# BR-CL-15 Item country of origin must use ISO 3166-1

The item country of origin code (BT-159) must be coded using ISO 3166-1 alpha-2.

## Problem Description

The item country of origin code (BT-159) must be coded using ISO 3166-1 alpha-2.

> **ERROR**: XRechnung 3.0

## Context and Significance

This EN16931 core code-list rule supports origin declarations at line level for customs and reporting.

## Solution

Set BT-159 to a two-letter ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code such as CN, TR or IT.

- validate
- convert

## Valid Examples

- BT-159 = CN
- BT-159 = TR

## Invalid Examples

- BT-159 = CHN — three letters, not alpha-2
- BT-159 = China — country name

## Code Examples

### Valid XML
```
<cac:OriginCountry>
  <cbc:IdentificationCode>CN</cbc:IdentificationCode>
</cac:OriginCountry>
```

### Invalid XML
```
<cac:OriginCountry>
  <cbc:IdentificationCode>CHN</cbc:IdentificationCode>
</cac:OriginCountry>
```

## Affected Fields

- [BT-159 Item country of origin](/resources/xrechnung/bt-159-item-classification-identifier)

## Related Rules

- [BR-CL-14](/resources/kosit-validator-errors/br-cl-14-iso-3166-country-codes)

## Validation Tools

- [Official KoSIT Validator](https://erechnungsvalidator.service-bw.de/): Validate your XRechnung files against all BR-DE rules.
- [Convert PDF to XRechnung](/pdf-to-xrechnung): Automatic validation error fixes when converting.

## Related Resources

- [Official Specification](https://xeinkauf.de/xrechnung/)
- [Test Suite](https://github.com/itplr-kosit/xrechnung-testsuite)
- [Complete Error List](/resources/kosit-validator-errors): Overview of all German XRechnung validation rules.