E-invoicing in the United Kingdom

Key facts

Model

No B2B e-invoicing regime in force today.

Formats

• BS EN 16931 (accepted by public bodies)
• Peppol BIS (NHS Supply Chain)

Network / platform

None mandated today; NHS Supply Chain requires Peppol

Archiving period

6 years

Penalties

Not stated in the sources we checked

Timeline

Each step says who is affected and, where the source states it, whether the obligation is to send, receive or both.

1. 2029(not legally fixed)B2BAnnouncedsend and receive

   All VAT invoices (typically B2B and B2G) must be issued and received as e-invoices, as announced at Budget 2025; a roadmap was to be published at Budget 2026

Details and caveats

Today there is no mandated e-invoicing standard for businesses. All bodies covered by the Public Procurement Act 2023 must accept e-invoices that comply with BS EN 16931 (receiving obligation; the start date is not stated in the fetched source, so no timeline date is shown), and NHS Supply Chain requires its suppliers to e-invoice via Peppol. The 2029 mandate is a government announcement (consultation response updated 26 Nov 2025), not yet legislation in our sources, and the exact start date within 2029 was not set there. The UK left the EU, so EU ViDA rules do not apply. Archiving: VAT records should be kept for at least 6 years (HMRC guidance on GOV.UK).

ERP support in the United Kingdom

• Odoo — native support
• Xero — native support

FAQ

Related

• Which European countries mandate B2B e-invoicing?
• Receiving vs sending: phased e-invoicing obligations
• E-invoicing checklist for multi-country companies
• Is your ERP ready for e-invoicing mandates?
• EU level: ViDA and cross-border digital reporting
• Recorded rule changes
• VAT rates in the United Kingdom
• VAT number format for the United Kingdom
• Country code GB (ISO 3166-1)