guide

eInvoicing FAQ

eInvoicing replaces emailed PDFs with structured digital invoices that systems can process automatically. Across Europe, governments are introducing mandatory eInvoicing to reduce tax fraud and improve tax reporting.

For finance teams, this means invoices will increasingly need to be sent and received through approved networks and formats. The upside? Less manual work, fewer errors, faster processing, and a more automated Accounts Payable process.

eInvoicing requirements are rolling out across Europe, with each country following its own
timeline.

Key milestones include:

• Italy: Mandatory B2B and B2C eInvoicing through SDI since January 2019; all VAT-registered businesses in scope since January 2024
• Finland: No general mandate; since April 2020, buyers can demand EN 16931-compliant eInvoices from suppliers with annual turnover above €10,000
• Germany: Mandatory receipt from January 2025; mandatory issuance from January 2027 for companies with a prior-year turnover above €800,000 and January 2028 for SMEs
• Belgium: Mandatory for B2B transactions since January 2026
• Poland: KSeF mandatory since February 2026 for businesses with 2024 turnover above PLN 200 million and since April 2026 for all others; businesses invoicing under PLN 10,000 a month follow in January 2027
• France: Mandatory receipt for all companies since September 2026; issuance started in September 2026 for large companies and ETIs, and starts in September 2027 for SMEs
• Spain: Spain's B2B e-invoicing mandate ("Crea y Crece") is law, but the exact start dates hinge on the final technical Ministerial Order. Per the mandate knowledge base, the draft Order tentatively schedules entry into force for October 1, 2026, which gives us the following provisional timeline:
  October 1, 2027: Mandatory for businesses with a prior-year turnover above €8 million.
  October 1, 2028: Mandatory for all remaining businesses, including SMEs and the self-employed.

Additional countries are introducing their own requirements as part of the EU’s VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) initiative.

In most countries, eInvoicing requirements focus on B2B transactions.

Some countries also require businesses to report B2C and cross-border transactions electronically. For example, France requires separate eReporting for B2C and international transactions.

Requirements vary by country, so it's important to review the rules for each market where you operate.

Peppol is a secure network that enables businesses to exchange structured electronic documents, including invoices, across Europe and beyond.

Think of it as the infrastructure that allows businesses to send and receive compliant eInvoices automatically. Peppol connects suppliers and buyers through certified access points, ensuring invoices reach the right destination in the correct format.

Some countries, including France, also operate national invoicing platforms alongside or instead of Peppol.

Yes. Payhawk is designed to be your single AP platform for supplier invoices. You can receive, review, and process every invoice in one place, whether it has already been paid (for example, by card) or is still awaiting payment. This gives your team complete visibility and a consistent workflow across all supplier spend.

You can continue receiving invoices by email or upload them directly into Payhawk.

As eInvoicing mandates take effect, suppliers will need to move to compliant invoicing methods. In the meantime, Payhawk supports both structured and traditional invoice flows, making the transition easier for your team.

eInvoicing adds an important layer of protection in countries like France by verifying sender identities through approved networks and national directories.

However, a compliant invoice isn't automatically a legitimate invoice.

That's why approval workflows, segregation of duties, and internal controls remain essential. Payhawk helps you maintain those controls while automating invoice processing.

Each Payhawk entity is registered using its own VAT ID or local tax number (e.g., SIREN in France).

When an invoice arrives, it is automatically routed to the matching entity based on the buyer information in the invoice data. No manual allocation is required.

Payhawk extracts the supplier details from the eInvoice, including the supplier name, Tax ID, country, and bank details.

Your finance team can review the data in Payhawk and add the supplier from there. If your ERP is connected through one of Payhawk’s integrations, the new supplier record syncs back to your ERP automatically.

Yes. Some countries, including France, allow businesses to register multiple eInvoicing identifiers for the same legal entity. Each identifier can be connected to a different system, and Payhawk supports this setup.

Switching takes a few minutes in Settings → Integrations → eInvoicing, with no extra tools or fees. What you need to do first depends on the network:

• Peppol (Belgium): A Peppol ID can be registered with only one access point for receiving at a time. Ask your current provider to deregister your ID, then register it in Payhawk. Your ID stays the same, so suppliers keep sending to the same address.
• PPF (France): If another provider already holds your SIREN number, select the taken routing key when you connect. Payhawk then starts the migration automatically, and it takes up to a week to complete. To keep both providers, add a suffix after your SIREN number to use Payhawk and your existing provider side by side.
• KSeF (Poland): You don't need to switch anything. KSeF lets multiple systems listen to the same feed, and it doesn't use participant IDs the way Peppol does. Connect Payhawk and it works alongside your current setup.
• SDI (Italy): Register Payhawk's recipient code in the Agenzia delle Entrate portal, or ask your accountant (commercialista) to do it for you. For full instructions, see this help article.