E-invoicing will be fundamental change for VAT-registered businesses

The mandatory introduction of e-invoicing for all VAT-registered businesses selling to UK business customers from April 2029 will be a fundamental change, says the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT).

The government announced the requirement in the Autumn Budget 2025 policy documents.

It said: 'Continued collaboration between the government and the private sector is essential for driving innovation. To drive productivity further, the government will require the use of electronic invoicing for all VAT invoices for business-to-business and business-to-government transactions from 2029, with a roadmap to be published at Budget 2026.'

The CIOT is cautioning the government against rushing into mandatory e-invoicing, calling for the use of thresholds and staged implementation to try to mitigate the impact of such significant digital change.

E-invoicing is a digital exchange of invoice information directly between the supplier and customer's accounting systems; invoices sent electronically by email with a pdf or jpeg format attachment will no longer suffice.

CIOT spokesperson Alison Kerrey said:

'E-invoicing is a fundamental change for businesses. This goes further than Making Tax Digital, because it is not just digital record keeping, it is communicating digitally with customers and suppliers.

'We are particularly concerned that those businesses that only issue and receive a handful of invoices per year will face disproportionate costs.

'The CIOT support moves to increase the adoption of e-invoicing. But if there is to be a mandate, there need to be real benefits to HMRC and UK businesses and sensible, realistic implementation.'

Internet link: CIOT