E-invoicing – fast and safe

What is an e-invoice?

An e-invoice is a machine-readable (structured) invoice that is sent directly to a financial administration program or an online bank. E-invoice is a quick, easy and secure way to transmit invoices to customers. E-invoice provides a basis for real-time and automated financial administration. By automating your company’s financial administration, you can make your financial processes more efficient, improve data quality, reduce errors and eliminate costly manual work.

A service is always needed to process e-invoices. Companies usually receive e-invoices via their electronic recycling and archiving programs for purchase invoices. Consumers usually receive e-invoices via their own online banks.

An e-invoice can also be displayed on the computer screen as a document resembling a paper invoice. E-invoices are usually sent via the invoicer company’s financial administration program, but an enterprise resource planning system or an e-invoicing website can also be used.

Invoices sent as email attachments in pdf or image format are not e-invoices.

Why start using e-invoices?

Benefits of sending e-invoices:

  • The time spent on processing payments is reduced, because the recipient of the e-invoice can automatically transfer the payment reference and account number to the payment order.
  • Required statutory invoice elements can always be found on the invoice.
  • You can sell products and services also to organisations that require e-invoicing.

Benefits of receiving e-invoices:

  • Save time and effort: unnecessary work steps are eliminated, freeing up time for the company’s core business.
  • The number of errors from invoice processing is reduced.

The E-invoice Act obliges the use of e-invoicing in public procurement

E-invoicing is regulated in the act on electronic invoicing of procurement entities and entrepreneurs (241/2019, E-invoice Act). The purpose of the act is to make the financial administration of public sector and private sector actors more efficient by creating a framework for automated invoice processing. Under the Electronic Invoicing Act, contracting entities must accept and process e-invoices in public contracts if the invoices comply with the European standard.

  • If you want to send e-invoices, do this

    If your company already uses financial administration software, such as

    • an enterprise resource planning system (ERP)
    • accounting firm software, or
    • invoicing software

    ask your service provider whether your software can process e-invoices. Follow the service provider’s instructions on how to start using the service.

    Tip! Go through the checklist below to ensure trouble-free e-invoicing from the start.

    If your company does not have suitable software for sending e-invoices

    You can commission your own invoicing program or use a service provided by the buyer.

    Method 1. Commission software that meets your company’s needs. There are several options available:

    • Check whether there are any enterprise resource planning systems (ERPs) for your line of business that can also process e-invoices.
    • Check whether your accounting firm has invoicing software that your company can use.
    • Learn about other invoicing software on the market and choose one that suits your needs

    See detailed information in the checklist for e-invoicing, which can be found below on this page.

    Method 2. Use the e-invoicing portal provided by the customer

    Sending an e-invoice

    1. Check that the customer accepts e-invoices and Also check the customer’s invoicing details.

    You can check the e-invoicing information of your Finnish customer in the e-invoicing address registry verkkolaskuosoite.fi. Note that large organisations may have several e-invoicing addresses. If necessary, contact the customer to check the invoicing details.
    Basic information for users of the e-invoice address registry can be found at Using the E-invoice Address Registry

    2. Complete the e-invoice using the software

    Follow the service provider’s instructions.
    By using e-invoicing that complies with the European standard, you can ensure that all mandatory information is entered on the invoice. Read more about the information required on the invoice at Requirements for the information content on an invoice

    3. Send the e-invoice

    Your e-invoicing operator is responsible for ensuring that the invoice is sent to the recipient in the technically correct format.

  • To receive e-invoices, do this

    If your company already uses financial administration software, such as

    • an enterprise resource planning system (ERP)
    • accounting firm software, or
    • other software for processing purchase invoices

    ask your service provider whether your software can process e-invoices.
    Follow the service provider’s instructions on how to start using the service.

    If your company does not have the right software:

    Commission software that meets your company’s needs. There are several options available:

    • Find out if there is an enterprise resource planning system (ERP) suitable for your line of business and operations that would also process e-invoices
    • Check whether your accounting firm has software for processing purchase invoices that your company can use.
    • Learn about other purchase invoice software on the market and choose one that suits your needs

    See the online invoicing checklist below, so that online invoicing is as smooth as possible for you from the start.

    Receiving e-invoices

    1. Make sure that your purchase invoice service supports invoices compliant with the European Standard. You cannot require other types of purchase invoices based on the E-invoice act.

    Tell the invoicer that you only accept e-invoices and that they must be in accordance with the European Standard*.

    Make sure that your e-invoicing details can be found in the e-invoice address registry verkkolaskuosoite.fi

    Tip! Also add your e-invoicing details to your own website. Your invoicing details should include at least the following:

    • business ID
    • e-invoicing address (EDI ID)
    • operator ID of the e-invoicing operator

    *Read more about invoices compliant with the European Standard in the e-invoicing checklist below.

    2. Receiving and processing purchase invoices

    Your e-invoicing operator is responsible for ensuring that the e-invoices are entered in your company’s software in the correct format.
    Follow the service provider’s instructions.

  • Entrepreneur's checklist for e-invoices

    1. Check whether the software meets your company’s needs.

    The choice depends on factors such as the number of invoices, parties invoiced, and archiving and reporting needs.

    1. Check whether the software also includes a connection to the e-invoicing operator.

    The e-invoicing operator transmits
    – your e-invoices to your customers and
    – the e-invoices sent to your company to your company’s software.

    • If the software does not include a connection to the e-invoicing operator, you must conclude an agreement with the e-invoicing operator.
    • You can have an agreement with more than one e-invoicing operator. You may need more than one e-invoicing operator if you use more than one program to send and receive invoices.
    • Read more about e-invoice operators: E-invoice operators

    1. Always remember to make sure that the software you use supports e-invoicing compliant with the European Standard (i.e., e-invoicing is based on EU standard EU16931).

    • There are e-invoices in several different technical formats. All e-invoices meeting the European standard are of high technical quality and contain all obligatory information in the correct format. This means fewer invoicing errors. Some organisations only accept e-invoices meeting the European standard.
    • TIEKE ry maintains a list of financial software that is ready to process invoices compliant with the European Standard: https://tieke.fi/palvelut/all/verkkolaskuosoitteisto/taloushallinto-ohjelmien-valmiudet-3-0-versioihin/
    • Finvoice 3.0 and TEAPPSXML 3.0 versions can also be used to produce invoices meeting the European Standard, but this is not done automatically. The user must check that the invoices produced with the software are in accordance with the European standard. Some e-invoicing operators support users by, for example, checking the invoices for compliance with the European Standard before transmitting them.

  • E-invoice metrics

    The purpose of the E-invoice metrics document is to describe the current situation of e-invoicing and its development in Finland. The metrics monitor the realisation of the Real-Time Economy project’s goal of e-invoicing, as well as verify the necessary measures to achieve the goal. The metrics were implemented for the first time in 2021 and will be repeated annually during the Real-Time Economy project.

    Take a look at the 2024 e-invoicing metrics.

    Read about the e-invoicing metrics, which compiles the changes in inter-organizational e-invoicing from 2020 to 2023.

    The first e-invoicing metrics are based on the figures for 2020, reported by e-invoicing operators, an analysis derived from the e-invoicing address registry, the state’s e-invoicing statistics, and surveys made by the State Treasury to municipalities and municipal federations. Read about the first e-invoicing metrics. The second e-invoicing metrics are based on 2021 figures. Read about the second e-invoice metrics

     

  • One-time invoicing for consumers

    One-time customer invoicing typically refers to invoicing a consumer customer that is done only once.
    The workshops organised by the Real-Time Economy project determined how it is possible to implement one-time invoicing of consumer customers in Finland. When the workshops started, the solutions on the market did not allow for sending an e-invoice directly to a consumer, because the consumer must first make an invoice acceptance agreement with the invoicer in their online bank. A service description and instructions on the digitalisation of one-time invoicing aimed at consumers were created in the workshops.

    Read more about arranging one-time invoicing for consumers

  • Contact information

    Project manager Tomi Rusi

    tomi.rusi@valtiokonttori.fi

    Tel. +358 50 358 5264