Context of electronic invoicing SdI Italy
The Italian Government continues its progress in the dematerialization of invoices by approving the Legge di Bilancio of 2018. Italy is therefore the first European country to make electronic invoicing compulsory for the B2B sector.
Since January 1, 2019, companies in the country have been required to issue their invoices in electronic format using the SdI (Sistema di Interscambio) platform. All Italian companies, regardless of their sector (B2G, B2B, B2C), must now dematerialize their invoices via SdI.
If you have a subsidiary in Italy, you are affected by the electronic invoicing obligation. On the other hand, if you exchange invoices with Italian companies but your company is based in France, you are not affected by this obligation.
Focus on SdI and e-invoicing in Italy
The SdI receives invoices, checks their format and certifies their validity to the issuing company before forwarding them to the correct recipients. Invoices must be validated by the SdI to enter the payment circuit.
An invoice may not meet the dematerialization requirements. In this case, the refusal of the SDS is notified to its issuer.
Good to know: B2B and B2C companies cannot refuse an invoice. Only the Public Administration has the right. If you make an error, you can ask for a credit.
The methods of transmission of electronic invoices
To be considered by the SdI, electronic invoices must be in XML format and meet the SdI specifications. The size of the file sent is limited to 5Mb.
You can send your invoices as an XML file with a single invoice, an XML file containing multiple invoices or a compressed (ZIP) file containing one or more XML files. If you choose the latter option, the SdI will transmit all the unzipped files and not the zipped archive.
Exchange of electronic invoices
To manage your electronic invoicing in Italy, you have 4 options:
1 | PEC Service: courier with a certified email address to prove the date and time of transmission of files (invoices), as well as their receipt and integrity.
2 | SdICoop service: web application (HTTPS protocol) to send a file of up to 5 MB at a time
3 | SdIFTP: data transmission system based on the SFTP protocol to send batches of files (150Mo maximum).
4 | FatturaPA (Fatturazione Elettronica verso la Pubblica Amministrazione): webservice allowing the transmission of files via a dedicated website. You must have Entratel, FiscOnline or a National Services Card (issued by the Agenzia delle Entratte) to access them.
Please note that the recipient of the invoice must be identified when sending it to the SdI platform. Either the recipient is already registered in the SdI, or the sender must enter the recipient code (provided by the SdI) or a PEC code.
SdI: use a service provider for its Italian electronic invoicing
You can manage your Italian e-invoicing yourself via SdI or use an external service provider to centralise the management of invoices for all your subsidiaries.
The latter will send your invoices, acknowledge receipt and report the status of your invoices. They may offer to archive your electronic invoices locally. However, they must be legally archived in Italy.