Key takeaways

• Sending an invoice via Peppol means delivering it to a participant identifier, not to an email address.
• The send always goes through an access point that converts the invoice to Peppol BIS (UBL 2.1), validates it and routes it.
• In Belgium, the recipient is identified by their enterprise number through the 0208 scheme.
• A successful send is confirmed by the Message Level Status (MLS) returned by the network.

Since 1 January 2026, invoices between VAT-registered businesses established in Belgium must be structured e-invoices, sent over the Peppol network by default, according to the FPS Finance. That leaves a concrete question: how do you send an invoice via Peppol day to day, without touching the XML or running any infrastructure? This article follows the real path of an invoice, from the "Send" click to the delivery acknowledgement, and shows where software like YouInv takes over.

Sending a Peppol invoice is not sending a PDF

The difference is in who the send is addressed to. A PDF goes to an email address that a human opens and re-keys. A Peppol invoice goes to a participant identifier: a technical address registered on the network that the recipient's software reads automatically. So you are not sending a document to read, but data ready to be processed.

That identifier rests on a scheme. In Belgium, the scheme used for B2B billing is the 0208 prefix, which designates the enterprise number (Crossroads Bank for Enterprises). A business whose VAT number is BE0123.456.789 is thus reached at the address 0208:0123456789. For the detail of the format exchanged, see Peppol BIS Billing 3.0: what the format contains.

What you need before the first send

Sending a Peppol invoice assumes a few things are in place. None is technical on your side: they are pieces of information and connected software, not infrastructure to build.

The prerequisites for sending a Peppol invoice

• Software connected to an access point

  The tool that issues your invoices must be connected to the Peppol network, directly or through its provider.

• Your participant identifier

  Your enterprise number declared on the network in the 0208:number format, so you are a recognised sender.

• The recipient's identifier

  The client must be registered on Peppol; their 0208 address lets the network locate them.

• Complete invoice data

  Correct parties, lines, VAT breakdown and totals, without which validation fails.

The most often overlooked point is the last one. The network does not merely transport the invoice: it validates it against the profile's rules. An invoice with incomplete data is rejected before it even reaches the recipient, which makes data accuracy more important than with a PDF.

What happens when you click "Send"

Behind a single button, the invoice travels Peppol's four-corner model: you (C1) go through your access point (C2), which passes it to the recipient's access point (C3), which delivers it to the recipient (C4). Each step is automatic.

1. 1

   Generation in the Peppol BIS format

   The software converts your data into a structured Peppol BIS (UBL 2.1) invoice.

2. 2

   Validation

   The invoice is checked against the profile's rules; a non-compliant invoice is stopped here.

3. 3

   Locating the recipient

   The access point queries the SML and the SMP to find where to deliver the target 0208 identifier.

4. 4

   Transmission

   The invoice is handed to the recipient's access point, which delivers it to their software.

5. 5

   Acknowledgement

   A Message Level Status (MLS) comes back and confirms rejection, acceptance or delivery.

That journey explains why you need a single connection to reach every participant on the network: the access point knows how to route any invoice to any registered recipient. To understand that connection, see how to connect to a Peppol access point.

PDF by email or Peppol send: what changes

A Peppol send does not only replace the channel; it changes the nature of what travels. The table below sums up the gap for the sender.

Re-keying disappears on both sides: you neither print nor attach a file, and the recipient copies nothing across. It is this removal of double entry, as much as compliance, that justifies the move to Peppol.

Sending and confirming delivery with YouInv

In practice, you do none of these steps by hand. YouInv is connected to the Peppol network: from the invoice screen, sending generates the Peppol BIS (UBL 2.1) file, validates it and delivers it to your client's access point, with no separate access point to contract on your side.

The status returned by the network comes back to you in the tool, so you know whether the invoice was delivered or rejected rather than assuming it. Because the connection also handles the inbound flow, you receive your suppliers' invoices the same way. For an overview of what the software automates, see automating your invoicing with YouInv.

Send your Peppol invoices without touching the XML

YouInv generates, validates and delivers your Peppol BIS invoices over the network, and confirms their delivery.

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Further reading

• Peppol BIS Billing 3.0: what the format contains: the invoice profile you send.
• Connecting to Peppol: the access point explained: the role of the access point and the four-corner model.
• Peppol in Belgium: the B2B mandate on 1 January 2026: who is in scope and from when.

The reference source is authoritative: the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 documentation published by OpenPeppol.

How do you send an invoice via Peppol?

You do not connect to the network yourself. You enter the invoice in software connected to a Peppol access point, which converts it to the Peppol BIS (UBL 2.1) format, validates it and delivers it to the recipient's Peppol identifier. With YouInv, sending happens from the invoice screen, with no XML file to handle.

Do you need an access point to send a Peppol invoice?

Yes, but not one contracted in your own name. Sending always goes through an access point certified by OpenPeppol. If your software is already connected, like YouInv, you have no separate contract to sign and no access point to maintain yourself.

Which identifier do you need to send a Peppol invoice in Belgium?

The recipient is reached via their Peppol participant identifier. In Belgium it rests on the enterprise number from the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises, in the format 0208:number. It is this address, not an email address, that the network uses to route the invoice.

How do you know a Peppol invoice was received?

The sending access point validates the invoice, then locates the recipient via the SML and the SMP. The Message Level Status (MLS) returned states whether the document was rejected, accepted or delivered to the recipient's access point, giving you a technical acknowledgement of the send.

Can you still send an invoice as a PDF by email in B2B?

Since 1 January 2026, invoices between VAT-registered businesses established in Belgium must be structured e-invoices sent over Peppol by default, according to the FPS Finance. A PDF sent by email no longer meets that obligation for those exchanges.