• as an importer, you will pay the merchandise only if it has been delivered,  the documents submitted according to the conditions provided in the letter of credit acting as a guarantee that the delivery has happened
• benefit from the exporter's assurances that the merchandise will be delivered according to the terms of the letter of credit, in compliance with the pre-approved contractual clauses, otherwise the guarantee of payment is lost
• the standardized norms the documentary letter of credit is subject to (UPC600/Revision 2007) are part of an international standard for the examination of documents, thus mitigating the lack of relevant national legal provisions

Key aspects for the importer:

• mitigation of the integrity of the exporter and of the risks arising from concluding transactions with a commercial party with no traditional commercial relations
• strong negotiating position
• the received documents are in compliance with the contractual clauses (clause for documents, delivery term, payment method)