Peppol BIS (Business Interoperability Specification) are a set of technical specifications designed to enable seamless and interoperable document exchange within the Peppol network. They define the structure, format and validation rules for different types of business documents (also known as Peppol message types).
Examples of Peppol message types are invoices, credit notes, responses, etc. These message types are XML files and use the Peppol ID as the organization's address.
Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 is the current specification for electronic invoices and credit notes and describes the required data elements and format of these documents. This ensures that Peppol invoices and credit notes are sent and processed accurately within the Peppol network.
Invoice Number
Invoice Date
Payment Due Date
Order Number/Contract Reference
Seller Information (Name, ID, VAT number, Country, etc.)
Buyer Information (Name, ID, VAT number, Country, etc.)
Beneficiary Information
Payment Instructions
Information about Surcharges or Fees
Invoice Line Information
Invoice Total
VAT Percentage
In Belgium, the order number is a mandatory field when sending an electronic invoice to the government via Mercurius . In contrast, you must include your customer's e-mail address and language in your structured electronic invoice when sending invoices to your customers via Hermes. Read our article on Hermes here.
In the Netherlands, it is necessary to include the invoice number as a reference number in your structured electronic invoice when sending a credit note.
UBL stands for Universal Business Language, a standard language for exchanging electronic documents, such as invoices. It is a file in XML format and has .xml as its file extension.
Through the Peppol network you can, in addition to invoices, also exchange response messages with your customers or your suppliers. There are two types of response messages, namely IMR and MLR.
Hermes is a web application developed on behalf of BOSA. Thanks to Hermes, suppliers can send structured electronic invoices to all their Belgian clients, even those who cannot yet process these electronic invoices automatically.
To send an invoice through Peppol, create an account with a Peppol Access Point provider. You know your customer's Peppol identification (PEPPOL ID). You provide your provider with the structured electronic invoice. Your provider delivers your e-invoice to your customer's Peppol Access Point. Your client receives your invoice.
As the name suggests, a Peppol Access Point is your gateway to the Peppol network. It's a service you purchase from a service provider, such as IxorDocs (a certified Peppol Access Point). By using a certified Peppol Access Point, you can easily and securely send and receive e-invoices to and from any organization connected to the Peppol network, regardless of country or industry.
A Peppol ID is a unique number combination just like your phone number in the telecom network. It consists of a Scheme ID (country code) and Participant ID (organization number). In Belgium mainly the KBO number is used as the organization number, in the Netherlands the KVK number. With this number, your organization can be found in the Peppol network and you can safely and efficiently receive and send e-invoices.
Peppol is a secure, international network that allows companies to exchange electronic documents with anyone registered in the network. Peppol stands for Pan-European Public Procurement On-Line.
E-invoicing is the process of automatically creating, sending, receiving and processing invoices in a structured digital format, such as UBL (Universal Business Language). These digital invoices can be transferred directly and securely from one financial system to another, minimizing human intervention and errors. E-invoicing is increasingly becoming the norm in Europe, governments and European institutions are taking strategic initiatives to encourage e-invoicing.
