The Challenge
With the mandatory introduction of electronic invoices for B2B transactions in Germany, many companies face the task of converting their invoicing to the ZUGFeRD format. A trading company needed a solution that integrates seamlessly into its existing inventory management system and generates ZUGFeRD-compliant invoices fully automatically.
The challenge: every invoice has to work both as a visual PDF for people and as machine-readable XML for automated processing, in one single file.
Our Solution
We developed a ZUGFeRD invoicing module that automates the entire process:
PDF/A-3 Generation
Creation of well-designed invoice PDFs in PDF/A-3 format:
- Company logo, layout templates and custom text blocks
- Automatic line item calculation with tax breakdown
- Early payment discount terms and payment deadlines
XML Embedding
Generation and embedding of the structured invoice data:
- ZUGFeRD 2.3 in the Comfort and Extended profiles
- Compliant with the European standard EN 16931
- Compatible with the German XRechnung standard
- Complete seller/buyer information including VAT ID
Validation
Automatic check of every generated invoice:
- Schema validation against official ZUGFeRD schemas
- Plausibility check of amounts and tax calculation
- Logging of faulty invoices with a detailed report
The Result
- 100% ZUGFeRD compliance for all generated invoices
- Automated sending by email directly from the system
- Time savings of approx. 3 hours per day in accounting
- Future-proof for the e-invoicing mandate in effect from 2025