Next time you receive an invoice from us for the user fees of your mite, you will not notice any difference, visually. We will continue to send it to you as a PDF via email.

However, the PDF will be smarter: in addition to the visible part, a small XML file is embedded that contains the invoice data in a machine-readable format.

ZUGFeRD / Factur-X is the name of this hybrid format. It offers the best of two worlds: humans can continue to view and check PDF invoices as usual with all common PDF readers. But additionally, the data is also available in a structured, standardized format. Accounting software like DATEV and various invoicing tools can thus process such invoices automatically.

eInvoicing – a collective term for electronic invoices according to standards like ZUGFeRD, Factur-X, or XRechnung – will become mandatory in Germany for B2B in several stages, starting in 2025. This is based on the EU Directive 2014/55 and thus affects all European countries. Further information on the topic of eInvoice obligations in Germany and a timeline can be found, for example, at the IHK (in German language). Machines ready to go!

Julia in Inside out