Invoicing

Invoicing a client in Belgium: reverse charge and what the Peppol mandate means for you

Your Belgian client wants Peppol. Before you sign up for anything, check who the mandate actually covers.

Invoicing a client in Belgium: reverse charge and what the Peppol mandate means for you
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Updated
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On this page
  1. French or Dutch
  2. Private customers in Belgium
  3. E-invoicing in Belgium
  4. Sample reply to the Peppol request
  5. How Backbone does it

Your client in Brussels writes that from now on they only accept invoices through Peppol. You have no Peppol access, and the invoice is due. Before you sign up for one: the Belgian mandate covers businesses established in Belgium. As a sender with no establishment there, you are exempt.

From GermanyFrom Austria

Invoicing a client in Belgium from Germany

To a business in Belgium you invoice a service net, and your client owes the Belgian VAT. The invoice shows your VAT number, your client's Belgian number (BE…) and the line "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers". You report the sale in the EC Sales List with the BZSt. With no establishment in Belgium, you do not need Peppol.

Invoicing a Belgian business from Germany

For services to businesses, the place of supply is with the client (§ 3a(2) UStG). In Belgium your client then owes the VAT (Article 196 of the VAT Directive). You write the invoice under the rules of your own country, because you are not established in Belgium (Article 219a of the VAT Directive).

Based in Germany, the invoice needs the usual mandatory details plus:

  • the net amount with no VAT rate and no VAT amount
  • your German VAT number and your client's Belgian VAT number (§ 14a(1) sentence 3 UStG)
  • "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers" (§ 14a(1) sentence 1 UStG)

The invoice has to be issued by the 15th of the following month. Check your client's number in VIES and keep the result. The sale goes into the EC Sales List with the BZSt by the 25th day after the quarter (§ 18a(2) UStG).

Note on the invoice
Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers.
Autoliquidation. TVA due par le preneur (article 196 de la directive 2006/112/CE).
Btw verlegd. Btw verschuldigd door de afnemer (artikel 196 van Richtlijn 2006/112/EG).

Small businesses (Kleinunternehmer) in Germany

Under the small business rule in § 19 UStG, the reverse-charge note still goes on an invoice to a Belgian business. You do not need both VAT numbers (§ 19(1) sentence 2 UStG), and there is no EC Sales List (§ 18a(4) UStG).

The small business line is covered in Small business invoice wording.

Invoicing a client in Belgium from Austria

To a business in Belgium you invoice a service net, and your client owes the Belgian VAT. The invoice shows both VAT numbers and the note "Übergang der Steuerschuld auf den Leistungsempfänger". You report the sale by the end of the following month in the recapitulative statement in FinanzOnline. With no establishment in Belgium, you do not need Peppol.

Invoicing a Belgian business from Austria

For services to businesses, the place of supply is with the client (§ 3a(6) UStG AT). In Belgium your client then owes the VAT (Article 196 of the VAT Directive). You write the invoice under the rules of your own country, because you are not established in Belgium (Article 219a of the VAT Directive).

Based in Austria, the invoice follows § 11(1a) UStG AT. It needs the usual mandatory details plus:

  • the net amount with no VAT amount
  • your Austrian VAT number and your client's Belgian VAT number
  • a note on the transfer of tax liability

The invoice has to be issued by the 15th of the following month. Check your client's number in VIES and keep the result. You file the recapitulative statement in FinanzOnline, each time by the end of the following month.

Note on the invoice
Übergang der Steuerschuld auf den Leistungsempfänger.
Autoliquidation. TVA due par le preneur (article 196 de la directive 2006/112/CE).

Small businesses (Kleinunternehmer) in Austria

With the exemption under § 6(1)(27) UStG AT (up to €55,000) you still need a VAT number for EU business clients, issue the invoice with the reverse-charge note and report the sale in the recapitulative statement. That is how the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (WKO) describes it. The USP also confirms that small businesses get a VAT number for this.

The small business line is covered in Small business invoice wording.

Your invoice to Belgium with Backbone: Backbone is the agentic back office for teams and agents. Tell your AI chat, ChatGPT, Claude or any other AI with MCP support: "Write an invoice to Atelier Noord in Antwerp for €2,400 for the October web design." With your client's Belgian VAT number on file, Backbone sets the reverse charge with 0% and the note on who owes the tax, and checks the mandatory details. You confirm the draft. Ready in minutes, no bookkeeping knowledge needed.

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French or Dutch

Belgium is bilingual, and your client's finance team works in French or Dutch. For your home rules, the German wording is enough. A line in the right language saves a round of questions. More wording is in our reverse-charge sample.

Private customers in Belgium

For private individuals, the place of supply is where your business is (§ 3a(1) UStG), so 19% German or 20% Austrian VAT. For digital services, telecoms and broadcasting the place moves to Belgium once those sales to private customers in other EU countries exceed €10,000. You then charge the Belgian standard rate of 21% and report it through the One Stop Shop.

E-invoicing in Belgium

Since 1 January 2026 Belgian businesses with a VAT number have to send each other structured e-invoices through the Peppol network in Peppol BIS format. A PDF by email no longer counts between them. That includes Belgian small businesses, for issuing and for receiving.

According to SPF Finances, businesses with no permanent establishment in Belgium are exempt, even if they hold a Belgian VAT number. For invoices from abroad, an e-invoice is only allowed with the recipient's consent, and a Peppol registration counts as consent. Paper remains allowed, a PDF with the recipient's consent. If your client still wants an e-invoice, ask first whether they can process ZUGFeRD or XRechnung.

For public contracts published since 1 March 2024, e-invoices to Belgian public bodies are mandatory from €3,000 excluding VAT, and below that for federal bodies. Whether that also covers foreign suppliers is something to clarify with the contracting authority.

Sample reply to the Peppol request

Reply to the Peppol request
Madame, Monsieur, nous ne sommes pas établis en Belgique. Selon le SPF Finances, l'obligation de facturation électronique structurée ne s'applique pas à notre entreprise. Nous vous envoyons donc la facture en PDF.
Cordialement.
Dear Sir or Madam, we have no seat or establishment in Belgium. According to SPF Finances, the structured e-invoicing mandate does not apply to us. We are therefore sending the invoice as a PDF.
Kind regards.

If the client does not pay, read Payment reminders to Belgium.

Why this one matters to us

My goal is to optimise and automate back-office tasks so that we founders can focus on what matters most.

Automating back-office work with AI agents and AI integrations is the future – that's why I built Backbone!

LucaLucaFounder, Backbone

How Backbone does it

Invoices to Belgium, done right. In the app, or in a chat with ChatGPT, Claude and many more.

  1. Invoice to Belgium

    Reverse charge, with the French and Dutch note.

    In the chat

    Write a draft invoice for Atelier Noord in Antwerp: October web design, €2,400, with the note in French and Dutch too.

    Backbone connectorcreate_document

    Here's the draft: reverse charge with 0%, the note on who owes the tax, in French and Dutch too.

    Draft
    Invoice
    Atelier Noord BV
    €2,400.00
    Created 02/11/2026
    In the app

  2. Check the details

    Checked before it goes out. You issue it.

    In the chat

    All set for Belgium? Then issue it.

    Backbone connectorissue_document

    Every mandatory detail is on it:

    • Net, 0% VAT
    • Reverse-charge note, plus « Autoliquidation » and "Btw verlegd"
    • Your VAT ID DE123456789 and the Belgian number BE0123456749
    • No Peppol needed without an establishment in Belgium

    Issued as RE-2026-0157.

    Open
    Invoice
    Atelier Noord BV
    €2,400.00
    RE-2026-0157 · Issued 02/11/2026
    In the app

  3. Off to the client

    You approve. Only then does it go out.

    In the chat

    Send it to Atelier Noord.

    Backbone connectorsend_document
    Send invoice
    To
    Atelier Noord BV[email protected]
    Document
    Invoice RE-2026-0157 · €2,400.00
    Expires in 28 min28 min

    With dunning on, Backbone sends the reminders if it stays unpaid.

    In the app
  • Invoices under German and Austrian lawLive
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General information, not legal or tax advice and no review of your case. Details on providers and laws can change. For your case, follow your tax adviser.

Sources: § 3a UStG (DE) · § 14a UStG (DE) · § 18a UStG (DE) · § 19 UStG (DE) · European Commission, invoicing rules · SPF Finances, who must e-invoice · SPF Finances, measures from 1 January 2026 · SPF Finances, B2B FAQ · SPF Finances, VAT rates · BZSt, EC Sales List · BZSt, One Stop Shop · USP, reverse charge · BOSA/FPS Finance, e-invoicing to the government · USP, VAT identification number · WKO, VAT numbers for founders · USP, recapitulative statement