_Services_What is eInvoicing?
"Electronic invoicing is trading with your customers and suppliers electronically. It's fast, efficient and cost effective."
An overview of electronic invoicing
Electronic invoicing or eInvoicing basically means trading electronically with clients and suppliers. The simplest
example is where a supplier creates an invoice in PDF and emails it to the customer. Another method is to create
an invoice in electronic format and then upload it directly to a customer's accounting system. The most efficient
way, however, is to use EDI (Electronic Data Interchange). With EDI the invoice data is transferred from computer to computer in an agreed
structured format over a trusted connection. It can be generated, read and processed automatically without any
human intervention.
Rules and usage
Invoicing electronically is a business to business operation. Typically a business will generate an electronic invoice from
its ERP or accounting software and send it to a customer. There are rules on how invoices are created, i.e.
once created they cannot be altered, how they are authenticated and stored. With EDI this is often straightforward, otherwise
invoices must be digitally signed and processes put in place for storing them securely.
Find out about the benefits of using electronic invoicing »