Eight Considerations for Developing an E-Invoicing Capability

The age of e-invoicing is upon us as more businesses adopt digital systems to issue, transmit and receive invoice information in a structured format that enables automatic processing. Tax authorities are the primary driving force behind this trend; they are expanding or introducing e-invoicing and interconnected reporting requirements to help reduce tax evasion, accelerate access to tax-relevant information and increase the efficiency of their own audit processes. Organizations can also derive benefits from e-invoicing, such as improved operational efficiency, enhanced data accuracy and better business relationships with trading partners.

When you are developing an e-invoicing capability within your business, here are eight key considerations for planning and implementing your strategy.

1. Define the scope of the initiative: Think about capabilities you may need in the future, as well as your short-term needs for mandated e-invoicing in certain countries. Keep your business model and strategy clearly in mind as you set goals and plan your next steps.
2. Decide which systems you want to include: You may be using different source systems for different customers, transaction types, suppliers or markets. Ensure that your e-invoice automation solution covers all these inputs.  
3. Identify and align your stakeholders: A successful e-invoicing initiative calls for coordination among a wide range of stakeholders, including IT, procurement, accounts payable, accounts receivable, finance & accounting, compliance and legal teams. Secure alignment on data requirements with all stakeholders in the early stages of planning in order to minimize post-implementation disruptions to the processes.
4. Review regulatory requirements across geographies: Consider all the countries where you are doing business today, as well as markets where you are planning to expand. You’ll likely want to choose a service provider that’s up to date with legislation in the regions where you operate and may expand to.
5. Think about security and data protection: Choose a service provider that ensures end-to-end encryption of your e-invoices, protecting sensitive data for your company, customers and suppliers throughout the distribution process.
6. Understand your archiving needs: Archiving requirements for data and invoices vary across jurisdictions and markets. Review your organization’s needs and choose a service partner that can cover them now and in the future.
7. Maintain the ability to handle non-digital invoices: The e-invoicing transition is unfolding quickly, but some customers and suppliers may continue to use paper or other forms of digital invoices for some time. Make sure that your strategy includes this non-electronic commercial requirement.
8. Prepare for scale: Even if your current needs are limited, you can expect more countries to introduce mandatory e-invoicing requirements and you can expect more customers and suppliers to request usage of e-invoicing and the related variety of associated document types going forward.

E-invoicing adoption is expected to grow exponentially in the coming years. Businesses need a solution that simplifies compliance while enabling efficiency at scale. Vertex e-Invoicing provides a single, scalable solution for creating, exchanging and clearing invoices globally. With real-time tax reporting, automated compliance updates and seamless ERP integration, it helps businesses stay ahead of regulatory changes and streamline operations without disruption.

Learn more about how Vertex e-Invoicing can support you in developing your e-invoicing capability and simplify your global VAT compliance by visiting our product page.