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E-invoicing
E-invoicing

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Preparing for e-invoicing in Germany means starting now

Germany’s e-invoicing receiving obligation is already active, and issuance deadlines begin on 1 January 2027. Learn how Avalara helps reduce compliance risk, avoid rework, and prevents disruption.
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Germany e-invoicing timeline

Key implementation deadlines

  • 1 January 2025: All in-scope businesses must be able to receive structured electronic invoices
  • 1 January 2027: Businesses with annual turnover exceeding €800,000 must begin issuing compliant structured e-invoices
  • 1 January 2028: All remaining in-scope businesses become subject to e-invoicing requirements 
Simplify e-invoicing with Avalara

Connect compliance directly to your ERP

Integrate structured invoicing, reporting, status tracking, and life cycle monitoring into core ERP workflows without adding fragmented local systems.

Adapt faster as mandates evolve

Stay aligned to changing country requirements without rebuilding integrations or redesigning workflows for every new mandate.

Centralise visibility across jurisdictions

Monitor invoice flows, reporting, and compliance status globally through a unified operational model. Gain AI-backed visibility into evolving compliance requirements and workflow exceptions.

Scale globally without rework

Replace single-country implementations with a repeatable framework designed for long-term, AI-powered compliance at global scale.
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Germany e-invoicing requirements

Model

Germany uses a decentralised B2B e‑invoicing model where trading partners exchange structured invoices directly, without a central government platform.

Platforms

Germany does not have a mandatory central platform. Businesses must support compliant exchange through agreed channels, providers, ERP integrations, or partner networks.

Formats

Germany requires structured formats aligned to EN 16931. XRechnung and ZUGFeRD are generally permissible formats for B2B e-invoices.

Scope

The mandate applies to domestic B2B transactions between businesses established in Germany, with exemptions for small-value invoices and certain tickets.

Enterprise risk indicators

  • Reliance on PDF and email invoice workflows 
  • Limited structured data validation
  • Manual exception resolution 
  • No real-time invoice life cycle visibility
  • Fragmented ERP environments 
  • Country-specific compliance processes 
  • Inconsistent XRechnung or ZUGFeRD readiness 
Steps to Germany e-invoicing mandate compliance
  • Build cross-team alignment. Bring Tax, Finance, and IT into a shared workstream to align on readiness, process, and implementation.
  • Assess mandate applicability. Identify in-scope entities, domestic B2B transactions, turnover thresholds, exemptions, and trading partner dependencies.
  • Map current invoice flows. Document ERP systems, invoice routing, partner exchange channels, exception handling, and archival requirements across business units.
  • Select Avalara as your compliant platform model. Using Avalara as your e-invoicing compliance partner helps ensure you are ready on day one. With Avalara, your architecture can adapt to changing requirements and scale beyond Germany as needed.
  • Prepare ERP systems and data. Validate XRechnung and ZUGFeRD readiness, structured data completeness, invoice ingestion, life cycle monitoring, and integration requirements.
  • Test and validate early. Testing windows will compress as 2027’s deadline approaches. Early validation reduces rejection risk and prevents future disruption.

 

The biggest mistake enterprises make is treating Germany as a one-off IT project. Single-country approaches may solve meeting today’s requirement, but they create complexity, duplication, and rework as companies’ e-invoicing exposure multiplies across markets.
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Germany is just the start

Mandates are accelerating globally. Build a scalable compliance model now instead of rebuilding it market by market later.
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Solve for Germany and every mandate that follows

Strategic enterprises treat e-invoicing as an operational transformation initiative, not a one-off compliance project. Instead of building country-specific fixes that create future inefficiencies, they’re standardising workflows, connecting systems, and creating scalable compliance operations across jurisdictions.  

 

Avalara helps support this approach through an AI-powered compliance platform designed to automate complex tax and e-invoicing workflows across countries, systems, and changing regulatory requirements.  

 

The goal is simple: Solve e-invoicing once, then scale compliance globally as mandates compound and evolve.

Schedule a Germany readiness session

In a 45-minute working session, Avalara experts will help you identify what’s in scope, discover system and data gaps, assess exposure, and prioritise your next 90 days of readiness activity.
Book your session

In-scope transactions

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B2G

Business-to-government (B2G) e-invoicing is mandatory in Germany for transactions with administrations at the federal (national) level.

 

Germany is a federal state that grants its 16 individual states a degree of independence in regulating B2G e-invoicing. B2G e-invoicing requirements may therefore vary from one state to another.

 

At the state level, B2G e-invoicing is mandatory in seven states: Bremen, Hamburg, Baden-Württemberg, Saarland, Rheinland-Pfalz, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Hessen. B2G e-invoicing is optional in the remaining nine states.

 

Germany uses the Peppol network for B2G e-invoicing, which enables businesses to exchange e-invoices with certain public authorities.

 

Businesses can also use Germany’s central government portals: the Central Invoice Submission Portal (ZRE), and the OZG-compliant Invoice Submission Platform (OZG-RE).

 

B2G e-invoices sent to supreme federal authorities and central constitutional bodies must be submitted via the ZRE. B2G e-invoices for indirect federal authorities, such as Germany’s Employment Agency, must be submitted via OZG-RE.

 

The Leitweg-ID is part of B2G e-invoices in Germany, and is used to determine which portal should be used:

 

  • IDs starting with 991 use ZRE
  • IDs starting with 992 use OZG-RE

B2B

Germany took a phased approach to the rollout of mandatory business-to-business (B2B) e-invoicing to allow businesses to adjust during a transitional period.

 

Since January 1, 2025, all businesses in Germany must be able to receive e-invoices. Invoice recipients no longer have the option to refuse an e-invoice or request another format. However, it is still possible to issue ‘traditional’ billing formats such as paper invoices or standard PDF during the transition period if the sender wishes to.

 

From January 1, 2027, businesses with a turnover of €800,000 or more in 2026 must be ready to issue e-invoices for B2B transactions. Businesses with a turnover below this threshold can still issue paper and/or PDF invoices.

 

From January 1, 2028, all businesses must be ready to issue e-invoices. The German e-invoicing mandate determines compliant e-invoices to be: invoices in structured formats that are issued, transmitted, and received electronically and can be automatically processed. The format must be compliant with the European norm EN 16931. Structured formats are machine-readable. Standard PDF invoices are not machine-readable and no longer considered to be e-invoices in Germany.

 

Creating a human-readable version is not mandated; however, businesses can provide one if they wish. This can be done by using the hybrid PDF/A-3 format or generating a separate PDF. In the event of a discrepancy between the content of the XML and PDF, German law states that the information in the XML file takes precedence.

Standard formats that can be used for compliant e-invoicing in Germany

Peppol BIS Billing

XRechnung

ZUGFeRD

A structured, machine-readable UBL 2.1 XML format that can be delivered via Peppol.

A structured, machine-readable UBL 2.1 XML format that can be delivered via Peppol and German government portals (ZRE, OZG-RE).

A hybrid format based on the PDF/A-3 standard that contains a visual PDF and an embedded structured XML file. The format can be delivered via email as attachments or via AS2 or exchange portals.

Machine readable: YES

Machine readable: YES

Machine readable: YES

Human readable: NO

Human readable: NO

Human readable: YES

The format can be used for B2B and B2G e-invoicing in Germany, as well as voluntarily for cross-border transactions with EU countries, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Japan, and Malaysia.

The format can be used for B2G e-invoicing in Germany and for B2B e-invoicing with selected businesses in Germany. While this is a standard format for B2G, its use among businesses (B2B) is limited.

The format can be used for B2B e-invoicing in Germany, especially during periods of transition from standard PDFs. The format can be used in Germany and France, where it’s known as Factur-X.

The format is recognised in Germany and internationally.

The format is only accepted in Germany and not usable on an international level.

The format is only accepted in Germany and France. It is not usable on an international level.

Existing EDI connections between businesses can be used during the transition period. From January 1, 2028, EDI connections can only be used if they are compliant with EN 16931.

 

E-invoices must comply with German principles for proper accounting, or ‘Grundsätze zur ordnungsmäßigen Führung und Aufbewahrung von Büchern, Aufzeichnungen und Unterlagen in elektronischer Form sowie zum Datenzugriff’ (GoBD) and German VAT invoicing requirements. For amounts over €250, invoices must include:

  • Full name and address of the supplier
  • Full name and address of the recipient
  • Supplier and buyer VAT number or tax number
  • Date of delivery or performance
  • Sequential invoice number
  • Invoice issue date
  • Description of the goods or services
  • Net amount broken down by tax rates and exemptions
  • VAT amount
  • VAT rate charged
  • Total amount charged
  • Any pre-agreed reductions in the amount (such as discounts)
  • If applicable, a note indicating the reverse charge (tax liability of the recipient)

 

All invoices in Germany, including e-invoices, must be archived for 10 years. E-invoices in Germany do not need to be digitally signed.

Live-reporting requirements

With e-invoicing mandates in place, real-time reporting requirements will follow. Germany is a member state of the European Union (EU) and is obligated to adopt Digital Reporting Requirements (DRR) that are part of the VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) package of reforms. It’s expected that Germany will implement a centralised reporting system comparable to that implemented in Italy. Under this system, businesses are required to report B2B transactional data to tax authorities in real time.

Exemptions from mandatory B2B e-invoicing

There are a small number of exemptions from B2B e-invoicing mandates in Germany. These include transactions that are exempt from VAT, invoices for transactions with a total amount less than €250, selected types of services like passenger transport, and non-domestic transactions where at least one party is not a domestic (Germany-based) business.

Additional resources

FAQs

Yes. As of 1 January 2025, in-scope businesses must be able to receive structured electronic invoices. Issuance obligations begin in phases starting 1 January 2027.

The mandate applies to domestic B2B transactions between businesses established in Germany. It generally covers taxable supplies between German-established entrepreneurs, with exemptions for small-value invoices and certain travel tickets.

Germany requires structured, machine-readable invoice formats aligned to EN 16931. XRechnung and ZUGFeRD are generally permissible formats, provided the invoice data can be electronically processed.

Not as a long-term compliance model. During the transition period, certain paper and PDF invoices may still be used under specific conditions. But PDF and direct email workflows do not meet Germany’s structured e-invoicing requirements once issuance obligations apply.

Noncompliance can lead to invoice rejection, payment delays, operational disruption, increased audit exposure, and financial penalties. Businesses may also face process breakdowns if ERP systems cannot create, receive, validate, and archive structured invoices.

Germany’s receiving obligation is already active, and trading partners may begin issuing structured invoices before your issuance deadline arrives. Delaying preparation compresses testing timelines, increases integration risk, and limits platform availability. It may also force the use of country-specific solutions that will not scale across future mandates.

Schedule a Germany readiness session

In a 45-minute working session, Avalara experts will help you identify what’s in scope, discover system and data gaps, assess exposure, and prioritise your next 90 days of readiness activity.
Book your session