Meaning of Indent House: Import of goods from a foreign country can be affected in two ways. The import of goods can take place directly or through a middleman. The import of goods through an intermediary is called an Indent House. Indent Houses are of two types. They may be representative or agents of foreign producers or exporters or they may be independent firms engaged in foreign trade. At the time of securing order, the indent firm requests the merchant to sign an Indent Form which services as a letter of authority by the merchant to the Indent House to go for order of the specified items stated in the form.
The Indent House brings the following advantages:
1. It helps the small dealers to participate in foreign trade.
2. The bargaining is done by the Indent Forms and therefore helps in getting the goods at a cheaper rate.
3. The financing of import trade is facilitated by the Indent House.
Dock Challan: When all formalities of customs are completed then dock charges are required to be paid. When he pays these charges, the importer or his clearing agent specifies the amount of dock dues in a challan or in any firm. It is called Dock Challan.
