How Electronic Invoicing Works in Paraguay

The implementation of Electronic Invoicing in Paraguay, planned by the Undersecretariat of State for Taxation (SET), aims to improve tax collection and combat tax fraud in the country. The Paraguayan electronic invoicing project includes various phases: pilot plan, voluntary adherence, and mandatory implementation.

Sistema Integrado de Facturación Electrónica Nacional – SIFEN 

The SIFEN system established the new Paraguayan tax ecosystem. The SIFEN uses the e-Kuatia platform to issue receive, validate and store DTE tax documents.   

Current status of the electronic invoice in Paraguay

The Undersecretariat of State for Taxation (SET) issued General Resolution No. 105/2021 that provides the administrative measures for the issuance of Electronic Tax Documents. This resolution establishes the dates that taxpayers in the pilot plan and of the voluntary phase were to issue only electronically their tax documents according to General Resolution No. 95/2021, from July 1, 2022, with the purpose of achieving a sustainable and gradual implementation of the SIFEN. 

With this resolution, SET expands the list of obligated parties to advance the adoption of electronic invoicing, establishing dates from which new groups of taxpayers must electronically issue all their tax documents. Finally, in January 2024, SET published General Resolution DNIT No. 01 on its website, incorporating a new group of electronic taxpayers for legal entities registering as new taxpayers in the RUC. In this regard, taxpayers identified in groups 1 to 11 must electronically issue all their tax documents, except for the virtual Retention Receipt.

List of obligated taxpayers

The list of taxpayers that make up the groups will be available on the SIFEN web portal (ekuatia.set.gov.py/portal/ekuatia/), on SET's web page, and will notify taxpayers affected to the "Marandu" Tax Mailbox.Documentos Tributarios Electrónicos de Paraguay

Electronic Tax Documents in Paraguay (DTE)

DTEs are tax documents validated and approved by SIFEN in electronic format. They serve to support VAT debit and credit, as well as income, costs, and expenses in income taxes. The types of Electronic Tax Documents in Paraguay include:

Electronic Sales Receipts

• Electronic Invoice
• Electronic Bill of Exchange Invoice
• Electronic Export Invoice
• Electronic Self-Invoice
• Electronic Simplified Ticket
• Electronic Ticket for Entry to Public Shows

Electronic Supplementary Documents

• Electronic Credit Note
• Electronic Debit Note

Electronic Documents

• Electronic Income Tax Document
• Electronic Donation Document
• Electronic Import Document
• Electronic Retention Receipt
• Electronic Perception Receipt

Electronic Money Receipt
Electronic Dispatch Note

DTE Formats in Paraguay

Two types of formats are distinguished for DTEs: Electronic Document and Electronic Tax Document, depending on whether pre or post-validation was used.

DE: Electronic Documents (Electronic Sales Receipts, Electronic Supplementary Documents, Electronic Documents, Electronic Money Receipts, and Electronic Dispatch Advices) generated by the authorized electronic issuer's billing system.

DTE: It corresponds to the conversion of a DE that has successfully passed all established validations and is stored in SIFEN, serving as documentary support for tax, commercial, accounting, and legal purposes.

Requirements to become a DTE issuer

• To be enabled by the tax authority as an electronic invoice issuer. 
• To receive the digital certificate for certification service providers, to guarantee the authenticity, integrity, and non-repudiation for (DE) electronic documents issued, as well as include the tax id of the issuer (RUC).
• To have adequate technical support for the invoice to enable the issuance, reception, and storage of invoices. 
• To comply with the mandatory tests in the SET’s test environment, to guarantee that the data in DEs is of satisfactory quality. 
• To receive the authorization and digital stamp for DTEs through the Marangatu tax management system, using the confidential user access code. Users must ensure they are up to date on their tax obligations and have an active RUC. 
• To solicit the taxpayer security code (CSC) to the SET for the generation of the QR code to be printed on the KuDE associated to a DE. 

Electronic Tax Document Issuing Systems

There are two ways to issue electronic invoices and their supplementary documents:

• E-kuatia’i: A free electronic invoicing solution for taxpayers with a low volume of electronic document issuance. SET provides this solution for free, covering basic services such as issuance, approval, and sending, as well as consultation and storage of Electronic Tax Documents (DTE).
• E-kuatia: An electronic invoicing solution for large and medium-sized taxpayers through the development of necessary software for invoicing to SIFEN. They can voluntarily join or be mandatorily designated by SET to invoice electronically. The e-Kuatia system electronically issues, receives, and queries sales receipts, supplementary documents, dispatch advices, and other documents with tax implications.

How Does the Electronic Invoice Work in Paraguay?

• Electronic invoices are created in an XML format and must register the seal attached to each document. 
• Every electronic document must include the digital signature and the control code to guarantee its authenticity.
• The invoice issuer must issue electronic documents to the tax authority for validation. 
• When the SIFEN receives them it will validate them making them into DTEs. As DTEs they can be used to back VAT credits and debits, as well as goods and services sales, and expenses for income taxes. 
• The electronic invoice only has legal value when validated and authorized by the SET.
• The electronic invoice issuer must inquire about the result of the validation process through the web service enabled by the tax authority. 
• When the buyer is an electronic recipient the invoice issuer must send DTEs through web services, e-mail, or make it available in an available application for download. The recipient must also accept or reject received DTEs and detail the reason for the latter case. 
• When a buyer is not an electronic recipient, the invoice issuer must deliver a graphic representation of the document in a physical format, or send a digitalized version through e-mail, or make it available for download. 

DTEs must be stored, and their integrity, confidentiality, and accessibility must be guaranteed. 

KuDE – Graphic Representation of the Electronic Invoice

When merchandise is being transferred or when a recipient cannot receive an electronic file a graphic representation of the XML called the KuDE should be delivered. The KuDE can be in printed or digital format and is an auxiliary tax document that details a transaction backed by an electronic document (DE). The KuDE must be stored for 6 months. 

Electronic Invoicing Solutions Adapted to your needs

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One of the many advantages of this solution is its scalability, which enables the implementation of new tools to meet its client’s needs. Another advantage is its global capability since the platform adapts to the specifications of each country where you or your clients may operate.