16 EU countries set to introduce e-invoicing by 2025: How will your business comply?

As many as 16 countries in the European Union (EU) could soon require businesses to use e-invoicingElectronic invoicing - widely referred to as e-invoicing - is the exchange of a digital document between a supplier and a buyer. E-invoices are issued, transmitted and received in a structured data format that enabled automatic and electronic processing. They contain data in a machine-readable format so that an AP system can read an invoice without manual data entry, leading to faster and more efficient invoicing. software when filing accounts.

New data shows nine nations have already confirmed e-invoicing will become mandatory for B2B transactions by 2025 and seven others have announced plans to consider such a move.

While many of these countries – indeed, much of the entire continent – already insists on e-invoicing being used for B2GCommerce between business to government. transactions, the next three years will mark a turning point where electronic systems become widely mandatory for the B2B sector.

Which countries are mandating e-invoicing for B2B transactions?

The latest information shows the following countries are progressing with the implementation of new e-invoicing regulations:

Belgium: A phased implementation of mandatory B2B e-invoicing is likely to begin in mid-2024.

Denmark: Mandatory B2B e-invoicing will come into effect on 1^st January 2024.

France: Real-time reporting and B2B e-invoicing will become law on 1^st July 2024.

Hungary: SAF-TSAF-T (Standard Audit File for Tax) is a file type based on the XML standard. It is created in a standard readable format from data exports taken from accounting records. SAF-T is used internationally to ensure the fast and secure digital transfer of tax information. It is known for its high level of security, ability to simplify the collection of tax data and simple readability due to its standardised format. reporting will arrive in the country in late 2022 or early 2023.

Italy: New technical regulations relating to e-invoicing will be introduced on 1^st October 2022.

Luxembourg: The arrival of mandatory B2G e-invoicing is on its way; the second phase will launch on 18^th October 2022.

Poland: B2B e-invoicing has been optional since January 2022, but will become mandatory in 2024.

Portugal: The country’s ATCUD system is expected to go live in 2023.

Romania: Businesses were asked to register for eFactura e-invoices last year and the system was introduced in July 2022 for large taxpayers. Medium organisations will be included in January 2023 and smaller companies in 2025.

In addition, these countries are known to be planning or considering the adoption of e-invoicing legislation:

Bulgaria: A public consultation on mandatory B2B e-invoicing is planned, as well as proposals for introducing SAF-T reporting.

Germany: The government has recently agreed that e-invoicing and real-time reporting must be more widely rolled out.

Latvia: Plans to make e-invoicing mandatory for B2B and B2G transactions from 2025 have been revealed.

Slovakia: A draft proposal to make B2G, G2G and G2B e-invoicing mandatory from 1^st January 2023 is in place.

Slovenia: The nation has announced plans to introduce B2B e-invoicing.

Spain: Mandatory B2B e-invoicing is on the agenda and could be introduced in July 2024.

Sweden: Plans exist for SAF-T reporting, real-time reporting and e-invoicing, although no dates have been stated.

What does it mean for businesses?

As part of the global digitalisation of tax, dozens of countries around the world are implementing mandatory e-invoicing schemes.

Not only does this ensure greater accuracy in the financial data submitted and reduce the manual burden on both businesses and tax authorities, it helps in the fight against tax fraud.

Businesses must recognise that digital records mean scrutiny of their data has never been greater and this trend will only accelerate further. It is therefore imperative that invoices and other documents are populated with wholly accurate and timely details.

One of the most important areas to focus on is the determination of tax; after all, if tax is incorrectly calculated, it has the potential to invalidate an entire invoice.

That’s why we advise businesses to invest in solutions and infrastructure that ensure seamless, automated tax determination so that only perfect data is used to fill e-invoices.