Belgium Regulations
Belgium makes structured electronic invoicing compulsory between businesses on 1 January 2026.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | B2B e-invoicing mandatory, issuing and receiving, for all company sizes |
| 31 December 2027 | Increased cost deduction ends |
| 1 January 2028 | E-reporting announced, not yet in force |
Who is concerned
The obligation to issue applies to taxable persons established in Belgium who have to issue an invoice for a supply of goods or services located in Belgium.
The obligation to receive applies to Belgian taxable persons registered for VAT. You cannot refuse a structured invoice or ask a supplier to send a PDF instead.
Excluded from the obligation to issue:
- Taxable persons who carry out only supplies exempt under article 44 of the VAT Code, such as medical care, education, and certain financial and insurance services
- Taxable persons in bankruptcy
- Companies not established in Belgium, even if they hold a Belgian VAT number
What each type of transaction requires
B2G: selling to public bodies
Already mandatory, and already on Peppol. The obligation was phased in by contract value between 1 November 2022 and 1 November 2023 and now covers effectively all public contracts. Contracts with a value below 3,000 euros are excluded. Invoices are routed through the federal Mercurius platform, which is itself a Peppol access point.
If you already invoice a Belgian public body electronically, you are technically ready for the 2026 B2B obligation.
B2B domestic: selling to another Belgian business
From 1 January 2026, an invoice between two Belgian taxable persons for a supply located in Belgium must be a structured electronic invoice sent over the Peppol network. Credit notes and self-billed invoices are covered in the same way.
A PDF attached to an email is no longer a valid invoice for these transactions, and neither is a PDF placed on a customer portal.
B2C: selling to consumers
No obligation. Sales to private individuals stay outside the rule entirely.
B2Bi: selling to or buying from a foreign business
No obligation. Cross-border transactions are outside the Belgian mandate, because the supply is not located in Belgium or the counterparty is not established there.
How invoices are transmitted
Belgium uses the Peppol four corner model:
- You send the invoice to your access point.
- Your access point looks up the recipient in the Peppol directory.
- It delivers the invoice to the recipient’s access point.
- That access point passes it to the recipient’s accounting system.
You need an access point provider, or software that connects to one.
Formats
The default and safe choice is Peppol BIS Billing 3.0, a UBL format that complies with EN 16931. This is what access points expect and what the B2G flow already uses.
What this means for a PrestaShop shop
- If you sell to consumers only, the 2026 obligation does not change what you send. You must still be able to receive structured invoices from your suppliers.
- If you sell to Belgian businesses, those invoices must be Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 and must leave through a Peppol access point from 1 January 2026.
- If you sell abroad, nothing changes in 2026.
See also: