Paying an overseas supplier you have not met is the part of importing that worries buyers most, and reasonably so. This is how payment normally works when buying industrial equipment from Turkish manufacturers, and what to insist on before money moves.
Bank transfer with a deposit: the usual structure
The standard arrangement for machinery is a telegraphic transfer split in two: a deposit when the order is confirmed and the balance before the goods leave. Thirty per cent and seventy per cent is the most common split. On made-to-order equipment the deposit covers materials, which is why suppliers ask for it.
Pay the balance against shipping documents where you can. That is, the supplier sends you a scanned bill of lading and invoice, you transfer, then the original documents are released. It costs nothing extra and means you are not paying for a shipment that has not been made.
Letter of credit: for larger orders
A documentary letter of credit puts your bank between you and the supplier. The bank pays only when the supplier presents exactly the documents listed in the credit: bill of lading, invoice, packing list, certificate of origin, inspection certificate if you require one. If a document is missing or wrong, the bank does not pay.
An L/C is worth the cost and paperwork above roughly USD 50,000, or on a first order with a supplier you have not worked with. It protects both sides: you cannot lose the money to a shipment that never happens, and the supplier knows the funds exist before production starts.
Two practical points. Bank charges run to a few hundred dollars and should be agreed in advance, including who pays which side. And the document list must be achievable; an L/C demanding a certificate the supplier cannot obtain is an L/C that will never be paid.
What to check before the first transfer
- The bank account belongs to the company on the invoice. Not to an individual, not to a company with a similar name, not to an account in a third country with no connection to the supplier. This single check prevents the most common fraud in international trade.
- Confirm bank details by phone or video, not by e-mail. Invoice fraud works by intercepting the e-mail thread and sending amended bank details at the moment payment is due. If a supplier writes to say their account has changed, call them on a number you already had before believing it.
- A proforma invoice with full detail. Company name, tax number, address, model and quantity, delivery term with named place, lead time, payment schedule, warranty. It is your contract.
- The company exists and exports. Turkish companies have a MERSİS number and a tax number, and a chamber of commerce registration certificate can be requested and verified.
Methods to avoid
Do not pay by Western Union, MoneyGram, cryptocurrency or to a personal account, for any amount, ever. No legitimate manufacturer asks for it. Credit cards are not used for industrial equipment at this scale, and a supplier offering one is unusual enough to check carefully.
Be cautious of full payment in advance on a large first order. It happens in the trade, particularly for custom builds, but it should come with something in return: a bank guarantee, an inspection before shipment, or a staged schedule tied to production milestones.
Inspection before shipment
For orders of any size, third-party pre-shipment inspection is cheap insurance. An inspector visits the factory, checks that what is in the crate matches the order, and issues a report. Where a letter of credit is used, make the inspection certificate one of the required documents. Payment and verification then become the same event.
Currency and price validity
Turkish exporters quote in USD or EUR. Quotations have a validity period, commonly seven to thirty days, because raw material prices move. If a quotation carries no validity date, ask for one in writing rather than assuming the price holds.
In short
A 30/70 transfer against documents for normal orders, a letter of credit for large or first orders, bank details verified by voice, and a proforma invoice that spells everything out. Those four habits cover nearly every way an import payment goes wrong.