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Structured means machine-readable
A compliant e-invoice carries the invoice data as structured XML — either embedded in the PDF (ZUGFeRD) or as pure XML (XRechnung). Your customer's system reads it without a human retyping anything. That is the whole point of the regulation.
Your data quality is now exposed
Structured invoices are validated. Missing VAT IDs, an unclear tax reason, a malformed address that a human would have shrugged at — all of these now cause a hard rejection. Most e-invoicing projects are really data-cleanup projects.
Decide who generates it
The shop, the ERP, or a service in between. Whichever it is, it must be the same system that owns tax — two systems producing invoices is how two different totals reach the same customer.
Archive properly, from day one
Retention rules apply to the structured document, not just the PDF rendering. Store the XML you actually sent, immutably, and be able to produce it years later.
- A PDF alone will not satisfy e-invoicing rules.
- Structured invoices expose every data-quality gap.
- Archive the XML you sent, not just the PDF.
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