E-invoicing in Belgium: A Complete Guide for Businesses

What is Belgium e-invoicing?

Belgium mandates structured electronic invoicing for B2B transactions between Belgian VAT-registered companies from 1 January 2026, under the Programme Law of July 2023. This makes Belgium one of the first EU countries to implement a full B2B Peppol-based e-invoicing obligation outside a clearance model.

The mandate is straightforward: Belgian businesses must issue and accept structured e-invoices in Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 format, delivered via the Peppol network. The Belgian tax authority (FOD Financiën / SPF Finances) does not act as an intermediary clearance hub — invoices flow directly between trading partners' Peppol access points.

B2G e-invoicing in Belgium has been mandatory for federal public procurement since 2019, via the HERMES platform (operated by the Belgian Federal Government's e-procurement service) and Peppol. Regional governments (Flanders: Mercurius platform; Brussels and Wallonia: own platforms) also mandate Peppol for public suppliers.

The Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 format

Belgium uses the OpenPeppol BIS Billing 3.0 specification without a national CIUS. Key technical characteristics:

The CBE number is the critical routing identifier. Every Belgian company has one; it is also the basis for the Belgian VAT number (prepend BE0 or BE depending on context).

Who does it apply to?

Segment Status
B2G — federal suppliers Mandatory since 2019 (HERMES / Peppol)
B2G — Flemish public sector Mandatory (Mercurius platform)
B2B — all Belgian VAT entities Mandatory from 1 Jan 2026
SMEs No exemption — full mandate applies
Foreign businesses supplying Belgian companies Must issue structured e-invoices to Belgian buyers

The 2026 mandate applies to all Belgian VAT-registered entities regardless of size or turnover — there is no SME threshold exemption.

Timeline / key dates

How Clearvo handles Belgium e-invoicing

Clearvo is registered as a Peppol Access Point with the OpenPeppol network and supports the Belgian 0208 CBE participant identifier scheme. The full delivery lifecycle — Peppol endpoint lookup, AS4 message packaging, delivery to the buyer's access point, and MDN receipt — is handled automatically.

Key points:

What you send: standard invoice fields plus customer.peppolId (CBE-based), supplierVatNumber, and buyerCountry: "BE".

What you get back: Peppol message ID, delivery receipt timestamp, and the generated UBL 2.1 XML.

{
  "invoiceNumber": "INV-2026-00088",
  "issueDate": "2026-01-15",
  "dueDate": "2026-02-14",
  "currency": "EUR",
  "supplier": {
    "name": "Acme Software BV",
    "vatNumber": "BE0471032782",
    "peppolId": "0208:0471032782",
    "address": {
      "street": "Rue de la Loi 44",
      "city": "Bruxelles",
      "postalCode": "1040",
      "country": "BE"
    }
  },
  "customer": {
    "name": "Belgian Logistics NV",
    "vatNumber": "BE0543219876",
    "peppolId": "0208:0543219876",
    "address": {
      "street": "Antwerpsesteenweg 210",
      "city": "Gent",
      "postalCode": "9000",
      "country": "BE"
    }
  },
  "lines": [
    {
      "description": "Software platform subscription — January 2026",
      "quantity": 1,
      "unitPrice": 2400.00,
      "taxRate": 21,
      "taxCategory": "S"
    }
  ],
  "paymentTerms": "30 days net",
  "bankAccount": {
    "iban": "BE68539007547034",
    "bic": "KREDBEBB"
  }
}

Getting started

Peppol participant registration, CBE identifier setup, and Belgium-specific validation rules are documented at clearvo.io/docs. You can look up any Belgian company's Peppol registration using the built-in participant lookup endpoint before your first invoice send.

Related country guides

Frequently asked questions

When did Belgium's B2B e-invoicing mandate start? Belgium's B2B e-invoicing mandate became effective on 1 January 2026, under the Programme Law of July 2023. All Belgian VAT-registered businesses must issue and accept structured Peppol e-invoices for B2B transactions from that date. There is no phased rollout — the mandate applied immediately to all businesses regardless of size.

What is a CBE number and how is it used in Peppol? The CBE (Crossroads Bank for Enterprises) number is the Belgian company registration identifier — a 10-digit number assigned to every Belgian business. In the Peppol network, it is used as the participant identifier under scheme 0208. For example, a company with CBE 0471032782 has the Peppol ID 0208:0471032782. This is how Clearvo routes invoices to the correct Belgian receiver.

Do foreign companies need to comply with Belgium's B2B e-invoicing mandate? If you are a non-Belgian business invoicing a Belgian VAT-registered company, the receiving obligation applies to the Belgian buyer — they must be able to receive a structured Peppol e-invoice. Practically, this means you need to be able to issue a Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 invoice delivered via an access point. Clearvo handles this on your behalf regardless of your own country of registration.

What if my Belgian buyer is not yet registered on Peppol? If a buyer is not registered on Peppol, you cannot deliver a structured invoice to them electronically via the network. The buyer is in breach of the mandate in this case (the obligation to receive e-invoices applies to all Belgian businesses). In practice, Clearvo's SMP lookup endpoint lets you check a buyer's Peppol registration before sending. If they are unregistered, Clearvo can store the invoice and notify you to follow up with the buyer.

Is there an SME exemption from Belgium's mandate? No. The Belgian mandate applies to all VAT-registered businesses regardless of size or turnover. There is no SME threshold, no phased rollout by company size, and no transitional period for micro-enterprises. Every Belgian VAT-registered entity was required to issue and receive structured e-invoices from 1 January 2026.

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