What are the mandatory fields on an EU VAT invoice? (Article 226)
Every EU business that charges VAT follows the same rulebook: Council Directive 2006/112/EC, the "VAT Directive," which sets minimum invoice content, issue deadlines, and required wording for corrections and exempt or reverse-charged transactions. Member states can add local requirements (numbering, currency, language, e-invoicing platforms) on top of this floor — see the country-specific guide for local rules and e-invoicing mandates.
Article 226 of Directive 2006/112/EC lists the details a full VAT invoice must contain:
| # | Field | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Date of issue | |
| 2 | Sequential number | Unique, based on one or more series |
| 3 | Supplier's VAT identification number | |
| 4 | Customer's VAT identification number | Required for reverse charge and intra-Community supplies |
| 5 | Full name and address of supplier and customer | |
| 6 | Quantity/nature of the goods, or extent/nature of the services | |
| 7 | Date the supply was made or completed | If different from the invoice date |
| 7a | "Cash accounting" | Where VAT becomes chargeable on receipt of payment (cash-accounting scheme) |
| 8 | Taxable amount per rate/exemption, unit price excl. VAT, discounts/rebates if not included | |
| 9 | VAT rate applied | |
| 10 | VAT amount payable | |
| 10a | "Self-billing" | Where the customer, not the supplier, issues the invoice |
| 11 | Reference to the exemption provision, or "reverse charge" | Where VAT is not charged (Article 226(11), 226(11a)) |
| 12 | Details for new means of transport | |
| 13–14 | Reference to margin schemes (travel agents, second-hand goods/art/antiques) | |
| 15 | VAT identification number and details of a tax representative | Where supplier uses one |
These points define a full invoice. A member state can require extra local fields (company registration number, capital, bank IBAN, etc.).
What content does a simplified invoice need? (Article 226b)
Under Article 220a, member states must allow a simplified invoice when the amount is no more than €100 (or the national-currency equivalent), for a document treated as an invoice under Article 219 (corrections), or for suppliers using the small-enterprise exemption. A higher threshold needs an individual EU derogation under Article 395 — not a general range. A simplified invoice under Article 226b needs only:
- date of issue;
- identification of the supplier;
- identification of the type of goods or services supplied;
- the VAT amount payable, or the information needed to calculate it;
- for a corrective document, a specific and unambiguous reference to the invoice it amends.
When must an EU invoice be issued?
For an intra-Community supply of goods (Article 138), or a supply where the customer accounts for VAT under reverse charge (Article 196), Article 222 currently requires the invoice no later than the 15th day of the month following the month the chargeable event (the supply) occurred. Domestic deadlines for purely local supplies are left to each member state.
This deadline shortens under ViDA: from 1 July 2030, once Digital Reporting Requirements apply, Article 222 requires these invoices within 10 days of the chargeable event (or of payment on account), and summary invoices within 10 days of the calendar month's end.
What wording do reverse charge and intra-Community exemptions need?
Two situations require a specific legal reference on the invoice, not just an omitted VAT line:
- Reverse charge (Article 196): cross-border B2B service supply, customer accounts for VAT — invoice must state that fact, in practice "reverse charge," plus, where used, a reference to Article 196. No VAT amount is shown.
- Intra-Community supply of goods, VAT-exempt (Article 138): goods dispatched to a taxable person in another member state, exempt at origin — both parties' valid VAT numbers required, plus a note referencing the exemption (commonly "intra-Community supply, Article 138 Directive 2006/112/EC"). Supplier must also file an EC Sales List; since Directive (EU) 2018/1910, a missing or incorrect VAT number or Sales List entry can forfeit the exemption.
How do you correct an invoice or issue a credit note?
The Directive has no separate "credit note" category: Article 90 requires the taxable amount to be reduced on cancellation, refusal, total or partial non-payment, or a price reduction after supply, under conditions each member state sets. Article 219 treats any document that specifically and unambiguously amends an earlier invoice as an invoice in its own right — it must carry the same mandatory content and cross-reference the original invoice number. National law sets the exact form.
Are proformas invoices?
A proforma (or quote) is not a VAT invoice under the Directive: it does not trigger the chargeable event, does not need a sequential number, and does not entitle the recipient to deduct VAT. It becomes an invoice only once reissued with the mandatory Article 226 content after the supply.
What are EN 16931 and Peppol?
EN 16931 is the European semantic standard for electronic invoicing, developed by CEN under Directive 2014/55/EU. It defines the business terms a "core invoice" must carry, independent of file syntax (compliant syntaxes: UBL and UN/CEFACT CII). Since 2019, all EU public-sector contracting authorities must be able to receive EN 16931-compliant e-invoices.
Peppol (Pan-European Public Procurement OnLine) is the delivery network built on that standard: a "four-corner" model where supplier and customer each connect through their own accredited Peppol Access Point, with no direct link needed between the parties. Many national e-invoicing mandates route documents over Peppol using an EN 16931-based national spec (a "CIUS").
What is ViDA and when do its e-invoicing rules apply?
The Council adopted the VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) package on 11 March 2025; it entered into force on 14 April 2025. Milestones:
| Date | What changes |
|---|---|
| 14 April 2025 | ViDA enters into force; member states may introduce a domestic e-invoicing mandate without a Council derogation |
| 1 July 2028 | Single VAT Registration pillar: extended One-Stop-Shop scope, mandatory reverse charge for certain non-established suppliers |
| 1 July 2030 | Digital Reporting Requirements make structured e-invoicing mandatory for intra-EU B2B and mandatory-reverse-charge transactions |
| 1 January 2035 | Member states with a pre-existing domestic real-time reporting system must align it with the EU model |
The 1 July 2030 change is more than a reporting rule — ViDA rewrites four Directive articles:
- Article 217: only a structured, machine-readable format counts as an "electronic invoice."
- Article 218(3): EN 16931 (with the syntaxes under Directive 2014/55/EU) becomes the reference format.
- Article 232: a recipient can no longer refuse an EN 16931-compliant e-invoice in scope of the new digital reporting rules.
- Article 226: gains two new mandatory fields — a reference to the invoice being corrected, and the supplier's bank/virtual account number.
Until 2030, whether you must issue a structured e-invoice domestically depends on your member state's mandate — several have already legislated ahead of the EU-wide date (see table below).
National e-invoicing mandates — quick reference
One line per country; dates are the domestic B2B mandate as legislated. Several are phased by company size — see each country's guide for the full schedule.
| Country | Status |
|---|---|
| Bulgaria (BG) | No domestic B2B/B2G mandate yet. Public bodies must receive EN 16931 e-invoices since 1 Nov. 2019. A mandatory clearance model is announced for public consultation, no legislated date. |
| Germany (DE) | Receiving mandatory for domestic B2B since 1 Jan. 2025. Issuing mandatory from 1 Jan. 2027 (turnover over €800,000 prior year), from 1 Jan. 2028 for everyone. |
| France (FR) | Receiving mandatory for all businesses; issuing/e-reporting mandatory for large/mid-size companies, since 1 Sept. 2026. SMEs/micro-enterprises from 1 Sept. 2027. |
| Italy (IT) | SdI (Sistema di Interscambio) mandatory for domestic B2B and B2C since 1 Jan. 2019. |
| Poland (PL) | KSeF mandatory since 1 Feb. 2026 (2024 turnover over PLN 200 million), since 1 Apr. 2026 for other entrepreneurs. Sales ≤ PLN 10,000/month exempt through end 2026, mandatory from 1 Jan. 2027. |
| Romania (RO) | RO e-Factura mandatory for domestic B2B since 1 Jan. 2024, B2C since 1 Jan. 2025. |
| Spain (ES) | Royal Decree 238/2026 (25 March 2026, BOE 31 March 2026) sets the B2B system but defers application to a ministerial technical order — per the Tax Agency, still unpublished as of September 2026, no compliance date fixed yet. Once published: turnover above €8 million gets 12 months, others 24. |
Checklist: before you send an EU B2B/B2C invoice
- Sequential, unbroken invoice number
- Date of issue and date of supply (if different)
- Your VAT number and registered details
- Customer's VAT number (mandatory for reverse charge and intra-Community supplies)
- Description, quantity, unit price and VAT rate per line
- Taxable amount and VAT amount per rate, or the exemption/reverse-charge reference
- For intra-EU B2B supplies: issued by the 15th of the month after the supply
- Corrections issued as a credit/debit note cross-referencing the original invoice number
- Check whether your country already mandates a structured e-invoice format for this transaction