Spain's Council of Ministers approved a royal decree on March 24, 2026, introducing mandatory electronic invoicing for business-to-business transactions, establishing structured invoicing requirements with phased implementation timelines.

Framework design

The system adopts a five-corner model enabling exchange and reporting of invoice data across interconnected systems. Businesses must use structured, machine-readable electronic invoices replacing traditional PDF, Excel, and paper formats. The framework requires reporting of complete invoice lifecycle data including issuance, acceptance, payment status, and payment dates, enabling full transaction traceability.

Companies can issue and receive e-invoices through private platforms, which must be interoperable to ensure open communication, or through a public platform operated by the Spanish tax authority (AEAT) available free of charge.

Implementation timeline

The rollout follows revenue-based thresholds: companies with annual revenue above €8 million must comply within one year, while all other companies have two years. Implementation begins upon publication of the ministerial order defining technical specifications, expected before July 1, 2026.

Context

The measure develops Article 12 of Law 18/2022 (Crea y Crece Law) and aligns with the European Commission's VAT in the Digital Age initiative. The reform addresses Spain's payment period challenges, where transactions currently average 80 days, exceeding national and EU benchmarks. The B2B e-invoicing system operates separately from the existing Verifactu initiative, which focuses on invoicing software compliance and fraud prevention.