E-invoicing in Ireland: what your business needs to know

Ireland’s move towards mandatory e-invoicing and digital VAT reporting took a significant step forward with the publication of Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026 on 19 October 2026.

On 21 October, Revenue provided further detail on how the proposed framework will work in practice, publishing draft Regulations to support the legislation, an updated implementation paper and a dedicated e-Invoicing Hub on its website. Together, these developments give businesses a clearer picture of the changes ahead and the phased rollout beginning in November 2028.

The key message: all businesses in Ireland must be able to receive structured e-invoices from 1 November 2028, even if they are not yet required to issue them. This includes businesses that are not VAT-registered.

What is changing?

A structured e-invoice is issued, transmitted and received in a format that accounting systems can process automatically. It must comply with European standard EN 16931-1. An ordinary PDF sent by email will not meet this requirement.

Businesses required to issue e-invoices must also electronically report a subset of this invoice data to Revenue in real time.

The obligation to receive e-invoices applies broadly. It extends beyond trading companies and public bodies to charities, landlords and individuals carrying on an income-generating activity. Customers cannot opt out of receiving the prescribed structured invoice, although they may also receive an additional copy in another format.

When will the requirements apply?

For the first phase, Large Corporates are VAT-registered businesses established, or with a fixed establishment, in Ireland whose tax affairs are managed by Revenue’s Large Corporates Division (LCD) on 1 January 2027. A business within LCD on that date will remain in the first phase even if its affairs subsequently move to another Revenue division. Businesses assigned to LCD after 1 January 2027 and still there on 1 January 2028 will enter the issuing and reporting regime from November 2029.

Which transactions are covered?

The domestic e-invoicing and real-time reporting obligations will cover taxable supplies to Irish-established business customers and public bodies, including certain domestic reverse-charge transactions. VAT-exempt supplies and consumer sales are outside the initial mandate, although a business may choose to use structured e-invoicing for exempt supplies.

Receiving an e-invoice does not, by itself, create an obligation to report it to Revenue. For domestic e-invoices, the reporting obligation rests with the supplier rather than the customer. Special rules will apply where self-billing is used and for reverse-charge supplies.

The position changes for cross-border EU B2B transactions from July 2030. Under ViDA, the supplier must report the relevant data in real time when the invoice is issued, with the customer obliged to report receipt of the structured e-invoice within five days. Compliance with these requirements will also be a condition for retaining the 0% VAT treatment for qualifying intra-EU supplies.

How will invoices be exchanged?

Revenue has identified Peppol as the default network for exchanging e-invoices and the mandatory channel for digital reporting in Ireland. A supplier and customer may agree in advance to exchange invoices using another structured format or network, but the related reporting to Revenue must still pass through Peppol.

All businesses will require a Business Identifier number to operate e-invoicing. For VAT-registered businesses, this will generally be their existing VAT number, but Revenue will issue a Business Identifier to businesses that are not VAT-registered. Revenue has indicated that they will be issuing further guidance on this over the coming months.

What other practical details are emerging?

Reporting and master data: Businesses will need to report key invoice details and accurate supplier and customer Business Identifier numbers. Supplier and customer data and all VAT coding and mapping must therefore be accurate. In addition, specific data will need to be reported for credit notes and debit notes. This means that data quality and system setup are critical, as issuing of e-invoices and real-time reporting is entirely dependent on accurate master data.

The draft framework goes beyond invoice format. Businesses will need controls to protect invoice authenticity and integrity, maintain a reliable audit trail and retain invoices in structured electronic form. Mandatory e-invoices will also require customer identification details, and recipient consent will no longer be needed where the statutory requirement applies.

Storage, retrieval and access: Systems used to issue or receive structured e-invoices must retain them in electronic form, reproduce them when required in electronic and paper format, and invoices must be capable of being retrieved by data field. Businesses must be able to tell Revenue where invoices are stored and give Revenue access as needed for inspection and retrieval.

The underlying VAT rules are not changing; VAT rates, payment obligations, VAT calculations and periodic VAT returns will remain. However, from July 2030, VIES returns are expected to be removed as ViDA digital reporting takes effect. Revenue has indicated that detailed technical specifications will follow over the coming months, so businesses can begin process and system design now.

Using a service provider: If your VAT reporting is outsourced, your responsibility is not. Businesses must retain continuous access to the underlying invoices, credit notes and debit notes and remain accountable for VAT compliance. Outsourcing service provider contracts, service levels and monitoring controls should reflect this.

Receive-only businesses: Revenue has indicated that businesses which will only receive e-invoices under the first phase do not need to act yet, and that further guidance will follow. However, as receiving e-invoices will still require a structured-format system that can store, retrieve and reproduce invoices, businesses buying from in-scope suppliers should nevertheless understand and consider their options early.

What should businesses do now to prepare?

• Understand your timeline: identify when your business must receive, issue and report e-invoices.
• Prepare to issue e-invoices: review sales invoicing, accounts payable, self-billing, customer identifiers, VAT coding and controls, together with the data needed for real-time reporting.
• Prepare to receive e-invoices: Engage with your software provider and assign responsibility across Tax, Finance, Procurement and IT for invoice integrity, audit trails, exception handling and data quality.

How Forvis Mazars can help

Our Indirect Tax and Business Consulting teams can help assess your obligations, review transactions, systems and VAT data, and develop an implementation plan.

Contact Oonagh Carney, Partner and Head of Indirect Tax, to discuss your business’s readiness.

Based on Revenue guidance available on 22 October 2026.