EA Digital Solutions

E-invoicing

E-invoicing: XRechnung and ZUGFeRD straight from your systems.

In Germany, e-invoicing between domestic businesses is mandatory; in Austria the federal government requires it; and from July 2030 it applies EU-wide to cross-border business. We review your invoicing process and connect accounting, ERP or shop so that e-invoices are created, received and archived automatically.

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In short

An e-invoice is an invoice in a structured format under the EN 16931 standard, such as XRechnung or ZUGFeRD from version 2.0.1. A PDF on its own is not an e-invoice. In Germany, businesses must be able to receive e-invoices since 1 January 2025; for supplies between domestic businesses they must issue them from 2027 if prior-year turnover exceeded EUR 800,000, and from 2028 all of them. Austria has no general B2B mandate so far; invoices to the federal government have had to be electronic and structured since 2014.

Key facts

Germany: receiving since 1 January 2025
Businesses in Germany must be able to receive e-invoices from other domestic businesses. According to the Federal Ministry of Finance, an e-mail inbox is enough.
Germany: issuing from 2027 or 2028
In 2025 and 2026, paper and, with the recipient’s consent, PDF are still allowed. In 2027 only for businesses with prior-year turnover of up to EUR 800,000, from 2028 for no one.
Formats: XRechnung and ZUGFeRD
Both are based on EN 16931. ZUGFeRD counts from version 2.0.1, except the MINIMUM and BASIC-WL profiles. If data and image differ, the structured part prevails.
Archiving
In Germany, at least the structured part must be kept intact and machine-readable, for eight years.
Austria: mandatory for the federal government since 2014
Suppliers to federal agencies submit structured invoices via the business service portal USP (ebInterface) or PEPPOL. There is no general B2B mandate so far.
EU: ViDA from 1 July 2030
The “VAT in the Digital Age” package adopted in March 2025 makes e-invoicing and digital reporting mandatory for cross-border B2B supplies within the EU from 1 July 2030.

As of 26 October 2026 · General information, not legal advice.

Who this affects

  • Businesses established in Germany or with a German permanent establishment: they must be able to receive and will soon have to issue e-invoices for supplies to other domestic businesses.
  • Austrian companies with German business customers: under German law you are not obliged to issue e-invoices without a German establishment. Your customers are switching to e-invoices, though, and ask for them because they automate their incoming invoices.
  • Suppliers to the Austrian federal government: structured e-invoices only, via USP or PEPPOL, since 2014.
  • Anyone selling to businesses in other EU countries: with ViDA, e-invoicing becomes mandatory for these supplies from July 2030.

Which obligation applies to you depends on establishment, customers and turnover. Your tax adviser confirms the tax classification; we take care of the technology.

What we do for you

  1. 1

    Review your invoicing process

    Free first call: where are invoices created, who receives them, which systems are involved? Afterwards you know what is due when.

  2. 2

    Connect outgoing invoices

    Accounting, ERP or shop generate XRechnung or ZUGFeRD directly from existing data, validated against the standard before sending.

  3. 3

    Automate incoming invoices

    Incoming e-invoices are detected, validated, displayed in readable form and passed to your accounting instead of printed and retyped.

  4. 4

    Archive

    Storage of the structured original, unaltered and searchable, in line with retention requirements.

  5. 5

    PEPPOL and ebInterface where needed

    For customers or authorities that require PEPPOL or ebInterface, we set up the matching channel.

We do not give tax advice. If your accounting software already supports e-invoicing, we configure it rather than build something new.

Free checklist

E-invoicing checklist: 12 points for XRechnung and ZUGFeRD

E-invoicing checklist: 12 points for XRechnung and ZUGFeRD

For companies with customers or a seat in Germany. German businesses must be able to receive e-invoices since 2025 and issue them from 2027 (prior-year turnover above EUR 800,000) or 2028 (all).

Receiving, issuing, formats, archiving and processes: the 12 points for e-invoicing, as a printable PDF.

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Frequently asked questions

Is a PDF sent by e-mail an e-invoice?

No. An e-invoice is a structured data set under EN 16931, such as XRechnung (pure XML) or ZUGFeRD (PDF with embedded XML). A regular PDF is an “other invoice” in Germany and only allowed during the transition period.

As an Austrian company, do I have to send e-invoices to German customers?

Not under German law, as long as you are not established in Germany and have no German permanent establishment involved in the supply. Your customers may require e-invoices by contract, though, and from July 2030 ViDA introduces an EU-wide obligation for cross-border B2B supplies anyway.

Is e-invoicing mandatory in Austria?

For invoices to the federal government since 2014. For supplies between businesses there is no general obligation as things stand; Austria still has to implement ViDA and could introduce a domestic mandate in the process.

Is an online converter enough?

For occasional invoices, perhaps. Once invoices go out or come in regularly, you save time and errors when e-invoices are created directly in your system and incoming ones flow into accounting automatically.

Do you give tax advice?

No. We implement the technical side. Which obligations apply to you is a question for your tax adviser; we are happy to work with them.

Sources

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