",
"seller_contact": "Ioana Preda, export@northwind-instruments.example",
"seller_tax_id": "RO18452299",
"buyer_name": "Helvetia Labortechnik GmbH",
"buyer_address": "Ostbahnhofstrasse 22, 81667 Munich, Germany",
"buyer_contact": "Martin Ebner, Procurement, m.ebner@helvetia-labortechnik.example",
"port_of_loading": "Cluj-Napoca airport",
"port_of_discharge": "Munich airport",
"incoterms": "FCA Cluj-Napoca, Incoterms 2020",
"country_of_origin": "Romania",
"lead_time": "21 working days from a confirmed order",
"packing_method": "Export cartons on one euro pallet, shrink wrapped",
"currency": "EUR",
"lines": [
{
"description": "Benchtop conductivity meter, model NC 220",
"commodity_code": "9027.80",
"quantity": "20",
"unit": "each",
"unit_price": "EUR 471.00",
"amount": "EUR 9,420.00"
},
{
"description": "Wall mounting bracket, stainless",
"commodity_code": "8302.50",
"quantity": "20",
"unit": "each",
"unit_price": "EUR 28.00",
"amount": "EUR 560.00"
},
{
"description": "Extended warranty, 24 months",
"commodity_code": "9027.90",
"quantity": "20",
"unit": "each",
"unit_price": "EUR 45.00",
"amount": "EUR 900.00"
},
{
"description": "Operator training, on site, one day",
"commodity_code": "9027.90",
"quantity": "1",
"unit": "day",
"unit_price": "EUR 640.00",
"amount": "EUR 640.00"
}
],
"subtotal": "EUR 11,520.00",
"freight_estimate": "EUR 340.00",
"total_amount": "EUR 11,860.00",
"payment_terms": "Irrevocable letter of credit at sight, confirmed by a bank in the seller's country.",
"bank_name": "Banca Transilvania, Cluj-Napoca",
"bank_account": "RO49 BTRL 0000 1234 5678 9012",
"bank_swift": "BTRLRO22",
"notes": "The bracket finish changed to 316 stainless at the buyer's request in this revision, which is what moved the unit price."
}Generate this document via the API
One template plus changing data is the whole point. The list of blanks above is the contract, and every new set of values comes back in the same layout: fill it in the app, hand someone a form link, or POST the JSON and get the file straight back.
The request below carries this page's own values, so it runs as soon as the template exists in your workspace. Swap the values for yours and the response is your document.
curl -X POST https://app.docmake.io/api/v1/render \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $DOCMAKE_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-H "Accept: application/json" \
--output proforma-invoice.pdf \
--data-binary @- <<'JSON'
{
"template_id": "tmpl_your_template_id",
"format": "pdf",
"data": {
"proforma_number": "PI-2026-0207",
"revision": "Revision 2",
"issue_date": "August 6, 2026",
"valid_until": "September 5, 2026",
"seller_name": "Northwind Instruments SRL",
"seller_address": "Str. Fabricii 118, 400632 Cluj-Napoca, Romania",
"seller_contact": "Ioana Preda, export@northwind-instruments.example",
"seller_tax_id": "RO18452299",
"buyer_name": "Helvetia Labortechnik GmbH",
"buyer_address": "Ostbahnhofstrasse 22, 81667 Munich, Germany",
"buyer_contact": "Martin Ebner, Procurement, m.ebner@helvetia-labortechnik.example",
"port_of_loading": "Cluj-Napoca airport",
"port_of_discharge": "Munich airport",
"incoterms": "FCA Cluj-Napoca, Incoterms 2020",
"country_of_origin": "Romania",
"lead_time": "21 working days from a confirmed order",
"packing_method": "Export cartons on one euro pallet, shrink wrapped",
"currency": "EUR",
"lines": [
{
"description": "Benchtop conductivity meter, model NC 220",
"commodity_code": "9027.80",
"quantity": "20",
"unit": "each",
"unit_price": "EUR 471.00",
"amount": "EUR 9,420.00"
},
{
"description": "Wall mounting bracket, stainless",
"commodity_code": "8302.50",
"quantity": "20",
"unit": "each",
"unit_price": "EUR 28.00",
"amount": "EUR 560.00"
},
{
"description": "Extended warranty, 24 months",
"commodity_code": "9027.90",
"quantity": "20",
"unit": "each",
"unit_price": "EUR 45.00",
"amount": "EUR 900.00"
},
{
"description": "Operator training, on site, one day",
"commodity_code": "9027.90",
"quantity": "1",
"unit": "day",
"unit_price": "EUR 640.00",
"amount": "EUR 640.00"
}
],
"subtotal": "EUR 11,520.00",
"freight_estimate": "EUR 340.00",
"total_amount": "EUR 11,860.00",
"payment_terms": "Irrevocable letter of credit at sight, confirmed by a bank in the seller's country.",
"bank_name": "Banca Transilvania, Cluj-Napoca",
"bank_account": "RO49 BTRL 0000 1234 5678 9012",
"bank_swift": "BTRLRO22",
"notes": "The bracket finish changed to 316 stainless at the buyer's request in this revision, which is what moved the unit price."
}
}
JSON tmpl_your_template_id is
a stand-in: build this template in the visual editor and copy the id it shows, or create one with POST /api/v1/templates. Keys, formats, strict mode and batches are in the API reference.
Or let an AI assistant do it
The DocMake MCP server lets Claude and other assistants make this document the same way. Install it once:
claude mcp add docmake \
--env DOCMAKE_API_KEY=dm_your_api_key \
-- npx -y @docmake/mcp@latestThen ask for the document in plain words:
Make a PDF from my Proforma Invoice template with proforma number "PI-2026-0207" and revision "Revision 2".
More finance templates
Commercial Invoice
The invoice that travels with an export: commodity code, origin and weight on every line, and a declaration to sign.
View template →Credit Note
The note that puts an overcharge right: what is being credited, why, and what it leaves owing on the invoice.
View template →Expense Report
A claim for what somebody spent, line by line with the kind of spend, the total, and a line for the approver.
View template →