Check and understand e-invoices: a guide for workshops

Sending an invoice as a PDF by email feels digital, but that alone does not make it an e-invoice. What matters is a structured, machine-readable data set that accounting software can process without retyping.

Received a file and want to know what it contains? The quick check below processes it entirely in your browser.

How can you recognize a real e-invoice?

Two variants are particularly common in Germany:

• XRechnung: a pure XML file based on UBL or UN/CEFACT CII. It is difficult to read without a viewer, but unambiguously structured for software.
• ZUGFeRD / Factur-X: a PDF/A-3 file with an embedded XML invoice. The visible PDF is a representation; the structured XML data is the authoritative part.

A plain PDF, scan or photo contains no reliably structured invoice data. Since 2025, Germany therefore classifies it as an “other invoice,” not an e-invoice. The German Federal Ministry of Finance explains this in its current FAQ.

What the quick check examines

The checker recognizes UBL Invoice, UBL CreditNote and UN/CEFACT Cross Industry Invoice. For PDFs, it looks for an embedded XML file used by ZUGFeRD and Factur-X. Where available, it shows:

• invoice number and issue date
• seller and buyer
• currency, amount payable and tax amount
• technical format and recognizable profile

Missing details are highlighted. This is a useful first plausibility check, but not proof that every required field, code list and calculation rule is correct.

Which deadlines apply in Germany?

For transactions between domestic businesses, the current timeline is:

Exceptions include small-value invoices up to €250, certain tax-exempt services and invoices issued by small-business taxpayers. Small-business taxpayers must still be able to receive e-invoices. See the Federal Ministry of Finance FAQ for details and special cases.

What about Austria?

In Austria, federal-government suppliers have had to submit structured electronic invoices since 2014, using e-Rechnung.gv.at or PEPPOL. According to the official Business Service Portal, there is currently no equivalent general requirement for states, municipalities and cities.

A sound e-invoicing process is nevertheless useful today for workshops serving German business customers, public-sector clients or cross-border jobs.

How to prepare your business

1. Define receipt. Decide which address receives e-invoices and who handles rejected or faulty files.
2. Maintain invoice data. Company names, addresses, tax IDs, payment details, line items and tax rates must be complete in your system.
3. Test generation and validation. Check sample invoices with a full EN 16931/XRechnung validator, not only by looking at them.
4. Keep the original file. The XML is decisive for structured and hybrid invoices. Do not archive only a generated PDF view.
5. Involve your accountant. Agree on exports, handover and correction workflows early.

Avoid a second invoicing process

The best solution creates the PDF and structured format from the same job and invoice data. With SimpliServ, the workflow therefore remains the same: complete the job, create the invoice and provide the appropriate format — including number ranges, record locking and accounting handover.

Conclusion

An e-invoice is not a prettier PDF; it is processable accounting data. The quick check above recognizes many common files and displays their key contents. Before production use, complete technical and business-rule validation should still run automatically in your invoicing system.