ZUGFeRD is a cross-industry data format for e-invoicing that was developed by the German electronic invoicing forum ( Forum elektronische Rechnung Deutschland, FeRD) with the support of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. The ZUGFeRD format is based on Directive 2014/55/EU of 16 April 2014 on electronic invoicing in public procurement, and on European standard EN 16931, published on 28 June 2017. In addition, the UN/CEFACT Cross Industry Invoice (CII) and ISO standard 19005-3:2012 (PDF/A-3) are taken into account for ZUGFeRD version 2.2.0 or later.

A hybrid data format, ZUGFeRD integrates structured invoice data in XML format into a PDF document (PDF/A-3). In other words, the invoice is sent in the form of a PDF document, which is the visual component of the invoice. In addition, a copy of the same invoice (in XML format), identical in content, is sent within the PDF so that the invoice can easily be processed electronically, using structured invoice data, once it has been fed into the company’s own software system.

For further information on ZUGFeRD, please visit the FeRD website.

No.

Operators who are already using ZUGFeRD can submit e-invoices to the federal administration using the 2.2.0 XRECHNUNG profile. They do not have to use the XRechnung standard in addition to that.

When using ZUGfeRD in the XRECHNUNG profile, please note that invoices are accepted only as a structured XML file with no visual format.

The ZUGFeRD 2.2.0 XRECHNUNG profile meets all requirements and allows invoices to be submitted via the federal invoice submission portal.

Invoice issuers can thus use the XRechnung standard or the ZUGFeRD invoice format to submit e-invoices in accordance with the federal E-Invoicing Ordinance.

Yes.

In general, invoices for the federal administration must be issued using the currently valid XRechnung standard. Other standards may be used (such as ZUGFeRD version 2.2.0 in the XRECHNUNG profile, as a simple structured XML file) as long as they meet the requirements of the European standard (EN 16931), the terms of use for the invoice submission portal, and the requirements of the federal E-Invoicing Ordinance.