Verifactu: what it is and how it affects your company
The Spanish tax authority's invoicing regulation changes how invoices are issued. Here is what it requires, who it affects and what your company needs to do.
Equipo Consiga 6 min read
Verifactu is the name given to the Spanish regulation setting out the requirements for invoicing software. Its aim is simple to state: once an invoice has been issued, it must not be possible to modify or delete it without leaving a trace. To achieve this, every invoice must generate a signed invoicing record chained to the previous one, so that altering any single record breaks the whole chain.
What it actually requires
- Chained, tamper-proof records. Each invoice produces a record embedding a fingerprint of the previous one. If someone modifies an old invoice, the chain no longer adds up and the change is exposed.
- Traceable cancellations. An invoice is not deleted: it is cancelled with a record documenting the cancellation. The full history is preserved.
- Submission to the tax authority. Under the Verifactu mode, records are sent to the tax authority automatically as they are generated.
Who it affects
The regulation reaches practically every business and professional issuing invoices under the common Spanish tax regime, except those already subject to the immediate supply of VAT information (SII), who continue with that system. The Basque regional tax authorities keep their own framework, TicketBAI, with equivalent aims.
The timetable has been postponed more than once and distinguishes between companies and individuals, so it is worth checking the current dates directly with the tax authority before planning anything.
What your company needs to do
The short answer: make sure the software you invoice with complies. The technical obligation falls on the invoicing system, not on the user, but using a compliant system is the company's responsibility.
- Check what you actually invoice with. Many companies issue invoices from more than one place: the management software, a spreadsheet for odd cases, the shop's point of sale. Every one of those routes has to comply.
- Check whether your software provider has solved it. A compliant system generates the record and handles submission without the user doing anything different.
- Look at credit notes and cancellations. That is where the change of habits shows most: what used to be fixed by deleting and redoing is now documented.
What does not change
This is worth saying, because it causes a good deal of anxiety: Verifactu does not change how VAT is calculated, nor retention obligations, nor the content of the invoice your customer receives. It is a requirement on the system, not on the business. If your management software complies, the way you work at the counter or in the office stays the same.
In CSG-360, Verifactu compliance is built into invoicing itself, as are TicketBAI for the Basque regional authorities and SII for those subject to it. If you would like us to look at how it affects your particular case, get in touch.
