Côte d'ivoire Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in côte d'ivoire, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Import Requirements and Documentation
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Documents required for most goods shipped into Côte d’Ivoire include:

Commercial Invoice

Two French-language copies of the freight invoices are required.  No specific form is required, but all invoices must contain the names of the exporter and consignee, number and types of packages, marks and numbers on the packages, net and gross weights, CIF value, terms of sale, and a thorough description of the merchandise.  Note that the importer will usually need a signed duplicate invoice to speed the release of the imported goods from customs.  This should be sent via air courier and arrive in Côte d’Ivoire prior to the merchandise.

Certificate of Origin 

Two certified copies are required.

Packing List  

A packing list is not legally required, but such lists are usually considered essential in accelerating the time required for customs clearance.

Bill of Lading (or air waybill) 

There are no regulations specifying content of a bill of lading.  Importers should include clear marks of identification and the name and address of the consignee of the goods.  Shipping marks on the goods must correspond exactly to numbers on bills of lading/invoices.

Pro-forma Invoice 

Persons wishing to import goods are required to attach six copies of this invoice to the application for an import license and/or the intent to import.  A pro-forma invoice may also be required when presenting an application to Ivoirian authorities to ship bonded goods through the country.

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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