e-faktura i Finland: lov 241/2019, EN 16931 og tjekliste til implementering

An e-invoice is an electronic invoice sent in a structured format, som overføres direkte fra avsender's system to the recipient's system without manual processing.

An e-invoice is not the same as an email invoice or a PDF invoice. Key difference:

• E-invoice: structured data (e.g., Finvoice, TEAPPSXML, Peppol BIS), machine-readable
• PDF invoice: image of an invoice, requires manual processing or OCR reading
• Email invoice: PDF attached to an email – does not meet e-invoice requirements

The Act on Electronic Invoicing for Contracting Entities and Businesses (241/2019) came into force on 1 April 2020. It is based on EU Directive 2014/55/EU.

Key content of the law:

• Invoices sent to the public sector (state, municipalities, joint municipal authorities) must be e-invoices
• The recipient must be able to receive e-invoices compliant with the EU standard (EN 16931)
• A business has the right to request an e-invoice from another business
• The law does not yet mandate all privat sektor invoicing to be e-invoices, but the trend is clear.

EN 16931 is the common EU standard for the data content of an e-invoice. It defines what information an e-invoice must contain and in what format.

In practice, EN 16931 means that a Finnish e-invoice is compatible with a German, French, or Spanish system – as long as both adhere to the same standard.

In Finland, the most common e-invoice formats are Finvoice (used by banks) and TEAPPSXML (used by operators). Both are EN 16931 compliant.

1. Choose faktureringsprogramvare that supports e-fakturering (e.g., Eemel Invoicing)
2. Obtain an e-invoice address (OVT ID or Peppol ID)
3. Sign an agreement with an e-invoice operator (or use the faktureringsprogramvare's built-in operator)
4. Update your invoice templates to include all statutory information
5. "Test sending e-invoices to a few customers"
6. "Notify your e-invoice address to customers and update it in TIEKE's e-invoice address directory"

• "E-invoice address not registered: customer cannot find your address"
• "Mandatory information missing from invoice template: invoice recipient rejects it"
• "VAT identifier not marked correctly: in EU trade, an incorrect identifier causes problems"
• "PDF invoice mistaken for e-invoice: PDF in an email is not an e-invoice"
• "Operator agreement missing: invoice does not move in the operator network"

"A five-person renovation company received its first public sector contract from the municipality. The invoice had to be sent as an e-invoice – otherwise, it would not be accepted."

"The company adopted Eemel Invoicing, which has built-in e-fakturering:"

1. "An e-invoice address was automatically created during implementation"
2. "The invoice was sent directly to the municipality's system in Finvoice format"
3. "Payment was received in the account in 7 days (previously 21 days with paper invoices)"

"Now the company sends all its invoices as e-invoices – even to private customers via online banking."

"This article is general in nature and is not legal advice."