Global e-Invoicing

What is an e-Invoice?

An electronic invoice is a functional equivalent of an invoice on paper, characterized by being sent to the receiver by electronic means, preserving identical legal value and providing new security conditions.

The consideration of an electronic invoice as a valid original document entails a process with different conditioning factors specified in the tax legislation of the countries where the e-invoices are to be issued:

		Mandatory: Different countries have already imposed the use of electronic billing to a greater or lesser extent. In Latin America there several countries where e-invoicing is mandatory in order to improve tax collection and fiscal control. In Europe some countries make e-invoicing compulsory when billing public administrations, with the aim of increasing transparency and improving process efficiency.

		Prior administrative procedures: Some countries require application processes, records, certificates, etc., as a prior step to becoming an electronic invoice issuer or receiver.

		Invoice schema: In most cases the format in which the e-document should be structured is standardized, with XML as the most widely used language.

		Fiscal control code: Most models include a mechanism which inserts an electronic code into the invoice that makes the document issued valid for tax purposes. These codes are usually issued by what are known as “Authorized Certification Providers”.

		Electronic signature: Different electronic signature systems are designed to ensure the integrity and authenticity of invoices.

		Safekeeping: Storage of the original electronic documents under certain conditions by the transmitter and/or recipient is required.