Will my e-invoice arrive in Germany?

Type your customer's VAT ID (DE and 9 digits) or, for a public-sector customer, its Leitweg-ID. Choose what you're sending: an invoice, a credit note or a self-billing invoice, as Peppol BIS or as XRechnung. You'll see whether that document can be delivered over Peppol today. You can check your own number the same way.

What the check tells you

The check asks the Peppol network the same questions your provider's access point asks before it sends: is the number registered as a Peppol receiver, and under which ID; does the provider's record (SMP) answer; is your document type accepted; and is the provider's certificate valid, expiring within 30 days, or expired. You get a verdict, the exact Peppol ID to use and, if it can't go over Peppol, what German rules allow instead. We show no names or contact details, and there is no reverse search.

Peppol is only one channel in Germany

German law doesn't prescribe a transmission channel. Email, an interface, a shared storage location or a portal download are all possible; the parties settle the channel between them. An email inbox is enough to receive e-invoices ^[1]. So "no" from this check means not over Peppol. It doesn't mean your customer can't receive an e-invoice.

Why an e-invoice doesn't arrive over Peppol

1. Wrong ID or scheme. For businesses, E-Rechnung Bund names scheme 9930 with the VAT ID or 0088 with a GLN; public authorities receive under their Leitweg-ID with 0204 ^[2]. Some businesses also use the voluntary GEBA address (0246) ^[3]. An invoice sent to an ID the customer didn't register goes nowhere.
2. Wrong document type. XRechnung and Peppol BIS Billing are separate document types on Peppol, and so are an invoice and a credit note, UBL and CII ^[4]. A receiver's registration lists each type it accepts ^[5]. If your customer only accepts XRechnung, a Peppol BIS invoice won't be delivered, and the other way round.
3. Self-billing. A self-billing invoice (Gutschrift in the VAT sense) is its own document type ^[4]; here the supplier has to be registered to receive it.
4. Expired certificate. The sending access point must verify the receiver's certificate it fetches from the address book ^[6]. An expired certificate stops delivery until the provider renews it. And an access point must refuse a document type it doesn't serve for that receiver ^[6].
5. Not on Peppol. Common in Germany, and allowed ^[1].

What to do next

• Copy the Peppol ID from the result and send to exactly that address, in a document type the customer accepts.
• Not on Peppol? Send the e-invoice by email or another channel you agree with your customer ^[1].
• Until 31 December 2026 you may still issue a paper invoice, or another electronic format such as a PDF if your customer agrees. With prior-year turnover up to €800,000 this runs until the end of 2027; existing EDI procedures may continue until the end of 2027 ^[1].
• Every domestic business must be able to receive e-invoices since 1 January 2025 ^[1]. Ask your customer which address they want them at.

Is it your own company?

Type your own VAT ID and choose "my own company". If something isn't green, ask your provider:

• Am I registered under 9930 with my VAT ID (and any other ID my customers use)?
• Which document types are registered: XRechnung and Peppol BIS, invoice and credit note, UBL and CII?
• When does your access point certificate expire, and is the renewal planned?

More: Receiving e-invoices · Germany's e-invoicing mandate · Peppol ID lookup

Checked on 7 October 2026. "Peppol" is used here as a descriptive word only; E-Invoice Map is not affiliated with OpenPeppol. Not tax or legal advice.