E-invoicing doesn't wait for anyone, and this quarter proved it. Our Q3 compliance webinar covered six markets in one hour, from a French mandate that went live on September 1st to a Norwegian rule that flips the usual order. Here's your recap.
France: live, and the countdown to volume starts now
The French mandate came into force on September 1st, and we are pleased to be supporting over 170 Basware customers who are now live with us. If you are currently lacking a solution, we recommend reaching out to us as soon as possible. There are no penalties in the initial three months of the mandate, but the window will quickly close for organizations without a viable solution.
Further to that, in this initial period post launch, we anticipate that there will be some challenges. Basware was one of the pilot platforms to work with the French government, and during the pilot phase, we identified and resolved a number of issues. Now that the wider accredited platforms are going live, we expect that some of these platforms will have similar friction points. Our recommendation to all organizations: make sure you are communicating closely with your suppliers who are going live via their accredited platforms.
Slovakia: get your Digital Postman
Slovakia's e-invoicing mandate lands January 1, 2027, built on the Peppol network. Every business needs a "Digital Postman" (Slovakia's term for a Peppol service provider) to send and receive invoices.
Reporting to the government happens automatically through that provider. No manual reporting, no separate flow.
Norway: suppliers first, buyers later
Norway is doing things backward, on purpose. From January 1, 2027, e-invoicing becomes mandatory for suppliers. Buyers don't have to comply until 2030. The mechanism: suppliers must invoice electronically once a buyer is registered in the ELMA directory. It's Peppol-based, and the final technical guidelines are still pending.
Germany: one rule, three formats, zero delivery restrictions
Buyers have had to receive e-invoices since 2025. Suppliers with annual turnover of €800,000 or more join them on January 1, 2027; every other supplier follows a year later. Germany doesn't mandate a format or a delivery method, only EN16931 compliance, which means Peppol BIS, XRechnung, and the PDF-plus-XML hybrid ZUGFeRD are all valid. That flexibility sounds convenient. In practice, it means suppliers and buyers need to agree on format and delivery well in advance, or risk a very avoidable headache.
And a few more worth watching
Portugal: from January 1, 2027, invoices need a qualified electronic signature, a qualified electronic seal, or compliant EDI to guarantee authenticity.
Spain: the clearance-model mandate is still targeting October 2027 for the largest businesses, pending final government confirmation.
UAE: accreditation is back on track after a pause, with a January 1, 2027 go-live for the largest businesses.
UK: Peppol is confirmed as the exchange network, with the full technical roadmap due alongside the autumn budget on October 28, 2026. Worth pairing with the upcoming Commercial Payments Bill, which proposes a 60-day maximum payment term.
None of this happens in isolation
Whichever market you're tracking, the real work is the same: keeping the audit trail intact, validating tax data, and proving compliance, not just connecting to a portal. That's the whole idea behind Invoice Lifecycle Management (ILM). Full compliance. Complete control. Now it all just happens.
Get the full picture
This recap barely scratches the surface. The full webinar covers the mechanics behind each mandate, live audience questions on Slovakia's Peppol ID, Germany's format debate, and what “best efforts” really means under France's grace period.
Watch the full recording, grab the country-specific FAQ guides (France, Germany, Poland, and UAE available now, Spain coming soon), and mark your calendar: the next compliance webinar lands in November.
