Peppol inbound inbox: triage supplier invoices

A Peppol inbound inbox is the reception queue where Access Point-delivered supplier invoices land for matching, exception handling, and booking. Under the Belgian mandate the structured document is the invoice. A PDF preview is a human view only. Your job is triage, not waiting for an emailed PDF.

Example

Atelier Nord opens the inbox: timber yard invoice F2026-440 matches supplier 0208:0987654321, amounts match the PO, and finance books it. A second document has an unknown sender ID. Staff create the supplier from the enterprise number, rematch, then book.

One job: get supplier invoices booking-ready

Under the Belgian e-invoicing obligation, domestic B2B invoices arrive as structured Peppol documents, not as email PDFs. The inbound inbox is where those documents land after your Access Point receives them. Your job is triage: recognise the supplier, decide booking readiness, and clear exceptions before payment.

The XML is the authoritative invoice. A PDF preview, if present, is a human view only. See PDF versus structured invoice.

Daily triage workflow

1. Confirm delivery - Document appears with sender participant ID, invoice number, amounts, and delivery timestamp.
2. Match the supplier - Map scheme 0208 enterprise number to your supplier master data.
3. Check booking blockers - Wrong entity, unknown supplier, duplicate invoice number, missing VAT breakdown, or amount mismatch vs PO.
4. Route or book - Approve for accounting, hold for clarification, or reject with a structured IMR response when your process uses it.
5. Archive with audit trail - Keep Peppol delivery metadata with the booked document.

Failure modes that stall booking

Silent empty inbox. Suppliers cannot deliver if you are not discoverable. Confirm Peppol registration publishes receive capability for BIS Billing. No inbox traffic often means receive is not published, not "no invoices exist."

Wrong legal entity. Multi-company groups sometimes share an Access Point poorly. Invoice reaches the network endpoint but lands in the wrong tenant. Treat as orphaned until routing rules match KBO/BCE numbers.

Duplicate under a new Peppol ID. Same supplier, new Access Point or corrected participant ID, looks "unknown." Match on VAT/enterprise number, not only the previous Peppol endpoint nickname.

Credit note mixed into invoice queue. Structured credit notes are separate document types. Booking an absolute amount without checking document type creates inverted postings.

PDF-first habit. Staff wait for an emailed PDF and ignore the structured inbox. Under the mandate, the Peppol document is the one to process.

Peppol inbound inbox

The reception queue where Access Point-delivered supplier invoices appear for matching, exception handling, and booking.

FAQ

What is a Peppol inbound inbox?

The reception queue where Access Point-delivered supplier invoices appear for matching, exception handling, and booking.

Why is the inbox empty?

Often receive is not published. Confirm registration advertises BIS Billing receive. No traffic usually means suppliers cannot deliver, not that no invoices exist.

Is the PDF the invoice?

No. The structured document is authoritative. A PDF preview is a human view only.

What if the sender ID is unknown?

Match on VAT or enterprise number, create or fix the supplier record, then rematch. Do not ignore the structured document while waiting for email.

How do I handle a credit note in the invoice queue?

Treat it as a separate document type. Booking an absolute amount without checking type inverts postings.

Related reading

• Share your Peppol ID with suppliers
• Peppol IMR invoice responses
• Invoice archiving in Belgium
• VAT exemption and receiving Peppol