Belgian e-invoicing readiness checklist for 2026
Operational checklist to go live on Belgian B2B structured e-invoicing: Peppol identity, send, receive, validation, and archive.
Updated
- Belgium
Readiness, not scope
This is a go-live checklist for teams that already know they fall under the Belgian B2B e-invoicing obligation. It does not redefine who is in scope. Use it before cutover and again each quarter.
Treat every line as binary: done with evidence, or open with an owner.
1. Identity and reachability
| Check | Done when | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Legal entity and VAT ID confirmed | Company data matches official registers | Company card snapshot |
| Peppol participant registered | ID published via your Access Point | Registration confirmation |
| Findable in Directory | Buyers can find you by VAT / enterprise number | Successful participant lookup |
| Peppol ID shared inbound | Recurring suppliers have your ID | Notice sent to AP contacts |
- Peppol participant ID
The network address (scheme + identifier) that Access Points use to route documents to your organisation.
2. Send capability
| Check | Done when |
|---|---|
| In-scope B2B customers flagged | Billing can filter who needs Peppol |
| Structured invoice creation live | EN 16931 / Peppol BIS from production data |
| Pre-send validation on | Rules block bad sends (EN 16931 and UBL) |
| Delivery status monitored | Sent / delivered / failed visible to finance |
| Credit notes on same channel | Corrections are not PDF-only workarounds |
| No silent PDF fallback | PDF is companion only for mandated B2B (PDF vs structured) |
Pilot: send at least three real invoices to willing Peppol customers and resolve every failure before full rollout.
3. Receive capability
| Check | Done when |
|---|---|
| Inbound inbox active | Documents land in a Peppol inbound inbox |
| AP routing defined | Who posts, who rejects, who escalates |
| Test receive completed | At least one supplier invoice booked without re-keying |
| Franchise / exempt cases handled | Purchase side ready even if outbound differs (franchise receive) |
4. Validation and exceptions
- Name an owner for failed validations (IT vs finance).
- Keep a short rejection playbook: fix data, resend, or issue a structured credit note.
- Log channel exceptions for 90 days after go-live.
- Rehearse a "buyer not on Peppol" path so it does not become the default for in-scope B2B.
5. Archive and audit trail
| Check | Done when |
|---|---|
| Structured original retained | UBL/XML kept for the legal retention period |
| PDF stored as copy only | Rendered from the same data, never a second source of truth |
| Delivery evidence retained | Statuses and validation reports exportable |
| Accountant access | Advisor can retrieve originals without mailbox archaeology |
Cutover day
- Peppol ID live and searchable
- First production send succeeded
- First production receive posted
- Sales/AP briefed on B2B vs out-of-scope channels (B2B vs B2C)
- PDF-only fallback disabled for mandated flows
- Owner named for weekly exception review