# BR-DE-4 Seller post code must be provided

Under the German XRechnung profile and German tax regulations (§ 14 UStG), the postal address of the seller (BG-5) must contain a postal code (BT-38). German administrative routing systems and tax assessment offices rely on standard 5-digit German postal codes (Postleitzahl) to verify local tax authority jurisdiction and perform automated address deduplication.

## Problem Description

> **ERROR**: German XRechnung rule (KoSIT, BR-DE) · XRechnung 3.0

## Context and Significance

Without BT-38, Schematron validation fails rule BR-DE-4 immediately. In domestic German B2G transactions, a valid 5-digit PLZ is indispensable for invoice clearing.

## Solution

In your ERP master data, ensure the postal code field is maintained in the seller address profile. In UBL 2.1 syntax, populate <cbc:PostalZone> within <cac:AccountingSupplierParty><cac:Party><cac:PostalAddress>. In UN/CEFACT CII syntax, populate <ram:PostcodeCode> within <ram:SellerTradeParty><ram:PostalTradeAddress>. Ensure the postal code is not embedded inside the street address or city name.

- [Validate XML](/en/xrechnung-validator?source=resource&rule=BR-DE-4)
- [Convert invoice](/en/pdf-to-xrechnung?source=resource&rule=BR-DE-4)

## Valid Examples

- Seller postal address with BT-38 = "10115" and BT-37 = "Berlin"
- Seller postal address with BT-38 = "80331" and BT-37 = "München"

## Invalid Examples

- Seller postal address containing street and city but omitting cbc:PostalZone / ram:PostcodeCode
- Postal code placed as text prefix in cbc:CityName (e.g. "10115 Berlin") leaving BT-38 empty

## Code Examples

### Valid XML
```
<cac:PostalAddress>
  <cbc:StreetName>Alexanderstraße 1</cbc:StreetName>
  <cbc:CityName>Berlin</cbc:CityName>
  <cbc:PostalZone>10178</cbc:PostalZone>
  <cac:Country><cbc:IdentificationCode>DE</cbc:IdentificationCode></cac:Country>
</cac:PostalAddress>
```

### Invalid XML
```
<cac:PostalAddress>
  <cbc:StreetName>Alexanderstraße 1</cbc:StreetName>
  <cbc:CityName>Berlin</cbc:CityName>
  <cac:Country><cbc:IdentificationCode>DE</cbc:IdentificationCode></cac:Country>
</cac:PostalAddress>
```

## Affected Fields

- [BT-38 Seller post code](/resources/xrechnung/bt-38-seller-post-code)
- [BG-5 Seller postal address](/resources/xrechnung/bt-40-seller-country-code)
- [BT-37 Seller city](/resources/xrechnung/bt-37-seller-city)

## Related Rules

- [BR-08](/resources/kosit-validator-errors/br-08-seller-postal-address-required)
- [BR-DE-3](/resources/kosit-validator-errors/br-de-3-seller-city-required)

## Validation Tools

- [Official KoSIT Validator](https://github.com/itplr-kosit/validator): Run the official KoSIT validator with the XRechnung configuration to check EN 16931 and XRechnung rules.
- [Convert PDF to XRechnung](/pdf-to-xrechnung): Find validation errors during conversion and review each correction.

## Related Resources

- [Official Specification](https://xeinkauf.de/xrechnung/)
- [Test Suite](https://github.com/itplr-kosit/xrechnung-testsuite)
- [All validation errors](/resources/kosit-validator-errors): Overview of the EN 16931, XRechnung and Peppol validation rules explained here.