E-invoicing is steadily being adopted by more and more businesses in the Netherlands. Since 2017, the Dutch government has introduced several regulations that seek to improve invoicing efficiency, interoperability, and transparency across the country. 

How will these changes affect your business? This guide gives an overview of most important e-invoicing requirements in the Netherlands, including mandatory rules, standards, and compatible solutions.

Public sector e-invoicing: Mandatory nationwide 
Private sector e-invoicing: Strongly recommended by Dutch government
E-invoicing standards and networks
Compliance considerations 
Conclusion

Public sector e-invoicing: Mandatory nationwide

Suppliers to the public sector (such as ministries, municipalities, and provinces) with contracts related to public procurement have been required to submit their invoices electronically since April 2019 for the central government, and generally by April 2020 for other public entities. This is in accordance with the EU Directive 2014/55/EU, which aims to standardise electronic invoicing across the European Union member states.

The standard format required for domestic traffic is NLCIUS/SI-UBL 2.0 which is CIUS of Peppol BIS Billing 3.0, which aligns with the EU Directive 2014/55/EU on electronic invoicing. Any domestic invoices sent to the Dutch government must be in this format.

To ease the sending of e-invoices, the Netherlands implemented e-orders via Peppol for the Central Government Procurement sector. This allows suppliers to convert their received electronic orders directly into compliant, secure e-invoices, which they can easily submit.

Private sector e-invoicing: Strongly recommended by Dutch government

While e-invoicing is not mandatory for B2B transactions, the Dutch government strongly advises all businesses to adopt e-invoicing. 

For B2B transactions, e-invoicing through Peppol is highly recommended by the Dutch government. Businesses may adopt other e-invoicing standards, but these must be separately agreed upon with each business partner.

E-invoicing standards and networks

While Peppol BIS is used in cross border messaging, other formats are used in the Netherlands in domestic traffic. For invoicing SI-UBL 2.0, which is based on the NLCIUS (Dutch Core Invoice Usage Specification), and for public procurement of goods and services UBL-OHNL.

In certain public sector cases, other e-invoicing methods may be used as temporary measures. Using the Central Government eInvoicing Portal is acceptable for small volumes of invoices, given that your business doesn’t yet have access to a sophisticated enough ICT infrastructure to use Peppol. E-invoicing public sector entities directly through Digipoort, the government’s digital post office, can be done if your business sends more than 40 invoices on a weekly basis. 

Compliance considerations

The archiving period for e-invoices is 7 years, except for invoices related to Immovable Property, which have an archiving period of 10 years instead.

Conclusion

E-invoicing is one of the primary ways the Netherlands is pushing large-scale digitalisation forward, streamlining the flow of invoices. The government’s vested interest in helping companies adapt to e-invoicing is apparent from new pilot projects, such as the implementation of e-orders via Peppol in 2023.

As of March, 2025, domestic public sector invoices must be sent electronically, preferably via the Peppol network and complying with the SI-UBL 2.0 format. The Dutch government strongly recommends that invoicing between businesses should also happen electronically, owing to the increased security, efficiency, and ease of e-invoicing. As of yet, B2B e-invoicing is however not strictly mandatory in the Netherlands.

If you’re a software company looking to help your customers e-invoice effortlessly, Maventa’s e-invoicing solutions will seamlessly connect you to Peppol and local networks to expand your system’s reach. With just one integration, you can offer the best invoicing experience in the market for your customers.