In February 2014, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted in favor of establishing a standard that was previously endorsed by member states in January. This standard has now been ratified by the Council.
A unified e-invoicing standard is being introduced to address compatibility issues between different systems. Proponents suggest that transitioning to electronic invoicing could result in annual savings of EUR 2.3 billion across the European Union, although current usage ranges from 4% to 15% of total invoices.
The European standards organizations CEN, Cenelec, and ETSI will be responsible for developing this standard. Following its publication, central government entities are expected to implement it within 18 months, while local and regional contracting authorities have a period of 30 months.
By 2016, all public sector buyers are required to conduct their procurement processes electronically.
