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Free EN 16931 e-invoice validator

Free Schematron validation for Factur-X, ZUGFeRD, XRechnung 3.0, and Peppol BIS Billing 3.0. Every Business Term BT-1 through BT-158 checked against the official EN 16931 rules — instantly.

Drag & drop your invoice

or click to browse · PDF up to 5 MB · XML up to 1 MB

ACCEPTS
Factur-X 1.x·ZUGFeRD 2.x·XRechnung 3.0·Peppol BIS 3.0·CII XML·UBL 2.1
CHECKS
EN 16931·Peppol BIS 3.0·XRechnung 3.0

In-memory only · Never stored, never logged · GDPR compliant

01

Upload your invoice

Drop a hybrid PDF (Factur-X / ZUGFeRD) or a standalone UBL or CII XML. Up to 5 MB for PDF, 1 MB for XML.

02

We extract & analyse

For PDFs the embedded CII XML is pulled out of the PDF/A-3 attachments. The detected CustomizationID picks the right CIUS rule set — XRechnung, Peppol BIS, or plain EN 16931.

03

Get your report

Every failing assertion is shown with its rule ID, the cited Business Term, and the rule message in plain language. Nothing is stored.

MANDATES

Why validate before sending

EU e-invoicing mandates are now active or imminent across most member states. A non-compliant invoice gets rejected by the buyer's accounting system, costs your client their VAT deduction, or triggers fines per invoice.

Germany

From Jan 2025 (receive) · 2027 (issue)

B2B mandatory · e-Rechnung Pflicht

Invoice rejected · VAT deduction lost

France

Sep 2026 (large/mid) · Sep 2027 (SMB)

B2B mandatory · facturation électronique

€15 / invoice · capped €15,000 / yr

Italy

In force since 2019

B2B + B2G mandatory · SDI live

90–180% of invoice VAT amount

Poland

Feb 2026 (large) · Apr 2026 (rest)

B2B mandatory · KSeF

Up to 100% of invoice VAT

Belgium

From Jan 2026

B2B mandatory · Peppol BIS

Tax-deduction risk · client rejection

Romania

In force since Jul 2024

B2B + B2G mandatory · e-Factura

15% of invoice value (RON 5–10k cap)

Beyond the explicit fines: missing or incorrect VAT category codes (BT-118, BT-151) routinely cause the recipient to lose their VAT deduction — often the most expensive failure.

COVERAGE

Supported e-invoice formats and profiles

The validator handles every major EN 16931–compliant format used across Europe today. Profile auto-detection routes each upload to the right Schematron rule set.

FormatUse case
ZUGFeRDGerman B2B (e-Rechnung Pflicht)
Factur-XFrench B2B (facturation électronique)
XRechnungGerman B2G (ZRE / OZG-RE)
Peppol BIS BillingCross-border B2B / B2G via Peppol AP
EN 16931 CIIProfiles: Minimum, Basic WL, Basic, EN 16931, Extended
SPEC

What is EN 16931?

EN 16931 is the European standard for electronic invoicing, published by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN). It defines a semantic data model — Business Terms BT-1 through BT-158 covering invoice number, dates, parties, line items, VAT breakdown, and payment instructions — plus a set of Business Rules (BR-*) that compliant invoices must satisfy.

Two syntaxes carry that data model: UBL 2.1 (used by Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 and XRechnung) and UN/CEFACT CII (used by Factur-X / ZUGFeRD and, optionally, XRechnung). Hybrid PDFs like Factur-X and ZUGFeRD embed the CII XML inside a PDF/A-3 so the same file is both human-readable and machine-readable.

National Core Invoice Usage Specifications (CIUS) tighten EN 16931 with country-specific mandates. XRechnung 3.0 (Germany B2G) requires the Leitweg-ID (BT-10) and German endpoint scheme codes. Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 (cross-border B2B/B2G) tightens electronic address handling and business process identification.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Send compliant Factur-X invoices automatically

The same Schematron engine ships inside Expensicat's invoicing — every send pre-checked against EN 16931, Peppol BIS, and XRechnung.

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