Last January 2014 a directive was approved which had as its objective the unification of all the electronic invoicing of member state's public contacts. According to this a standard for electronic invoicing will be established with which it is predicted the European public administrations will save 2.3 billion euros.
It is a measure supported by all the countries and is in line with the common market, which seeks to improve the internationalization of companies towards a commercial and economic balance which benefits all the countries in the Union, and in that way, also strengthens the euro.
Single European Electronic Invoicing
Several countries are already taking steps to normalize electronic invoicing in their relationship with providers of public contracts, but a consolidated European strategy has an immediate double benefit:
- The countries have a schedule and a concrete plan to follow to speed up the process internally in their administrations;
- The business sector will achieve more and better mobility, with the ability to access in a more consolidated fashion contracts in different European Union countries.
Electronic Invoice in Spain
Spain has set January 2015 as the deadline to adapt to electronic invoicing in public contracts, but without doubt, they will outline the corresponding specifications adapted to the European Directive throughout 2014.
Companies will need to overcome different obstacles related to this new standard, but without doubt, even if they do not have contracts with Administrations, it is a question of time before the electronic invoice is regularized in contracts with private companies, starting with the largest and then extending throughout all the business sector.
Solution to the use of generalized electronic invoice
During this period of adaptation, it is important for the companies not to take risks, and to depend on an optimized system and which is maintained up-to-date with all the legal and administrative changes which will give form to this new standard. An optimal Electronic Invoicing and de Invoicing Workflow solution could be the key to enter the Single Market in an efficient and clean way.
Taking into consideration that we are dealing with a step prior to a generalized use of the electronic invoice at all levels and sectors, it is recommendable to start, as soon as possible, to adapt solutions which introduce electronic invoicing into the company's accounting department at the same time as invoices in other formats.
According to the press note sent out by the European Commission, Internal Market and Services Commissioner, Michael Barnier, states
"Supporting modern and efficient public administration in the EU and strengthening the Single Market are key priorities for the European Commission. By developing a new European e-invoicing standard and making reception of e-invoices sent in this standard obligatory for all public authorities, the new rules will contribute to both of these objectives. On the one hand, they will greatly reduce the cost and complexity of using e-invoices for both governments and businesses, including SMEs. On the other hand, they will remove market barriers and enhance cross-border interoperability between e-invoicing systems. This initiative shows that European policies can be an important driver for simplification and that they can help open up new business opportunities for European enterprises. Finally, switching from paper to fully automated invoicing contributes to the fight against fraud. These are all concrete and tangible benefits which are particularly relevant in the current economic climate."
The question that many experts have in mind is if the process will be sufficiently agile and if there is enough time to meet the deadlines, not only for companies, but also for the public administrations, which do not always undertake changes with a schedule which allows companies the possibility to adapt flexibly and progressively.
