10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN

CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

FINDING THE RIGHT SOFTWARE TO OVERCOME E-INVOICING CHALLENGES

GUIDE
SCALING UP YOUR RETAIL BUSINESS
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Contents
DISCLAIMER E-INVOICING, ITS MANDATORY USE,
Tax rates, rules and regulations change frequently. AND HOW IT AFFECTS YOUR BUSINESS 3 GO
Although we hope you’ll find this information
helpful, this guide is for informational purposes 1. GLOBAL COMPLIANCE 4 GO
only and does not provide legal or tax advice.
2. EXPANDABILITY 5 GO

3. INTEGRATION 6 GO

4. EASE OF IMPLEMENTATION 7 GO

5. HOSTING AND SECURITY 8 GO

6. ACCESS TO THE PEPPOL NETWORK FOR

CONVENIENT INVOICE EXCHANGE 9 GO

7. MONITORING INVOICE STATUS 10 GO

8. END-TO-END INDIRECT TAX COMPLIANCE 11 GO

9. HUMAN-READABLE: MAKING
INFORMATION ACCESSIBLE 12 GO

10. SUPPORT TO ENSURE

UNINTERRUPTED OPS 13 GO

STILL LOOKING FOR THE PERFECT

E-INVOICING SOLUTION? 14 GO
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

E-invoicing, its mandatory use,

and how it affects your business

Tax rules change frequently, so keeping track of and E-invoicing is the practice of sending and receiving Additionally, using e-invoicing software reduces
adapting to processes are big challenges for businesses. invoices electronically in a structured format, instead the need for paper invoices, which helps make your
On top of the already complex tax landscape, a new set of traditional paper or PDF versions. In many countries, company more sustainable and environmentally friendly.
of rules is emerging around the world: the mandatory the government defines a strict set of rules, and the
use of e-invoicing in financial processes. tax authority is involved in the e-invoicing process, But choosing the right e-invoicing solution can be
allowing it to gain insights into a company’s business overwhelming. You’ll need to investigate the many
transactions. E-invoicing systems usually involve options available to identify a high-quality e-invoicing
some type of validation by the government or a solution that solves the challenges your business faces.
third-party intermediary to ensure e-invoices are in
the correct format and include the correct information. To help you in this task, we’ve listed the top 10 things
Tax authorities in multiple countries have already to consider when selecting an e-invoicing solution.
mandated the use of e-invoicing, which means paper or
PDF invoices are no longer valid as invoice documents.

Using an e-invoicing solution may soon be necessary

to become tax compliant and continue doing business
in a particular country. However, there are significant
benefits to using e-invoicing software beyond
compliance. Your finance departments will be able to
send invoices to your customers much faster by using
e-invoicing software, so they can pay the bills quicker.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

1. Global compliance

An e-invoicing solution Tax compliance is likely to be one of the biggest

concerns for a company that trades across borders. As
If you actively trade across borders but you’re not up to
date on e-invoicing news, check out our cross-border
should comply with the such, you’ll need to find an e-invoicing solution that VAT guide. As well as a straightforward definition of
can comply with the laws and e-invoicing mandates e-invoicing, it includes a handy timeline of upcoming
e-invoicing standards of the of the countries you operate in or plan to enter — if it e-invoicing mandates across Europe.

countries you sell into or doesn’t, it’s critical to look at the provider’s road map
for the future, and which countries they’re targeting for
could sell into in the future. their solution. Using a less flexible solution could hinder
your operations.

Europe is an area of notable activity when it comes to

e-invoicing mandates, but you may need to stay aware
of mandates further afield as well. Another relevant
example is Saudi Arabia, which entered the second
phase of its e-invoicing mandate in January 2023 in
efforts to improve both security and efficiency in the
movement of goods, services, and money.

Australia and New Zealand are encouraging

businesses to use e-invoicing through the Peppol
network, while Japan is taking steps to standardise
e-invoicing formats and has recently adopted the
Peppol network for national e-invoicing.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

2. Expandability

An e-invoicing solution If you’re a smaller, domestically focused business but

have the opportunity to grow across international
should be able to grow borders, it could be disruptive to have to change your
e-invoicing software later or be forced to use different
as your business grows. solutions for each country you sell to.

Your solution should be scalable, both in its capacity

to handle large volumes of data and documents so
as not to limit growth, and in its capability to expand
into other countries. As you confirm the solution can
handle cross-border e-invoicing (by providing you
access to the Peppol network for example), it’s a good
idea to consider how well the solution works if the
extent of your invoicing needs increases or a new
mandate occurs.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

3. Integration

An e-invoicing solution Integration projects can be challenging, but — if

the solution in question will help you comply with
should be universal and mandatory requirements — necessary.

integration should keep Integrating bespoke and disparate solutions for all the

disruption to a minimum. countries you operate in can be complex, and difficult

to maintain. You may also need in-country teams
working in different time zones, which can place a
strain on resources and affect cohesion.

By using an API you can cover multiple countries

with a single integration, which is much simpler and
more cost-effective than acquiring and maintaining
parallel solutions.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

4. Ease of implementation

An e-invoicing solution Implementing e-invoicing solutions isn’t as simple

as selecting off-the-shelf products. Implementing
The actual integration of the e-invoicing technology
into your system should ideally be straightforward — a
should be easy to new solutions consists of two main steps to prepare well-documented API will allow this. If you don’t have
the ERP before it meets the end users. This can developers among your personnel, the provider of your
implement into your typically be handled by in-house administrators e-invoicing system should support you in finding the

existing business processes. or technical consultants. right resources or provide you with integration support.

First, existing systems need to be updated to meet Determine if implementation of the application is
country-specific rules as required by government easy for your system administrators and deploying
mandates. This might mean adding new data fields the new e-invoicing functionality in the main system
that weren’t needed before. In addition, all core data in is not too complicated. An application that contains a
your system should be reviewed and corrected (where wizard or another tool that can assist with selecting
appropriate). This stage, known as ‘data cleaning’ and the right mandates and understanding country-specific
‘data preparation,’ could be handled by selected IT requirements is preferred.
professionals or data project managers. If you don’t
have these capabilities in-house, your vendor should
be able to advise you and point you to external help.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

5. Hosting and security

An e-invoicing solution It’s essential to find an e-invoicing solution that

adheres to the regulatory requirements regarding data
should meet national security all cloud-based SaaS products must follow.

regulatory requirements The first step is to research multinational as well as

for cloud security. local hosting requirements: Saudi Arabia’s Cloud

First Policy or SecNumCloud certification in France
are examples of specific requirements, while for all
companies within the European Union, the EU’s data
storage and data protection rules apply. Identify all
the regulations relevant to your business, which for a
company that sells across borders means researching
the cloud regulations of each country you operate in.

Once you fully understand the mandatory

requirements and know which certifications are
optional but good to have, your next step is to seek out
an e-invoicing solution that meets these requirements.
If you can’t tell from the vendor’s website, contact them
and ask, as failing to meet data security requirements
can lead to noncompliance penalties.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

6. A
 ccess to the Peppol network
for convenient invoice exchange

It’s beneficial to use an Using the Peppol exchange network is a great way
to easily bill your business partners in many countries
The scale of the network is also important to note:
Peppol is active in 78 countries and has nearly
e-invoicing solution from and offers efficient and secure e-invoice transmission 500,000 users worldwide (including businesses and
among business partners. Navigating the different government authorities) as of 2022. It’s also constantly
a vendor that’s a certified e-invoicing solutions your clients might use is less of a expanding to include new territories, further increasing

Peppol provider. concern as long as everyone is on the Peppol network,

which facilitates the sending of e-invoices and other
convenience for cross-border businesses.

electronic documents. However, keep in mind that unlike country-specific

e-invoicing mandates or hosting requirements
But how? Even if you and your business partner use discussed above, in general, use of Peppol is not
different e-invoicing software, you can still exchange mandatory. Ensure your chosen e-invoicing solution
e-invoices if your e-invoicing solution offers access complies with local legal requirements before
to Peppol because the network uses the same looking into its Peppol status.
standardised format that all Peppol-certified
solutions support.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

7. Monitoring invoice status

An e-invoicing solution Missing an invoice can have consequences for any

business. An e-invoicing solution should offer the ability
should allow you to monitor to monitor the status of all your e-invoices — outgoing
and incoming — so you can respond accordingly to
the status of your sent and any issues.

received e-invoices. By having the status of your e-invoices displayed in

a clear and straightforward fashion, you can reduce
the risk of human error: e-invoices are less likely to be
overlooked and potential issues are clearly marked.
Resolving rejected or failed e-invoices quickly can
help optimise cash flow for your company.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

8. End-to-end indirect tax compliance

An e-invoicing solution Being able to transmit e-invoices is important — but

so is making sure the tax stated on every invoice is
When considering the tax compliance functions
of a solution, businesses may want to prioritise
should help automate correct. In many cases, e-invoice data is transmitted features that help them simplify their end-to-end
to tax authorities immediately — leaving no room for compliance processes.
tax compliance later corrections.

(in addition to complying To fully benefit from automation, businesses might

Note: In some countries, billing can be conducted on
paper, PDF, or as an e-invoice, with no obligation to
with e-invoicing rules). even consider a solution that’s able to collect data use a particular method — but relevant invoice data
from created invoices and automatically prepare tax (or complete invoices) must be reported to tax
return reports for filing. A quality e-invoicing solution authorities in real time. Check if the selected solution
will be able to calculate and apply the relevant VAT also complies with live reporting requirements, even
or GST rates to the amounts listed on a particular when no e-invoice is required.
e-invoice. It should also be able to add fees applicable
to cross-border sales, create e-invoices according to
the rules in the individual countries, transmit the
e-invoices to the recipients, and collect information for
final tax returns. As a complete solution, this can help
to automate compliance processes and significantly
increase productivity in finance and tax departments.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

9. H
 uman-readable: making
information accessible

An e-invoicing E-invoices, by definition, need to be in machine-

readable formats to facilitate automated invoice data
solution should offer transmission and processing. However, this efficiency
shouldn’t exclude human oversight.
a human-readable
version of the e-invoices E-invoicing data is interpreted and handled by
algorithms in structured formats. While it’s vital that
it sends and receives. invoices are available in these formats, members of
finance or tax departments should be able to access
and read the information within these invoices, too. To
ensure this, consider whether your selected e-invoicing
solution can transform incoming e-invoices into
human-readable formats like PDF.

Human-readable invoices allow for controls and

validations, making them accessible for oversight
by the finance team. By striking the right balance
between machine efficiency and human intuition, the
e-invoicing system can provide both a streamlined
process and the necessary human oversight, aligning
technological capability with human understanding
and accountability.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

10. Support to ensure

uninterrupted operations

An e-invoicing solution The level of customer support a vendor offers is

something you should always consider when procuring
The communication channels you can use to access
support are also important. If you can only speak to
should have responsive any new tools or technologies for your business. someone using a phone line with set hours, it may be
E-invoicing solutions are no different: to ensure smooth difficult to get help before the error starts to impact
and available operations throughout the business calendar, you need your business. For more accessible help, try to find a

customer support. to make sure your provider is ready to provide support

when you need it most.
vendor that provides email addresses, chatbots, FAQs,
and even social media channels that offer customer
support and advice.
The level of support you require will depend on the
size of your business (which is why scalability, as
always, is a crucial factor to consider when selecting an
e-invoicing solution). For example, if your employees
are based in multiple countries, support should be
available in multiple languages. Similarly, if you have
one finance department based in London and another
in New York, you should be able to access customer
support regardless of your time zone.
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10 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING AN E-INVOICING SOLUTION

Still looking for the perfect

e-invoicing solution?

With so many options available, finding a solution

that works for your business can be tough. Avalara
E-Invoicing and Live Reporting is designed to simplify
e-invoicing compliance now and in the future. With
the growing number of e-invoicing mandates in
Europe and beyond, finding an e-invoicing solution
that can meet international compliance standards
is more important than ever. To find out more,
contact Avalara today.

Tax rates, rules, and regulations change frequently.

Although we hope you'll find this information helpful,
this guide is for informational purposes only and
does not provide legal or tax advice.
Contact
Get in touch with Avalara today to find
out how we can support the growth of your
business, and direct you towards success.

+44 (0) 1273 022400

avalara.com/eu