E-invoicing for trades & crafts businesses
You already have enough on your plate with the actual work. Create and check e-invoices to EN 16931 without an accounting degree and without a mandatory subscription.
Typical challenges
Small businesses included
Since 1 January 2025, every business in Germany must be able to receive e-invoices, regardless of size. The obligation to issue them follows in stages until 2028. With sichere-erechnung.de you are ready for both today.
GiroCode right on the invoice
Every invoice automatically carries a GiroCode to scan and a personal “Pay now” page. If a customer does not respond, the optional automatic dunning sends the reminders.
Pay for what you use
Whether 3 or 30 invoices a month: you pay per transaction. No accounting package, no training, no contract.
Progress invoices that the final invoice offsets by itself
On jobs that run for weeks you issue down payment or progress invoices. The final invoice offsets the amounts already received, and VAT is shown only on the remaining amount. For construction services there are separate invoice types for progress, partial final and final invoice.
Tax treatment per line instead of manual work
If one invoice mixes services with and without reverse-charge, you set the tax treatment per line. The invoice shows several tax blocks, each with the matching note, and is checked against the KoSIT validator. Which rule applies is something to clarify with your tax adviser.
Your layout stays, the e-invoice is added
You have your own invoice form in Word or in your trades software? Upload the finished PDF: the AI reads the data, you check it, and your PDF gets the e-invoice data without any change to the layout. Or you create your invoices in your own Word template.
Frequently asked questions: E-invoicing for trades & crafts businesses
Do I have to create e-invoices as a trades business?
You have had to be able to receive e-invoices since 1 January 2025, regardless of the size of your business. Issuing them becomes mandatory in stages until 2028, depending on company size. With sichere-erechnung.de you can do both right now.
Do I need to know XML?
No. You fill in a normal form (customer, line items, amounts) and we generate the ZUGFeRD PDF with embedded, KoSIT-validated XML in the background.
How do I get paid faster?
Every invoice carries a GiroCode and a “Pay now” link. If a customer does not pay on time, the optional automatic dunning handles the payment reminder and the dunning stages.
What does it cost for a small business?
Creating an invoice costs 1 credit, checking one including IBAN fraud protection costs 3 credits, no subscription required. Getting started is free with complimentary credits.
How do I offset progress invoices in the final invoice?
In the final invoice select the progress or down payment invoices already issued. They are offset, and VAT is shown only on the remaining amount.
Can I keep using my current invoice form?
Yes. You upload the finished PDF, the AI reads the data and your PDF is provided with the e-invoice data, the layout stays. Alternatively you create invoices in your own Word template.
Can I attach timesheets or a measurement to the invoice?
Yes, as a PDF attachment to the e-invoice. It is embedded and archived with the invoice.