Worldwide tax guides /United Kingdom E-invoicing & Digital Reporting GuideUnited KingdomE-Invoicing & Reporting

United Kingdom E-invoicing & Digital Reporting Guide

E-InvoicingDigital Reporting

United Kingdom Electronic Invoicing and Digital Reporting Requirements

Overview
Indirect tax control regimePost audit
E-Invoicing/CTC ModelB2G (Healthcare) e-invoicing, e-Ordering and shipping notes
Obligation statusLive
Governing entityHM Revenue & Customs
Infrastructure/platformPeppol
Peppol connectivityNo
Scope
TaxpayersSuppliers of the National Health Services (NHS)
Domestic TransactionsB2B: No, B2C: No, B2G: No, except Supplies to NHS
Cross-border TransactionsExport - no, Import - no (Can be required under Terms of supply with NHS)
DocumentsInvoices, Credit Notes, Orders
Supplier-side requirements (AR)
Format(s) while sending to the platformNo explicit requirements
Format for exchange with buyer/recipientPeppol BIS or other structured formats accepted by NHS
eSignature/SealNot mandated
Buyer-side requirements (AP)
Receiving document in electronic formatMandatory for NHS Supplies
Validation requiredYes
Acknowledgement of receiptYes
Response to the document received (Accept or reject)Possible
Storage
Archiving AbroadAllowed (mutual assistance/data protection requirements)
Archiving Period6 years after end of accounting year
Other Digital Reporting Obligations
SAF-T or other accounting filingsMTD (Making Tax Digital)

Questions About E-Invoicing in the United Kingdom?

Contact our experts

Background

E-invoicing is not mandatory in the UK for B2B, B2C and neither for B2G transactions, with one exception, however, there are formal legal requirements relating to the issuing, receiving and storing of e-invoices.

With effect from March 31, 2022, all invoices submitted to National Health Services Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) should be e-invoices.

What Types of Businesses Does This Apply to?

With effect March 31, 2022, all invoices submitted to National Health Services Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) must be submitted electronically via the NHS’s e-invoicing platform, or via Peppol

Governmental Body Responsible for E-invoicing in the United Kingdom

Penalties for Not Adhering to the United Kingdom's E-invoice Mandates

  • If one has issued and stored invoices electronically, but have failed to meet HMRC’s conditions, then he will have to issue paper invoices until HMRC is satisfied that the system is acceptable.
  • If the taxpayer persistently fails to meet the conditions, he may be liable to a penalty.

What does the e-invoicing process in the United Kingdom look like?

In General, Trading taxpayers have the autonomy to agree on the format and method of exchanging invoices.

Electronic invoicing is the transmission and storage of invoices in an electronic format without duplicate paper documents. The electronic format may be a structured format such as XML or an unstructured format such as PDF.

Is SAF-T Needed in the United Kingdom?

No.

Questions About E-Invoicing in the United Kingdom?

Contact our experts

E-Invoicing & Global Tax Automation with Fonoa

One way to comply with Digital Reporting Requirements in the United Kingdom is to use a provider like Fonoa.

With Fonoa you can:

  • Have one integration for your global needs, including the United Kingdom
  • Save time and money by automatically cleaning your data to minimize errors and manual work
  • Utilize our validation mechanisms to ensure reporting accuracy, data completeness, full control, and compliance
  • Rest assured that transactions are successfully reported or queued for internal investigation with our retry mechanisms
  • Get full visibility with our dashboards by filtering criteria, analyzing granular transaction data, and quickly importing /exporting information

See how Fonoa can help

Contact our experts

Learn how Fonoa automates your tax and compliance workflows for greater control and scale

Let’s talk