EspañolContact
Back to insights

Sourcing ·

Buying from India: five risks to reduce before you pay

A practical pre-payment checklist for Chilean importers covering supplier identity, specifications, import requirements, origin, and shipping terms.

India Operations & Sourcing · New Delhi, India

A competitive quote can still produce an expensive import. The usual gaps are visible before the first payment: the legal counterparty is unclear, the product is loosely specified, or nobody has confirmed what Chilean customs and sector authorities will require.

Use these checks before treating a supplier quotation as an order.

1. The company, factory, exporter, and bank account do not match

Ask the supplier to identify the legal entity that will issue the invoice, receive payment, manufacture the goods, and export them. These roles can involve more than one company, but the relationship should be documented.

For an Indian company or LLP, compare its details with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs master data. Check the GSTIN through the GST Portal’s taxpayer search, and check the Importer Exporter Code through DGFT’s View Any IEC service.

The legal name, address, invoice issuer, and bank beneficiary should make sense together. Registry matches confirm identity data on file. Factory ownership and production ability still need separate evidence.

2. The approved product exists only as a photo or loose sample

Turn the quotation into a controlled specification. Record the material or grade, dimensions and tolerances, colour reference, performance requirement, packaging, labels, quantity, and test method. Give the approved sample a date or revision number.

The purchase order should state which deviations require correction and which ones block shipment. Without that written baseline, a pre-shipment inspection has nothing precise to test.

3. Chilean entry requirements are checked after production

Confirm the tariff code and any sector-specific requirement before paying a deposit. The authority depends on the product. For example, agricultural and forestry goods may require compliance with import conditions set by Chile’s Agricultural and Livestock Service, as described in the official ChileAtiende procedure.

Ask your customs agent or relevant authority for a written list of required permits, certificates, tests, and labels. Assign each item to the buyer or supplier before production begins.

4. The price assumes a tariff preference without proof of origin

The Chile–India Partial Scope Agreement does not give the same preference to every product. SUBREI publishes the covered product lists, product-specific origin rules, and proof-of-origin documents on its India agreement page. It also states that origin is certified by an authorized entity.

Confirm that the exact tariff code is covered and that the exporter can issue valid proof of origin. An Indian invoice alone is not origin evidence under the agreement.

5. Payment and shipping terms are not tied to evidence

State the selected Incoterms rule, named place or port, and the 2020 version in the purchase order. The International Chamber of Commerce explains that Incoterms allocate delivery obligations, costs, and risk between buyer and seller.

Then define the points the Incoterms rule does not settle for you: payment triggers, product acceptance, corrective action, required shipping documents, and dispute terms. A balance payment can be tied to agreed evidence such as an inspection result, packing list, and transport document.

Minimum file before the first payment

  • Supplier legal name, registered address, GSTIN, and IEC
  • Documented relationship between the invoice issuer, factory, exporter, and bank beneficiary
  • Product specification and approved sample revision
  • Chilean import requirements confirmed for the tariff code and product
  • Inspection point, acceptance criteria, and corrective-action process
  • Payment milestones, Incoterms rule, named place, and required documents

Sources

Insights contain general business information and do not constitute legal, tax, customs, regulatory or technical advice.