Proforma invoice in Morocco: meaning, uses and how it differs from an invoice

What is a proforma invoice?

A proforma invoice is a document the seller issues before the sale, laid out like an invoice: the parties' details, a description of the goods or services, quantities, unit prices, VAT, the total, and payment and delivery terms. It carries the clear heading “Proforma invoice” so that nobody mistakes it for an invoice. Its purpose is to tell the buyer, or a third party such as a bank or an import department, the exact amount of a transaction that has not yet taken place.

The proforma comes from commercial practice: it is used mostly in international trade, where it is understood everywhere, and in files where a third party needs to see the details of a purchase before it happens. In substance it is very close to a quote; the difference lies mainly in its layout, closer to the final invoice, and in who asks for it.

What is a proforma invoice used for in Morocco?

A Moroccan business may receive a proforma when it buys, or have to issue one when a customer asks for it. The most common situations are the following.

• Imports: the foreign supplier's proforma is among the documents usually requested to set up the import title on PortNet and register it (domiciliation) with your bank before customs clearance; your bank and your customs broker will give you the exact list.
• Foreign customer: they ask you for a proforma to prepare their own import file or the transfer from their country.
• Deposit request: before starting production or a special order, you send a proforma showing the deposit amount and your bank details.
• Financing: your customer's bank or leasing company asks for a proforma to assess an equipment loan.
• Grants or support programmes: some applications ask for proformas to put a figure on the planned investments.
• Budget commitment: some buyers, including public bodies, need the exact amount to reserve the budget before ordering.

Why is a proforma invoice not an invoice?

A proforma describes a planned sale, not a completed one. It should therefore not be booked in the accounts, neither by you as a sale nor by the customer as a purchase. The VAT it shows is for information: issuing a proforma does not make VAT payable, and it does not allow the customer to deduct VAT. Nor does it take a number from the invoice sequence: give it its own numbering, for example PF-2026-0001.

Once the goods are delivered or the service performed, the final invoice is the document of record, with all the required details, its number in the invoice sequence and the VAT to be declared. The table below compares the three documents. These principles reflect common practice; have your own case confirmed by your expert-comptable (chartered accountant), especially for an export transaction, whose VAT treatment is specific.

What should a proforma invoice include?

The content of a proforma is driven mainly by practice and by what its recipient (bank, customs, customer) requires. It must let the recipient find exactly the elements of the future invoice.

• The heading “Proforma invoice” clearly displayed and, ideally, a note that it is not an invoice.
• Its own number (a PF sequence separate from invoices) and the issue date.
• Your identity and identifiers (ICE, IF, RC, business tax number), and the business customer's identity and ICE number.
• A precise description of the goods or services, quantities, unit prices excluding VAT, discounts, total excluding VAT, VAT by rate and total including VAT.
• The validity period of the offer and the delivery or completion lead time.
• Payment terms: deposit amount and due date, balance, payment method and bank details.
• For a customer abroad: currency, delivery terms (Incoterm), origin of the goods, and weight and packaging where relevant.

A customer pays a deposit on a proforma: which VAT, which invoice?

This is the trickiest case. As soon as you collect money, it is no longer just an intention to sell. In Morocco, under the cash-basis regime (encaissement), which is the default rule, the VAT trigger is the full or partial collection of the price: the VAT contained in the deposit is therefore due for the period in which you collect it. Even under the accrual regime (débits), partial payments received before invoicing are taxable. Record the deposit with a document, a receipt or a deposit invoice depending on the practice your accountant recommends, then issue the final invoice after delivery.

Example: an equipment supplier sends an SME a proforma for a packaging machine, which the SME's bank needs to grant an equipment loan. The customer then pays the 40 % deposit requested. VAT rates change with the finance laws, so check the one that applies to your product.

• Proforma: machine 142,000.00 DH excluding VAT, installation 9,500.00 DH excluding VAT, two days of training at 3,250.00 DH excluding VAT each, i.e. 6,500.00 DH; total 158,000.00 DH excluding VAT.
• Indicative VAT at 20 %: 31,600.00 DH; total 189,600.00 DH including VAT.
• Deposit of 40 % of the VAT-inclusive total: 189,600.00 × 40 % = 75,840.00 DH, of which 12,640.00 DH is VAT (75,840.00 × 20/120) and 63,200.00 DH is the amount excluding VAT.
• VAT on the deposit: 12,640.00 DH, to be declared for the period of collection under the cash-basis regime.
• Final invoice on delivery: 158,000.00 DH excluding VAT, 31,600.00 DH of VAT, 189,600.00 DH including VAT, deposit received 75,840.00 DH, balance due 113,760.00 DH.
• Remaining VAT, due when the balance is collected: 18,960.00 DH; in total 12,640.00 + 18,960.00 = 31,600.00 DH.

Which proforma mistakes should you avoid?

Mistakes with a proforma almost always come from confusing it with an invoice.

• Sending a proforma instead of an invoice and never issuing the final invoice.
• Booking the proforma as a sale, or giving it a number from the invoice sequence.
• Leaving the VAT on a deposit collected against a proforma out of that period's return.
• Invoicing an amount different from the proforma without explanation, when the bank or the import department compares both documents.
• Leaving out the “Proforma invoice” heading, which confuses the customer and their accountant.
• Leaving the proforma without a validity period, then having to honour outdated prices.

How does SOGESTIO cover the need for a proforma?

SOGESTIO does not offer a document type called “proforma invoice”. In most cases the quote, or the purchase order, plays that role: it carries your logo, company name, address, ICE, IF, RC, patente and bank details, lists the lines with VAT calculated by the server and totalled per rate, and is generated as a PDF in French, Arabic or English for customers abroad. If your counterpart explicitly requires a document headed “proforma invoice”, check with them that a detailed quote meets their needs.

The deposit and instalments are recorded, and the final invoice is created from the quote or the order without re-entry, with a number assigned by the server in the invoice sequence. The invoice PDF shows the amount already paid and the balance due, and the VAT return is prepared under the cash-basis or accrual regime. The customer can also accept the quote online from their portal.