Peppol Inbox in OrdoGrid: triage supplier invoices and credit notes

The Inbox tab of OrdoGrid's Peppol page is where supplier invoices and credit notes arrive when your company receives on Peppol. This guide is about working that Inbox as a queue: reading each row, giving every document one outcome, keeping track of what is still open, and closing the month.

To check one invoice line by line, send a response step by step and pay it, see receive, check and answer supplier Peppol invoices. To switch reception on, see set up Peppol in OrdoGrid. The Peppol pages are in French in every interface language: labels are quoted as on screen, with a translation in brackets.

What arrives in the Inbox, and what does not

What the law requires. Since 1 January 2026, a taxable person established in Belgium and identified there for VAT must be able to receive structured invoices, itself or through a provider (art. 53 §2bis VAT Code; scope and exceptions in the Belgian e-invoicing obligation). For in-scope purchases, the structured invoice is the only legal invoice. A PDF copy is optional, and you cannot refuse an invoice because no PDF is attached (FPS Finance B2B FAQ Q11 and Q12).

What OrdoGrid does. OrdoGrid collects received documents automatically and files each one under the OrdoGrid company whose Peppol address (the customer's electronic address in the invoice, normally 0208: plus the enterprise number) the supplier used. A document whose customer address matches no company that receives in OrdoGrid appears in no Inbox; OrdoGrid support can find it. Click Actualiser (refresh) to collect them immediately.

Before you triage: is the Inbox actually receiving?

An empty Inbox does not mean that nobody invoiced you. Read the banner above the list and the Statut tab first.

With reception active, OrdoGrid registers your Peppol ID: 0208: plus your ten-digit enterprise number (from the KBO/BCE, the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises), shown in Statut under Annuaire Peppol (Peppol Directory) → Identifiant Peppol. When shown, Access point de réception (receiving access point) reads Notre access point (our access point) if OrdoGrid receives for you, otherwise Autre prestataire (other provider). Directory listing is voluntary and can lag; to check that suppliers can reach you, use lookup.peppol.org.

Read a row and the document panel

Click a row to open it; this marks it read for everyone in the company. Informations shows the structured data: both parties with their VAT numbers, the dates, the Devise (currency), the lines and the Récapitulatif (totals, with Acomptes and Montant à payer when advances were paid). An invoice with an amount due adds a Paiement block with the supplier's IBAN, the payment reference (Communication) and a QR Code SEPA. If the block shows “Les informations bancaires du fournisseur ne sont pas disponibles” (supplier's bank details not available), take the IBAN from the supplier's PDF or ask the supplier, and verify it before paying. The PDF button shows the supplier's copy, XML downloads the structured invoice, and the paperclip lists other attachments. Réponses envoyées (responses sent) lists every response you sent for this document, with its code, note, date and transmission status.

Triage: one outcome for every document

Credit notes and negative invoices

In the list, a credit note carries the same Reçu badge and a positive amount, so it is easy to mistake for an invoice. In the panel it has no Paiement block, and the supplier's PDF names it as a credit note and quotes the invoice it corrects. If the supplier attached no PDF, the summary PDF from the row's download menu (PDF) is titled as a credit note, and the XML in the monthly ZIP normally names the invoice it corrects. Peppol also allows a negative invoice instead of a credit note, and receivers must handle both (BIS Billing §5.6): a negative invoice shows its amount with a minus sign and has no Paiement block either.

A credit note that corrects a structured invoice must itself be structured and sent on Peppol, and you cannot refuse it because it arrives in structured form (FPS specific FAQ Q5 and Q23). If you disagree with its content, take it up with the supplier. Also agree whether the supplier refunds you or offsets the amount against a later invoice. The VAT you deducted on the credited part must be repaid: your accountant reports it in grid 63 of your VAT return.

Duplicates and invoices that also arrive by email

Peppol cannot tell whether an invoice is a duplicate (FPS specific FAQ Q4). OrdoGrid stores each Peppol transmission as a row and does not compare supplier invoice numbers, so an invoice sent twice appears twice. Before paying, look for the same supplier and number in the Inbox and in your mailbox; book and pay the Peppol version once and keep any emailed PDF as a copy. Belgian Peppol service providers recommend sending only on Peppol when the recipient receives there, so you can ask suppliers to stop the extra email (a recommendation, not a legal ban).

An invoice meant for another company

In a group, a supplier sometimes invoices the wrong entity. FPS Finance is clear: an invoice not intended for you does not qualify for VAT deduction, should not be booked, and should be rejected, for example with code RE (specific FAQ Q28). The supplier must then correct it with a credit note (Q29) and reissue the invoice to the right company. That credit note will also reach your Inbox: file it with the rejected invoice. Each OrdoGrid company has its own Inbox, and one VAT number can receive in only one OrdoGrid company.

Which response code to send

Invoice Response

A Peppol message from buyer to supplier giving a business decision on one received invoice or credit note. It is separate from network delivery and from payment.

What the rules say. In standard Peppol BIS Billing, a buyer is not obliged to send an Invoice Response (Peppol BIS Invoice Response 3.2). RE and PD are final, and AP may only be followed by PD. OrdoGrid does not block a later code, so respect these rules yourself. RE, CA and UQ need a Code de raison (reason code) and a note.

A response cancels nothing in the supplier's books, and it reaches the supplier only if its software handles responses. For anything that matters, also email or call.

Keep track of open items without an approval workflow

Keep every open document unread, so the list shows what still needs work. To see the last code you sent, open the document and look under Réponses envoyées. Keep a short open-items list (supplier, number, code sent, date) in your month note.

The routine: daily, weekly, month-end

Every working day

1. Open Peppol → Inbox and check that the banner reads Mode : Envoi + réception. Click Actualiser.
2. Open the unread rows, oldest first, and give each one an outcome from the triage table.
3. Send the responses you need with Répondre.
4. If a document is still unresolved when you close it, click the envelope to mark it unread again.
5. Pay approved invoices before their Échéance, using the Paiement block or your own banking routine.

Every week

1. Open the documents you kept unread or listed as UQ, CA or RE, check Réponses envoyées, chase the supplier, and check that each RE has been followed by a credit note.
2. Compare the Inbox with PDF invoices received by email from suppliers not yet on Peppol, so nothing is booked twice.

At month-end

1. In Inbox, tick the rows dated in the month and click Download. Your browser saves a ZIP named peppol_inbox_ plus today's date (for example peppol_inbox_2026-11-02.zip, not the month you exported), with an xml/ folder (the structured invoices) and a pdf/ folder (the suppliers' PDFs).
2. Write a short note listing rejected documents, open queries, and which credit note corrects which invoice. Your responses are not in the ZIP.
3. Store the ZIP and the note in your archive and give them to your accountant; see accountant handover. If your plan includes Accounting, also justify each bank payment with the received document under Transactions.

Worked example: Dubois & Fils in October 2026

Dubois & Fils SRL, a joinery in Liège (enterprise number 0745.123.415, Peppol ID 0208:0745123415), receives in OrdoGrid. Its sister company Dubois Immo SRL (0761.234.521) is a separate OrdoGrid company that also receives there.

At month-end Dubois & Fils downloads the October ZIP (four XML files) and adds a note for its accountant. The accountant books F2026-0412 with €210.00 deductible VAT and NC-2026-0031 with €21.00 VAT to repay, so the net purchase is €900.00 excluding VAT and €189.00 VAT, and the net cash paid is €1,210.00 − €121.00 = €1,089.00. Invoice 2026-0877 and its credit note are kept as evidence but neither booked nor deducted.

Evidence to keep

What the law requires. Keep received invoices for seven years from 1 January of the year after their issue (art. 60 VAT Code, as amended by the Law of 18 December 2025); invoices linked to VAT revision on immovable property may need 15 or 25 years. Authenticity, integrity and legibility must last the whole period. FPS Finance approves no archiving system and strongly recommends keeping the original XML (FPS Finance; details in invoice archiving in Belgium).

What OrdoGrid does. Received documents stay in the Inbox with their XML, attachments and your responses, but OrdoGrid is not a legal archive and guarantees no retention period.

What we recommend keeping for each month:

• the ZIP with the XML files and the suppliers' PDFs; for a document without a PDF, add OrdoGrid's summary PDF from the row's download menu if you want a readable copy;
• your month note with every response sent (code, date, reason), because responses are not in the ZIP;
• emails with suppliers about rejections, queries and credit notes;
• payment proof for each invoice paid.

FAQ

Why does the Inbox say reception is not available?

Reception is not active for this company in OrdoGrid (Mode : Envoi seul). The message appears whether another provider receives for you or nobody does. Click Activer la réception: the Réception Peppol page tells you which. If another provider receives for you, keep using it or have it deregister you before activating reception in OrdoGrid.

Is the PDF or the structured data the legal invoice?

The structured data received on Peppol. The PDF is an optional copy, and you cannot reject an invoice because no PDF is attached (FPS B2B FAQ Q11 and Q12). If the two differ, ask the supplier to correct the invoice.

My supplier still sends PDF invoices by email. What should I do?

Ask it to send on Peppol to your enterprise number. While it is not ready you may refuse the PDF, but if you accept it you keep your VAT deduction (FPS B2B FAQ Q7). Never book it a second time if it later arrives on Peppol.

How do I tell a credit note from an invoice in the Inbox?

The list shows both with the Reçu badge and a positive amount. Open the row: a credit note has no Paiement block, and the supplier's PDF names it and the invoice it corrects. Without a supplier PDF, the summary PDF from the row's download menu is titled as a credit note.

Can I delete a document from the Inbox?

No. Received documents cannot be deleted in OrdoGrid. Reject a document that is not yours and keep it, with your response, as evidence.

Does marking a document as read approve it?

No. Read and unread are only markers, shared by the whole company. OrdoGrid has no approval workflow or purchase ledger; an AP response is optional and tells the supplier, not your accountant.