E-invoicing in Estonia (Invoice Requirements Guide)

Last modified on 2023-07-27 in Countries

In accordance with the European standard EN 16931, Directive 55/2014/EU and VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) proposal, the Estonian Tax Administration has encouraged the use of electronic invoices.

Estonia is moving towards real-time reporting through the Reporting 3.0 project and has implemented B2G e-invoicing through a decentralized system. While B2B e-invoicing is not mandatory, there are many advantages that companies can benefit from.

Latest News

Through the Reporting 3.0 project, Estonia aims to transition to real-time reporting, but there is no news regarding B2B e-invoicing implementation.

Estonian E-Invoicing Timeline

• March 2017: Public entities must be able to receive and process e-invoices.

• April 2019: Mandatory B2G e-invoicing after Act on Amendments to the Accounting Act.

• July 2019: All invoices must be sent as e-invoices according to EN 16931.

E-Invoice Requirements

Invoices must be sent within 7 days of delivery and must contain the following characteristics:

• Invoice issuance date

• Identification number

• Supplier VAT number

• Suppliers and customers address

• Description of the goods or services exchanged

• Unit prices and details of discounts, if given

• The date of the supply, if it is different from the invoice issuance date

• The net, taxable value of the supply

• A breakdown of the VAT rate applied

• The total amount of VAT

• The gross, total amount of the invoice

RIK Decentralized Framework

In Estonia, e-invoicing differs from most countries like France and Spain. Instead of using a central platform, suppliers are mandated to directly send electronic invoices to the contracted public administration. They have the freedom to choose their preferred e-invoicing provider, such as DDD Invoices.

To use electronic billing, entities must be registered with the Center for Registries and Information Systems (RIK) under the Estonian Ministry of Justice. The RIK manages the infrastructure for delivering e-invoices to registered institutions and companies in a decentralized and flexible manner.

Benefits of E-Invoicing and Online Fiscalization

There are many benefits that entities can capitalize on:

• Automation - This can aid in reducing human error, speeding up the invoicing process, and allowing employees to focus on fewer routine tasks.

• Cost savings - E-invoicing can help save over 60% of the time and money spent on paper invoices.

• Compliance - Through utilizing a service provider such as DDD Invoices, companies do not have to create their own e-invoicing system and do not have to deal with the bureaucracy that comes with both of these processes.

DDD Invoices: An E-Invoicing Service Provider

DDD Invoices simplifies electronic invoicing in Estonia by providing a solution that integrates into your existing software through a single API. This allows companies to automate the invoicing process and satisfy VAT e-invoicing rules. We handle e-invoice creation, distribution, and archiving, allowing you and your clients to send and receive e-invoices seamlessly within your existing software.

We stay up to date with local tax regulations, so you don’t have to. Mandatory e-invoicing compliance and business expansion into Estonia will become a breeze. If we do not currently serve a territory where you require e-invoicing, let us know, and we can develop it in 2-3 weeks. This way, we can ensure VAT compliance at all times, wherever you do business.

FAQs about E-Invoicing in Estonia