How to Create an XInvoice

1. What is an XInvoice?
2. These are the components of an XInvoice
3. These tools support you in creating an XInvoice
4. This is how you create an XInvoice
5. XInvoice – No Problem!

Digitalization is indispensable in private and professional everyday life. This also applies to your company's invoicing. The digital creation and sending of your invoices are not only more efficient and faster, but also cheaper. Since November 27, 2020, the rule applies that invoices issued to the public sector must only be sent as XInvoices.

So that you can continue to focus on your core business and still receive all important information about what an XInvoice is, what components it has and with which tools you create it, we have summarized all important information in this article for you. Finally, you will receive a detailed step-by-step guide, so that digital invoicing becomes child's play for you and your company.

What is an XInvoice?

Let's start with the basics. Perhaps you think that you already send electronic invoices, in short E-invoices, because you send PDF files to your customers. However, this is not the case, as an E-Invoice remains digital throughout its entire lifecycle - from creation to payment and archiving. So it is not printed or scanned at any step of the processing. In addition, it must be automatically forwarded from one system to another. This means that manual processing of your invoice is not necessary. If you have already sent E-Invoices with Peppol (Pan-European Public Procurement Online), you will have already experienced these benefits. The representation of accounting in the form of E-Invoices with Peppol was introduced for more efficient collaboration of the European public sector and companies located there.

The XInvoice refers to the new underlying technical format for E-Invoices, which was defined in EU Standard 16931-1 in 2017. XInvoice is the abbreviation for „XML-based semantic invoice data model“. The standardized coding of invoices enables them to be transmitted immediately and securely and to be automatically read and processed. The XInvoice can be seen as an advancement of the previously very widespread ZUGFeRD format. Since the latter is not accepted by the public administration, you must use the XML-based invoice in the future. It contains 21 additional national business rules compared to the ZUGFeRD-Invoice, which allow for more efficient collaboration and economic performance.

While reading these lines, you are probably asking yourself whether this regulation applies to you and whether you also have to create and send XInvoices for your company in the future. You are obliged to generate an XInvoice if you are a supplier to an authority or public institution, such as a state or federal administration, or if you want to become one. If there is a possibility for your company to receive orders from authorities in the coming months and years or if you are already actively applying for them, you should build up knowledge on the subject of XInvoices and make your invoice program fit for this.

These are the components of an XInvoice

What may sound very complicated in theory is fortunately not so in practice. For the creation of an XInvoice, you need all data that you also enter into your invoice program when creating a normal invoice. These include:

• Your manufacturer data
• Unique data of the invoice recipients
• Invoice amount
• VAT statement
• Supplier number
• Payment terms
• Email address
• Bank details

The basic requirement for your invoice to become an XInvoice is its transmission via the Central Invoice Entry Platform of the Federation (ZRE). To use the ZRE, you must first register there.

In addition, the Ordinance on Electronic Invoicing in Public Procurement of the Federation, in short ERechV, requires further mandatory fields when creating your XInvoice to the Federation:

• Routing ID
• Bank details
• Payment terms
• Email address of the invoice issuers
• Supplier number
• Order number

The Routing ID is necessary for your invoices to be correctly forwarded through electronic addressing on the ZRE. Exact information on how to apply for it can be obtained from the ZFB, the Central Finance Department of the Federation.

These tools support you in creating an XInvoice

To create XInvoices, you do not need special invoice software. Before creating an invoice for the public sector, it is best to check whether your previously used invoice tool meets the requirements. On OMR Reviews you find numerous accounting softwares, that support you in the creation of normal as well as XInvoices. We have compiled a small selection of tools for you below, to which we have gathered detailed feedback from our users – maybe your accounting software is already included:

Zervant by Ageras

Sage Lohnabrechnung

sevdesk

GetMyInvoices.com

orgaMAX Buchhaltung

If your company is still in its infancy and you therefore do not yet have accounting software or would like to use another invoicing program in the future that better suits you and your company, we would like to show you Zervant as example. The Finnish company aims to make accounting easier for self-employed and small businesses. You can effortlessly create quotations, invoices, delivery notes and reminders using the software. Various online payment options such as credit card payment or online banking will get you the outstanding invoice amount faster from your customers. The SaaS Fintech company offers you an extensive free model and three other fee-based versions that you can take advantage of. Whether you invoice regular people or send an XInvoice to the public sector – Zervant supports you.

This is how you create an XInvoice

Next, we will show you step by step how you can create an XInvoice with Zervant by Ageras.

1. Select Invoices from your dashboard. When you have opened that, create a new document via the button “New Invoice”.
2. Choose the customers, to whom your XInvoice will be sent. You can create these manually in advance or import them via a CSV file.
3. Enter your Routing ID, in the provided field.
4. Add your invoice positions. Here, you enter the description of your service, the quantity delivered and their price in the online interface.
5. The preview button gives your the first view of your document.
6. After clicking on the button “Confirm and Send”, select the subpoint “Send via E-Mail with PDF or XInvoice”. If you only want to download your XInvoice for the time being, you can also do this over there.
7. In the next step, a small window opens in which you can write the email addresses of the recipients, and a short message to them.
8. Finally, under the point “Attachments”, select the XInvoice and hit the “Send” button. Your XInvoice is on its way to your customers.

You keep an eye on the status of your XInvoice through your dashboard and can send payment reminders and view your monthly sales. Zervant also shows you which products and customers make you the most money.

XInvoice – No Problem!

Even though the creation of an XInvoice may initially sound very complicated, fortunately it is not so in practice. With the right accounting software for you, the new requirements for your invoices become child's play. Invoicing thus becomes not a chore and you can focus on your core business and deliver real added value to your customers, who will be convinced by you and become regular customers.