01
Supplier order
The purchase order is raised in the supplier's currency. The exchange rate at order date and the payment terms are recorded on the document, and the delivery date is tracked.
INDUSTRY: IMPORT AND EXPORT
Know the real cost before the file closes.
In foreign trade, profit hides less in the selling price than in how accurately cost is calculated. SAP Business One holds purchases and sales in foreign currency, exchange differences, the allocation of freight and customs costs into stock value, and export sales in the same structure. NFKSOFT connects that structure to the way you actually track import files.
What makes ERP different for a foreign-trade business
Companies that import and export expect something different from ERP than purely domestic traders. Cost is not known the moment a purchase order is placed; it forms as freight, insurance, customs duty, storage and local transport are added. Add currency movement on top, and in most companies the true unit cost only becomes clear after the goods have already been sold.
The price of that delay is not paid in accounting alone. Sales quotes against an outdated cost, stock value looks wrong, and the profitability report does not reflect reality. In spreadsheet-based tracking, each file also becomes dependent on one person; when they are away, the process stops.
SAP Business One covers a significant part of these foreign-trade needs as standard: multi-currency operation, exchange difference handling and the allocation of import costs into item cost are part of the standard structure. What NFKSOFT adds is fitting those capabilities to your file flow and bringing process tracking inside the system.
How an import process runs in the system
The flow below is what a typical import transaction looks like as a document chain in SAP Business One.
02
Shipment and goods in transit
Shipping details, bill of lading and estimated arrival are monitored, so it stays clear which order the goods in transit belong to and when they will arrive.
03
Customs and goods receipt
Once customs clearance is complete, the goods are received into stock against the purchase order. Quantity differences remain visible on the order.
04
Allocating additional costs
Freight, insurance, customs duty and local charges are distributed onto the item lines through the landed-cost document and reflected into stock value.
05
Invoice and payment
The supplier invoice is matched to the goods receipt. When payment is made, the exchange difference between order, invoice and payment is posted.
06
Cost and profitability
Once allocation is complete, the real unit cost exists in the system, and sales decisions and profitability reports are based on it.
How additional costs reach stock value
SAP Business One provides a dedicated document for adding import charges to item cost. In it you select the relevant goods-receipt lines, enter the cost items, freight, insurance, customs duty, storage, local transport and so on, and decide on what basis each charge is allocated across the lines. The allocation basis can be value, quantity, weight or volume.
The result is more than an accounting entry: the allocated cost updates stock value, so the cost of the next sale is the real cost. Even when a charge invoice arrives after the goods, it can still be reflected onto the related lines afterwards.
It is worth being realistic here: the system does not decide for you which charge should be allocated on which basis. Those rules are defined according to your commercial reality, allocating freight by volume and duty by value, for example, and are agreed during the project, then applied consistently. If the rule is not settled, the system can work perfectly and the result will still be disputed.
Foreign currency, exchange differences and financial tracking
Multi-currency operation is the most basic requirement of a foreign-trade business, and it is part of the standard structure.
Multiple currencies
Documents are held in the transaction currency while entries are also tracked in local currency. Business partner balances can be followed in both foreign and local currency.
Exchange rates
Daily rates are maintained in the system, and documents apply the correct rate by date and currency. Automating rate entry can be handled through integration.
Exchange difference postings
Currency movement between invoice and payment is posted as a realised exchange difference. Open foreign-currency balances can be revalued at period end.
Letters of credit and payment terms
Payment terms, maturities and advance payments are tracked on the business partner account, so the payment plan can be compared with what was actually paid.
Matching bank movements
Pulling foreign-currency account movements automatically and matching them is handled through Online Bank Integration.
Supplier analysis
Purchase volume, delivery performance and cost development can be reported per supplier, so alternative-supplier decisions rest on data.
File tracking: the standard structure and the NFKSOFT Import Tracking App
The standard structure calculates cost correctly, but many companies also want file-level visibility of the process itself.
What the standard covers
Purchase orders, goods receipts, supplier invoices and landed-cost documents are linked. Through the document chain you can see which order goods came from and which charges they carry.
File-based stage tracking
Grouping several orders into one file, following shipment, arrival and customs stages, and seeing cost per file is what the Import Tracking App is built for.
Visibility of open files
Which file is waiting at which stage, which charge has not yet arrived and what the estimated cost is are all followed on one screen.
Estimated versus actual charges
The charges anticipated when the file was opened are compared with those actually received, so deviation surfaces early.
The warehouse side of it
Counting an arriving container, capturing batch information and putting goods away is accelerated by barcode-driven warehouse operations.
Custom reporting needs
File profitability, landed-cost development per item and supplier comparisons are delivered as custom reports.
Keeping documents and customs processes inside the system
In foreign trade, paperwork is the process. Keeping documents attached to the transaction they belong to simplifies both operations and audit:
- Proforma invoices, order confirmations and contracts attached to the purchase document
- Bills of lading, packing lists and certificates of origin linked to the file or transaction
- Customs declaration details connected to the related goods receipt and cost entry
- Customs broker charge invoices booked against the correct file
- Export invoices, delivery notes and shipping paperwork held in the document chain
- Control points that alert the responsible user when a document is missing
- Authorization rules limiting access to sensitive commercial documents
Export sales
Export is the sales process with currency, logistics and documentation layered on top.
Selling in foreign currency
Quotations and orders are prepared in the customer's currency, price lists can be defined per currency, and collections are tracked in the same currency.
Market and customer based pricing
Separate price lists and discount rules per country, region or customer group keep pricing consistent across markets.
Shipment and logistics tracking
Dispatch planning, loading and delivery stages are followed, with responsibility split according to the agreed delivery terms defined in the process.
Export cost and margin
The effect of freight, insurance and commission on margin can be calculated, and gross profit followed per order.
Regulatory and e-document processes
Turkish e-Invoice, e-Archive and e-Delivery Note flows run through the localization solution, including compliant generation of export invoices.
Collection follow-up
Open balances of overseas customers are tracked by due date and currency, so delays surface early.
What NFKSOFT does in this project
We start foreign-trade projects with a process map: which charges occur, who enters them, which document they attach to, and on what logic they should reach cost. Without that map, the landed-cost document may work technically while the resulting costs remain open to dispute.
Next we design the system side: currencies and rate handling, supplier and item master structures, cost allocation rules, authorizations and approval steps. Where file-level tracking is needed we bring in the Import Tracking App and plan the migration of your open files into the system.
The final stage is reporting and integrations: file profitability and cost reports, automatic exchange-rate updates, bank movements and, where relevant, data exchange with your customs broker or logistics provider. At every step we state in writing which requirement the standard structure covers and which one calls for development.
Questions we hear from foreign-trade companies
How do freight, customs and insurance charges reach item cost?
SAP Business One has a dedicated landed-cost document for this. You select the relevant goods-receipt lines, enter the charge items, and define the basis on which each charge is allocated across the lines; value, quantity, weight or volume. The allocation updates stock value, so the cost of subsequent sales reflects the real cost. If a charge invoice arrives after the goods, it can still be reflected onto the related lines later.
Can we work in several currencies at the same time?
Yes. Documents are issued in the transaction currency while entries are also kept in local currency, and business partner accounts can be tracked in foreign currency. Exchange rates are maintained by date and applied according to the document date. If you would rather not enter rates manually, automatic rate retrieval can be arranged as an integration.
How are exchange differences reflected in accounting?
Currency movement between invoice and payment is recorded as a realised exchange difference when the payment is applied. At period end, open foreign-currency balances can be revalued so unrealised differences are also reflected in the financial statements. Which accounts are used and how often revaluation runs are decided during configuration, together with your finance team or accountant.
Does import file tracking come as standard?
The document chain is standard: purchase orders, goods receipts, supplier invoices and landed-cost documents are linked, and you can trace which charges an item carries. However, grouping several orders into one file to follow shipment, arrival and customs stages, and comparing estimated against actual cost per file, goes beyond the standard screens. For that we use the NFKSOFT Import Tracking App.
Can we exchange data with our customs broker and logistics provider?
It is possible, but it is an integration topic and depends on what data the other party can send and receive, and in what format. File status, container details or charge items can be transferred through file-based exchange or a service connection. When defining scope we look at which data genuinely has an operational use; a data flow nobody acts on only adds maintenance burden.
Related pages
YOUR FOREIGN TRADE PROCESSES
Let's move your cost calculation into the system.
We will review your charge items, your allocation logic and your file flow together, and build a structure where import cost becomes visible before the file closes.