Electronic invoicing

What it means

Electronic invoicing means the invoice is created, sent and archived electronically. In the narrow sense it means a structured format the other side can process by machine - not a PDF attached to an e-mail.

The difference is practical. A PDF has to be read and retyped; a structured invoice loads into the ledger with its lines, rates and due date, removing the commonest source of error.

The format and the delivery channel are two different things. A structured invoice can travel by e-mail, through the customer’s portal or over the Peppol network, which ensures the document reaches the right recipient in the agreed format. A PDF sent over the same network, however, would still be just a picture of an invoice.

How it works in practice

The law requires authenticity of origin, integrity of content and legibility throughout the retention period. That can be achieved with an electronic signature, a verified data exchange, or reliable business controls in the process.

The benefit lands fully when the invoice arrives over an API and runs through an approval workflow all the way to posting. On the purchase side, document digitisation is the natural continuation.

When a new client comes on board we set up document intake so that supplier invoices arrive at a single address and, where possible, with the structured file. They then load into the accounting software without retyping, and what is left for us is checking rather than copying numbers.

What to watch out for

The recipient’s acceptance of the electronic form should be recorded in the contract or the order. And it is the original file, in the form sent or received, that is archived - a printed copy is not the original.

If a supplier sends both a PDF and a structured file and the data in them differ, it is unclear which document counts. Agree which one is the original and keep that one under the retention rules; otherwise an audit ends up asking why the books agree with one file and the return with the other.