E-invoicing is an electronic invoice sent electronically over the internet. Rather than being paper-based, they can be easily integrated into customers’ account payable systems.
Electronic invoices simply mean a scanned form of a printed invoice, these electronic invoices have varying standards from country to country. The standards come from EDI standards listing the rules for how electronic invoices are created and transferred.
E-invoices are structured, tax compliant, authenticated invoice data that is issued from a supplier to a buyer and this is the invoice relevant to tax auditors or authorities.
What are the benefits of e-invoicing?
Electronic Invoicing comes with a large number of benefits such as:
- Reduced costs
- Faster payments
- Removal of manual processing
- Increased accuracy
- Betere inzichtelijkheid
- Improved compliance
This is just to name a few. However, one of the most notable benefits of e-invoicing is the level of integration you and all organizations within your business require.
What is global e-invoicing?
This is a commonly searched term ‘Global e-Invoicing’ here’s what it means. Due to government regulations, internationally active companies are obliged to create and send their invoices electronically, yet every country has differing legal obligations. This causes international e-invoicing to become quite complex, as in all 65 countries e-invoicing regulations have subtle differences with the way in which the data is collected, how this must be collected and what requirements need to be met by a digital signature.
Which operating model is best for your e-invoicing?
Many say that converting to e-invoicing is the most efficient option but every business may differ. In turn, every company should analyse whether their current level of e-invoicing projects brings the expected benefits.
Here are a couple of options for operating models regarding e-invoicing and what question you’ll have to answer to know if it’s right for you.
- Hosting: Is the e-invoicing solution located in your own data centre or does the operation need to be outsourced to a data centre operator?
- Operating Mode: Does the solution need to be operated as a licensed product on-premises? Or as a cloud-based service on a pay-per-use basis?
- Standards and Formats: What e-invoicing standards and formats do I need now and in the future?
This should help narrow down what model is best for you regarding e-invoicing if you have any questions please get in touch with B2Be today.
What are the types of invoices?
- Standard Invoice: This is the most common form of invoice and is flexible to fit most industries and billing cycles. This is issued by a business and submitted to a client
- Commercial Invoice: This is issued by a business for goods that it sells to customers internationally
- Timesheet: A timesheet invoice is used when a business or employee is billed based on the hours worked and their rate of pay
- Recurring Invoice: These are common among IT businesses that charge their clients the same amount each month for a service. Recurring invoices are used for businesses that charge clients the same amount for their services periodically
- Pro Forma Invoice: This is an estimated invoice that a company sends to a client before providing services, providing customers with an estimated cost of the work to be completed
- Debit Memo: Also known as a debit invoice, this is issued by a business that to make a slight adjustment to an existing bill
- Mixed Invoice: This is the combination of credit and debit charges on a single invoice and the amount can be expressed as either a positive or negative number
- Interim Invoice: This is used for large project billing where terms have been agreed that may include multiple payments
Is an invoice a receipt?
Simply, an invoice is a request for payment whereas a receipt is proof of payment. Customers commonly receive invoices before they pay for a product and then receive receipts after they pay.
Both are either paper or electronic slips detailing purchase transactions and therefore are not interchangeable.
Elements each invoice must include:
An important thing to note is what must be included in an invoice either electronic or paper. We have comprehensively listed these below:
- The word Invoice
- Seller’s name and address, contact details, and company registration number
- Buyers name and address
- Date: issue date, payment due date, and delivery date
- A unique invoice reference number
- Description of services or products
- The total amount charged with Tax Information
- Available payment methods, such as bank account number and also a reference code to identify the customer
Automate and streamline your organization’s e-invoicing environments and improve processes, increase throughput, and therefore allow accounts payable and accounts receivable environments to focus on adding value. Contact B2BE today!
Learn more about B2BE’s e-Invoicing solution.
About B2BE
B2BE delivers electronic supply chain solutions globally, helping organisations to better manage their supply chain processes, providing greater levels of visibility, auditability and control. We’re driven by a passion for what we do, inspired by innovation, and underpinned by a wealth of knowledge. With over 20+ years of experience, the B2BE teams operate worldwide.
Ga voor meer informatie naar www.b2be.com.