Check it out! eInvoicing Readiness Checker Gains Momentum
On 31 January 2017, the European Commission launched the eInvoicing Readiness Checker, a tool designed for Public Entities to assess their compliance with the Directive 2014/55/EU electronic invoicing in public procurement.
Electronic invoicing (eInvoicing) reduces costs for economic operators and the environmental impact of paper-based invoices. On the 16 April 2014, the European Parliament and Council passed Directive 2014/55/EU to prevent the continued proliferation of eInvoicing standards and syntaxes coexisting in the Member States, which lead to increased complexity in term of cross-border interoperability.
In light of this Directive, the CEF eInvoicing building block provides a number of services to support eInvoicing in Europe, including the eInvoicing Readiness Checker.
The online tool allows Public Entities to check their level of readiness to exchange eInvoices with Service & Solution Providers in compliance with the Directive, and receive recommendations on what the next steps are to be compliant. Users of the tool can achieve this by creating a profile, either as a Public Entity or Service & Solution Provider.
Profiles on the eInvoicing Readiness Checker allow Service & Solution Providers to present their services to Europe's eInvoicing community. Only basic information, such as an organisational overview, geographical coverage and language(es), is required, so your profile can be up-and-running with minimum hassle.
For Public Entities, creating a profile is just as easy. Creating a profile will also allow you to take the Self-Assesment. This in turn will help you understand exactly what you need to do to be compliant with this Directive, and where you can receive support. By doing this you will be ready to begin your journey to compliance with the Directive, supporting eInvoicing - and all the socio-economic benefits it brings - in Europe.
Since its launch, Public Entities have created 12, and Service & Solution Providers 13 profiles on the eInvoicing Readiness Checker respectively, in addition to those created by the early adopters. Progress has been made, as demonstrated by the continued uptake of the eInvoicing Readiness Checker. However, the more profiles created on the online tool increase the amount of knowledge and experience, to the collective benefit of all users of the tool.
There is no better time for Service & Solution Providers to showcase their services on a tool dedicated to supporting compliance with the Directive, keeping ahead of market trends. For Public Entities, obliged by the Directive to comply with the European standard (on eInvoicing), creating a profile gives you access to the body of Lessons Learned and Success Stories provided to assist those starting their eInvoicing journey.
A Europe where invoices can cross boarders electronically, reducing bureaucracy and environmental impact is around the corner. Are you ready to join the European Commisison, Member States and stakeholders on this Journey?
The European Commission also supports eInvoicing with grant funding. Funding from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) helps applicants put the appropriate technical solutions and organisational set-up in place to ensure that authorities can receive and process eInvoices, respecting the coming standard. Owing to the high-demand for grant funding to support eInvoicing, the European Commission has increased the indicative level of funding to €10 million in 2017. See the CEF Telecom Work Programme for more!
To discover how CEF eInvoicing is #ConnectingEurope, visit CEF Digital 2018.