PEPPOL IN EUROPE
E-invoicing in the Nederlands
The Netherlands is among the e-invoicing pioneers in Europe. According to official information, 40% of invoices were already being exchanged electronically in 2011.
In the Netherlands, B2G e-invoicing became partially mandatory in 2017. The obligation to receive and process e-invoices applies only to local government units and other contracting authorities, while the receipt and processing of e-invoices is mandatory for the central government.
Since January 1, 2019, local authorities have also had to be able to receive and process electronic invoices. The e-invoicing principles have been developed and implemented in the Netherlands as a sub-standard of the European standard, meaning that these guidelines are based on European standards but adapted to Dutch law. Therefore, this Dutch substandard is called NLCIUS (the European standard is CIUS). NLCIUS e-in-voices are supported by the Standardization Platform (STPE).
E-invoices can be sent to the public sector using the PEPPOL model. For central government bodies, there is a platform called DIGIPOORT for receipt of e-invoices, which is also connected to the PEPPOL network. This solution is used more often by suppliers with a large number of invoices. For smaller vendors, a web portal named Logius has been prepared to enter
and send invoices manually. The Dutch Ministry of Finance has released a letter outlining its strategic roadmap for implementing electronic invoicing and digital reporting obligations in alignment with the European Commission’s VAT in the Digital Age proposal. The government has expressed its intention to finalize legislation and complete the necessary parliamentary procedures by 2028, two years ahead of the proposed EU-wide start date of July 1, 2030.
The implementation strategy is structured into four distinct phases: policy research, legislative process, technical design, and operational rollout.
The initial research phase will address several key issues, including:
- The introduction of a mandatory e-invoicing regime for domestic B2B transactions;
- The adoption of compulsory digital reporting for those same transactions;
- The identification of the most appropriate technical infrastructure to support e-invoicing and real-time data reporting to the Dutch Tax Administration.
