United Kingdom

The UK has decided to move to mandatory e-invoicing, following a consultation on how to promote electronic invoicing across UK businesses. The change forms part of HMRC's wider digital tax strategy, alongside Making Tax Digital, and aims to cut errors, reduce the VAT gap and improve productivity.

The government has signalled a decentralised approach rather than a single clearance platform, with invoices exchanged between businesses in a structured format (verify the final design). Many expect the model to build on standards such as Peppol, which the NHS and other public bodies already use.

With several years until the start date, UK businesses have time to prepare. Those that trade with EU countries that have mandates, such as Belgium, France, Germany and Poland, may already need structured invoicing for their European operations.

The mandate is expected to cover VAT-registered businesses for B2B and B2G invoices (verify the scope). Detailed rules on thresholds, exemptions and phasing have not been published yet.

Until then, e-invoicing remains voluntary in the UK. Suppliers to the NHS and some other public bodies are already asked to use Peppol, and many large buyers request structured invoices from their suppliers.

The technical requirements for the 2029 mandate have not been finalised. Businesses should expect to issue and receive invoices in a structured, machine-readable format, through an approved channel, with data that meets UK VAT requirements (verify once guidance is published).

In the meantime, good preparation means reviewing invoice data quality, checking that the ERP can produce structured invoices and setting up a connection that can reach trading partners electronically. These steps pay off whatever the final design looks like.

The UK has not yet confirmed a mandatory format. Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 is already used by the NHS and parts of the public sector, and EN 16931-based formats are widely expected to play a role (verify).

The infrastructure is expected to be decentralised, with certified service providers exchanging invoices between businesses. Peppol Access Points already operate in the UK, and the UK has its own Peppol Authority.

HubBroker connects your ERP to Peppol, so you can send structured invoices to the NHS and other UK buyers today and prepare for the 2029 mandate in good time. We map your invoice data, validate it and deliver it in the format your customers require.

Inbound invoices arrive in your ERP as structured data, ready to post, and HubBroker's IDP converts PDF invoices from suppliers that are not yet on e-invoicing. For UK businesses trading with Europe, the same HubBroker setup also covers e-invoicing requirements in EU markets, so you can build one solution for both.