Peppol Network
What it is, how to use it, and things to note
Peppol is an open network for exchanging structured business documents, such as e-invoices, orders and despatch advices, between businesses and with public bodies. It is governed by OpenPeppol AISBL, a non-profit international association under Belgian law, together with national Peppol Authorities; OpenPeppol acts as the Peppol Authority in jurisdictions where no national one exists. In this article, we'll take a closer look at Peppol, its uses, and how to sign up and send e-invoices on the network. [1] [17]
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What is Peppol?
Peppol is a network that lets businesses exchange electronic invoices and other business documents with their trading partners, in Europe and beyond. It is built on a common set of specifications (identifiers, discovery, transport and document formats) that every participating provider must follow, so different e-invoicing solutions can work together. Peppol is used by both private sector companies and public sector organizations. [2]
EU Directive 2014/55/EU requires public-sector buyers to be able to receive and process e-invoices that conform to the European standard EN 16931 (by 18 April 2019; Member States could postpone this to 18 April 2020 at the latest for sub-central contracting authorities and entities). The duty covers invoices under contracts within the EU procurement directives, that is, above-threshold contracts. The Directive does not prescribe a network; many Member States chose Peppol as the delivery channel. [3] [4] [19]
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Peppol is designed to be an open and interoperable network, which means that businesses can connect to it using a variety of e-invoicing solutions. Peppol also supports a range of document types beyond e-invoices, such as purchase orders, order responses, despatch advices and catalogues. These documents include e-Orders, e-Advance Shipping Notes (Despatch Advice), eInvoices, eCatalogues, Invoice Responses and Message Level Responses (MLR is being replaced by MLS by May 2027). [5]
How Peppol works?
Peppol 4 Corner Model
Peppol uses a four-corner model. The sender's business (corner 1) does not connect to its trading partner's provider directly. It hands the document to its own Access Point (corner 2), which validates it and transmits it to the receiver's Access Point (corner 3). The receiver's Access Point validates it and forwards it to the receiver's business (corner 4). Some countries add a fifth corner, a tax-authority platform that receives invoice data; OpenPeppol treats that as a combination of four-corner exchanges. See CTC e-invoicing models. [6]
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The sender's Access Point finds the right receiving Access Point from the recipient's Peppol ID:
- It looks the ID up in the Service Metadata Locator (SML), a DNS-based service. The SML points to the one Service Metadata Publisher (SMP) where that ID is registered. Each participant ID is registered with exactly one SMP.
- It asks that SMP for the recipient's endpoint for the specific document type being sent. The SMP returns the receiving Access Point's address and certificate.
- It sends the document to that Access Point.
If the recipient is registered, but not for the invoice type being sent, the invoice cannot be routed to it over Peppol. [7]
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Between Access Points, the only active Peppol transport profile is AS4 (Peppol AS4 profile 2.0). The older START and AS2 profiles, and AS4 profile 1.0, were removed on 6 September 2023. On every transmission the receiving Access Point returns an AS4 Receipt. That receipt confirms the receiving Access Point received the payload and accepted responsibility for the message; it says nothing about whether the content is valid or whether it reaches the buyer's system. [8] [9]
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Uses of Peppol
Peppol can be used for a variety of purposes, including B2B (business-to-business) and B2G (business-to-government) invoicing. It is commonly used in the public sector, where many EU Member States chose it as the channel for receiving e-invoices under Directive 2014/55/EU. Peppol is also used outside Europe: OpenPeppol publishes PINT (Peppol International) invoice specifications for Australia and New Zealand, Singapore, Japan, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Nigeria and Oman, as well as an EU PINT. See, for example, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. [5]
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Peppol can also be used for other types of electronic document exchange, such as purchase orders, delivery notes, and catalogues. By using Peppol, businesses can streamline their document exchange processes and reduce manual errors.
You can check the list of countries accepting peppol here
How to Sign Up and Send E-Invoices on Peppol
To use Peppol, businesses must first sign up with a Peppol service provider that runs an Access Point (AP). Access points are organizations that provide connectivity and services to the Peppol network. OpenPeppol publishes the list of certified service providers, so businesses can choose one that best suits their needs. [10]
Once a business has signed up with an access point provider, they can start sending e-invoices on Peppol. The standard invoice format is Peppol BIS Billing 3.0, a Core Invoice Usage Specification (CIUS) of EN 16931, expressed in UBL 2.1 (invoice and credit note), which every receiver must accept; UN/CEFACT CII (invoice) is optional and can be sent only to receivers that have registered for it in their SMP. Any invoice that follows it also complies with EN 16931. To send invoices, they'll need to create an electronic invoice in their e-invoicing software and send it through their own Access Point, which looks up and delivers to the trading partner's Access Point. That Access Point then forwards the invoice to the recipient's e-invoicing software. [11]
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When sending e-invoices on Peppol, businesses will need to include the recipient's Peppol ID, the identifier used to route the invoice. A Peppol ID is an ISO 6523-based scheme code plus the value that scheme issued, written as scheme:value. For example, 0088:7300010000001 is a GS1 GLN, 0192: followed by a 9-digit number is a Norwegian organisation number (Organisasjonsnummer, issued by the Brønnøysund Register Centre), and 9925: followed by a Belgian VAT number is a Belgian VAT ID. The ID has no separate country-code field and no access-point component: the access point is found by the SML and SMP lookup described above. Peppol does not mint its own numbers; your provider registers an identifier you already hold in its SMP. Only active codes from OpenPeppol's participant identifier scheme list may be used.
[12]
[13]
[18]
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You can search for participants on the Peppol directory, but listing there is voluntary under OpenPeppol's Directory specification: a provider can choose not to publish a business card, so a business that is absent may still be reachable. The definitive check is an SMP lookup for the recipient's Peppol ID and document type, which your Access Point does on every send. [14]
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Things to Note When Using Peppol
While Peppol offers many benefits, there are some important things to note when using the network. For example, businesses must ensure that their e-invoicing software is compatible with Peppol, and that they have signed up with a Peppol access point provider. Some countries have country specific requirements (e.g. Germany, where XRechnung document types and the Peppol-Leitweg-ID scheme 0204 are used; see the German e-invoicing guide). Senders are required to adhere to these requirements in order to successfully send the invoice to the recipient.
Peppol is not a single system, but a collection of interconnected Access Points, Service Metadata Publishers and a Service Metadata Locator. Access Points handle the transmission of electronic documents. Each SMP holds, for the participant IDs registered with it, the endpoint and certificate for each document type the participant can receive. The SML, a DNS-based service, tells a sending Access Point which SMP to ask. [7]
Delivery status and business responses are separate messages. A Message Level Response (MLR) is its own optional Peppol transaction, not part of BIS Billing 3.0. It reports conformance validation (rejected for errors, passed validation, or acknowledged without validation), not the buyer's business decision. OpenPeppol is replacing MLR with Message Level Status (MLS), sent between service providers; every service provider must support it, and a negative MLS is always mandatory. Under the MLS Phase-In plan, MLS receiving must be in production by 28 February 2027 and MLS sending becomes mandatory on 31 March 2027; the MLR Phase-Out plan gives the same milestones as 1 March 2027 and 1 April 2027 (one document states the last day of a phase, the other the first day of the next). MLR is fully retired on 1 May 2027. The buyer's business-level answer (accepted, rejected, paid) is the separate Peppol Invoice Response transaction. [15] [16] [6]
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Recent changes
- 2026-07-01 — Sweden moved its national Peppol connection role, B2G e-invoicing support and the power to set structured e-invoice format rules from DIGG to Upphandlingsmyndigheten (the National Agency for Public Procurement), under sections 2 b–2 d of Förordning (2026:598) amending Upphandlingsmyndigheten's instruction, förordningen (2015:527). Supplier-facing material that still names DIGG as Sweden's Peppol contact point is out of date. See Lookuptax's Sweden VAT guide. (Svensk författningssamling) — see event record and issue
Related resources
- Country-wise requirements for Peppol
- CTC e-invoicing models: the Peppol 4-corner model
- Peppol country guides: Belgium, Norway, Germany, Australia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates
Important Websites
| Website | URL |
|---|---|
| Directory of businesses on peppol | Peppol Directory |
| Official list of certified Peppol service providers | Peppol certified service providers |
| Peppol Authorities | Peppol Authorities |
Reference Links
- About Peppol and OpenPeppol
- Peppol eDelivery specifications (identifiers, SML, SMP, AS4, MLS)
- Peppol code lists
- Peppol BIS Billing 3.0
- Directive 2014/55/EU on electronic invoicing in public procurement
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a Peppol ID?
You do not apply for a new number. Your Peppol service provider registers an identifier you already hold, written as a scheme code plus the value. Examples: 0192: plus a Norwegian organisation number, 0088: plus a GS1 GLN, 9925: plus a Belgian VAT number. The provider registers it in its Service Metadata Publisher (SMP), which records it in the Peppol SML. OpenPeppol publishes the list of certified service providers at peppol.org.
Can I send to a business that is not in the Peppol Directory?
Often yes. The Peppol Directory only lists businesses whose provider chose to publish a business card, and OpenPeppol's Directory specification makes that voluntary. Whether an invoice can be delivered depends on whether the recipient's Peppol ID is registered in an SMP for that invoice type, and your Access Point checks this on every send. If no SMP registration exists, the invoice cannot travel over Peppol; use another agreed channel.
How do I know the invoice was received?
The receiving Access Point returns an AS4 Receipt confirming it received the message and accepted responsibility for it. That says nothing about validation, delivery into the buyer's system, or payment. Validation results can travel as an optional Message Level Response (MLR) today. From April 2027 the Message Level Status (MLS) between service providers becomes mandatory, and MLR is retired on 1 May 2027. The buyer's business decision (accepted, rejected, paid) is a separate Peppol Invoice Response.