E-Invoicing Glossary

Discounts (allowances) or surcharges (charges) applied to a line or document total.

Bank Identifier Code (SWIFT) used to identify banks in international payments.

A logical group of business terms in EN 16931 (e.g., seller info, totals).

A standardized data element in EN 16931 (e.g., invoice number, VAT ID).

French government B2G invoicing portal operated by AIFE; mandatory recipient channel for all invoices to French public entities.

UN/CEFACT Cross Industry Invoice: an XML syntax used for e-invoices.

Country or sector specific usage specification that constrains EN 16931.

A predefined set of allowed codes/values (e.g., VAT category, payment means).

7-character SDI routing code that tells Italy’s clearance platform which provider should receive a FatturaPA invoice.

Identifier linking an invoice to a contract or framework agreement.

Document that reduces or cancels a previously issued invoice amount.

Dun & Bradstreet 9-digit identifier for legal entities, common in international procurement and ISO 6523 ICD 0060.

Dutch government secure messaging gateway used to deliver e-invoices and tax filings to Rijk-level recipients.

Link from an invoice to another document (order, contract, prior invoice).

Romanian national e-invoicing platform (RO e-Factura) for B2G and, since 2024, mandatory B2B routed via SPV.

Digital reporting of transaction data to tax authorities, often alongside e-invoicing.

EN 16931 code list (CEF EAS) that says which identifier scheme — VAT-ID, GLN, OIN, etc. — is used for an electronic address.

Austrian XML invoicing format maintained by AUSTRIAPRO; widely used for B2B and accepted alongside Peppol BIS by Austrian B2G.

European standard defining the semantic data model for e-invoices.

French hybrid e-invoice format, aligned with ZUGFeRD and EN 16931 profiles.

Finnish bank-driven e-invoicing format defined by Finance Finland; widely used in B2B and aligned with EN 16931 from version 3.0.

GS1 13-digit identifier for a legal entity, function, or physical location — the standard EAS scheme 0088 in EN 16931.

International Bank Account Number used for bank transfers.

A single billed item/service line including quantity, price, and tax details.

Code indicating the document type (invoice, credit note, etc.).

International standard that registers identifier schemes for organisations — the foundation of the EAS code list.

German coordination body; commonly refers to the BR-DE validation rules/validator for XRechnung.

Krajowy System e-Faktur — the Polish national e-invoicing platform mandatory for most B2B from February 2026.

Dutch Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel) 8-digit company registration number; ISO 6523 ICD 0106.

German routing ID required for many public sector recipients (B2G).

Danish national e-invoicing infrastructure built around OIOUBL and now interoperating with Peppol.

Danish UBL CIUS used by NemHandel; OIOUBL 3 (released 2024) aligns with EN 16931.

Finnish electronic invoicing identifier (12–17 digits), Peppol EAS scheme 0037; built from the Finnish business ID (Y-tunnus).

Identifier used in PEPPOL to address a sender/receiver (e.g., with a scheme).

Code describing how an invoice is paid (e.g., bank transfer, card, cash).

PDF archival standard allowing embedded files (used for ZUGFeRD/Factur-X).

State-registered private platform allowed to transmit French B2B e-invoices and e-reports under the upcoming reform.

A network and specifications for exchanging e-procurement documents, including e-invoices.

Business Interoperability Specifications defining document rules (commonly BIS 3.0 for invoices).

Buyer-issued document ordering goods/services, often referenced by an invoice.

Payment method where invoice includes a QR code containing payment details.

Mandatory transmission of invoice data to the tax authority within seconds or hours of issuance — e.g., Hungarian NAV Online Számla.

Reporting transaction data shortly after issuance, often mandated by tax regimes.

VAT mechanism where the buyer accounts for VAT instead of the seller.

XSLT-based rule language used by KoSIT and Peppol to validate business rules in XML invoices.

Italian government clearance platform that routes and validates every FatturaPA invoice before delivery.

Service Metadata Locator used to find which SMP is responsible for a participant.

Service Metadata Publisher used to publish recipient capabilities in PEPPOL.

Legacy Swedish UBL 1.0 e-invoice profile; largely superseded by Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 since 2019.

Classification of tax treatment (e.g., standard, exempt, zero-rated).

Basque Country fiscal invoicing scheme that pre-dates VeriFactu and runs in parallel for Basque taxpayers.

Universal Business Language: an XML library for standard business documents.

Standard code describing the unit of measure (e.g., piece, hour, kilogram).

Process of checking an e-invoice against syntax rules and business rules.

Tax identifier used for VAT reporting and cross-border trade in the EU.

Spanish anti-fraud invoicing regime (RD 1007/2023) requiring tamper-proof invoice records and optional real-time reporting to AEAT.

VAT in the Digital Age: EU initiative driving e-invoicing and digital reporting requirements.

ViDA Pillar 1: structured EN 16931 e-invoices and 10-day digital reports for cross-border intra-EU B2B from July 2030.

ViDA Pillar 2: extends OSS/IOSS so that businesses register for VAT once and report all EU sales through a single Member State.

ViDA Pillar 3: digital platforms in short-term accommodation and passenger transport become deemed VAT supplier from January 2030.

Text-based markup format used to represent structured data in many e-invoice syntaxes.

A formal definition of allowed XML structure and data types.

German e-invoicing specification for the public sector based on EN 16931.

Hybrid e-invoice format: a human-readable PDF with embedded XML.