BT-48: Buyer VAT Identifier

The VAT identification number of the buyer.

BT-48•Conditional Requirement•EN 16931-1 / XRechnung 3.0 / ZUGFeRD 2.3

Technical Specification

Requirement & Cardinality

0..1(Conditional)

Mandatory for intra-community B2B supplies and reverse charge

Data Type

Text / Identifier (with country prefix)

Semantic data format according to European Standard EN 16931-1

XML Syntax Mappings

Exact field location in UBL and CII XML trees

UBL 2.1(XRechnung / Peppol BIS)

Invoice/cac:AccountingCustomerParty/cac:Party/cac:PartyTaxScheme/cbc:CompanyID (mit TaxScheme/ID = VAT)

UN/CEFACT CII D16B(ZUGFeRD 2.3 / Factur-X)

rsm:CrossIndustryInvoice/rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction/ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeAgreement/ram:BuyerTradeParty/ram:SpecifiedTaxRegistration/ram:ID[@schemeID="VA"]

What does BT-48 mean?

The buyer VAT identifier (BT-48) is strictly required for zero-rated intra-community B2B supplies and reverse-charge transactions.

XML Syntax & Code Example

OASIS UBL 2.1 (XRechnung)

<cac:PartyTaxScheme>
  <cbc:CompanyID>DE987654321</cbc:CompanyID>
  <cac:TaxScheme>
    <cbc:ID>VAT</cbc:ID>
  </cac:TaxScheme>
</cac:PartyTaxScheme>

Business Rules & Schematron Checks

BR-CO-10

If VAT category is Intra-community (K) or Reverse charge (AE), the Buyer VAT identifier (BT-48) shall be provided.

Check BT-48 in your invoice

Use the XML paths above to locate BT-48. A snippet illustrates this field; it is not a complete invoice. After correcting a value in the source application, export and check the entire file again.

Find rule violations in the validator Read invoice values in the viewer

Official specifications and rule sets

Requirements depend on the invoice profile and version. Consult the matching specification for mandatory fields, code lists and rules; Peppol-specific requirements do not automatically apply to every ZUGFeRD invoice.

BT-31

Seller VAT Identifier

The VAT identification number of the seller (prefixed with country code, e.g. DE).

BT-44

Buyer Name

The full official legal name of the buyer.

BT-151

Item VAT Category Code

The VAT category code applicable to this line item (e.g. S for standard rate).

Create compliant E-Invoices easily

Create XRechnung and ZUGFeRD invoices in Billance and check the exported file locally. Use this guide to understand BT-48 and review your invoice details before sending.

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