Mandatory Invoice Details in Germany: What § 14 UStG Requires

The mandatory details under § 14 (4) UStG

Section 14 (4) UStG lists what a full invoice must contain. The list applies to invoices between businesses and to every invoice a business is obliged to issue.

• Full name and address of the supplier and of the customer
• The supplier's tax number (Steuernummer) or VAT identification number (USt-IdNr.)
• The date of issue
• A unique invoice number
• Quantity and customary description of the goods, or type and scope of the service
• The date of the supply or service, or the period in which it was provided
• The net amount, broken down by tax rate or exemption, and any reduction agreed in advance, such as a cash discount
• The tax rate and the VAT amount, or a note explaining why no VAT is charged

The details people most often get wrong

The date of supply is the classic gap. It is required even if it is the same as the invoice date; in that case a short note such as Date of supply corresponds to invoice date is enough. For services provided over a period, state the period, for example Service period: March 2026. In Toolula's Invoice Generator, add it to the line description or to the Notes field.

The invoice number must be unique, so that the invoice can be identified without doubt. It may contain letters and digits, and you can use several number ranges, for example one per year or per type of business, such as 2026-0042. A number may never be used twice. Gaps are not forbidden as such, but numbers that jump without a reason invite questions in an audit.

The description must be specific enough to identify the supply. Consulting services or goods as per our agreement is too vague; Consulting on the website relaunch, 12 hours, 9 to 20 March 2026 is clear. The tax office checks whether the invoice proves what was delivered, and the customer needs it to show that the expense belongs to the business.

The addresses must be complete enough to find the parties. A post office box is accepted, but an abbreviated company name or an address without a postcode is not ideal. Since the e-invoice obligation began, many customers also expect their order number or internal reference on the invoice so that it can be booked automatically.

Small-amount invoices up to 250 euros

For invoices with a gross total of no more than 250 euros, section 33 of the VAT Implementing Regulation (UStDV) allows a simplified form, the Kleinbetragsrechnung. It needs only the full name and address of the supplier, the date of issue, the quantity and description of the goods or the type and scope of the service, and the gross amount together with the tax rate, or a note on the exemption.

The customer's name, the invoice number, the tax number and the separate VAT amount may be left out. That is why a till receipt from a shop counts as an invoice for input tax purposes. Small-amount invoices are also exempt from the obligation to issue e-invoices between businesses.

Special notes on the invoice

Some situations require a specific note instead of, or in addition to, the VAT amount. A small business that uses the small business scheme under § 19 UStG charges no VAT and must say so, for example: In accordance with § 19 UStG, no VAT is charged. The Invoice Generator's Small business switch removes VAT from all lines and prints this note; the guide on the small business rule explains the 2025 thresholds.

When the customer owes the VAT, as for services to businesses in other EU countries, the invoice shows no German VAT but must state both VAT identification numbers and the note Reverse charge (in German: Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers). The guide VAT Across EU Borders covers these cases.

For construction work and other services connected with a property for a private customer, the invoice must also tell the customer to keep it for two years. A credit note issued by the customer instead of the supplier, a self-billing invoice, must carry the word Gutschrift.

Private customers and deadlines

To private customers, a business generally does not have to issue an invoice at all, but it may, and most do. The exception is work connected with a property, such as repairs or renovation, where an invoice must be issued within six months, even to a private person.

If you want the 30-day default under German civil law to start automatically for a consumer, the invoice must point this out (§ 286 (3) BGB). The guide Late Payment Interest and Reminders explains how defaults and interest work.

E-invoices, retention and corrections

Between businesses in Germany, the mandatory details now increasingly travel as structured data. Since 1 January 2025 every business must be able to receive e-invoices in the EN 16931 format; issuing them becomes mandatory in stages until 2028. The required details remain the same; in an XRechnung or ZUGFeRD file they are fields with fixed names. The guide on the e-invoicing timeline explains the transition, and the E-Invoicing Studio creates such files.

Invoices are accounting records and must be kept. Since 2025 the retention period for invoices and other accounting vouchers is eight years, counted from the end of the calendar year. E-invoices must be kept in their electronic form; a printout is not enough.

An invoice with a missing or wrong detail can be corrected. The supplier issues a corrected document that refers specifically to the original invoice, for example by its number and date, and supplies the missing or corrected details. If the VAT amount itself was wrong, the safest route is to cancel the original with a cancellation invoice and issue a new one. Never simply change a copy of an invoice already sent.

A quick check before you send

A short routine catches most gaps before the customer does. Toolula's Invoice Generator lists the required details it can check, such as your name and address, tax number or VAT ID, the client, the invoice number, the date and at least one line item, and shows which are still missing. Everything that depends on the individual case, such as the date of supply or a special note, remains your job.

• Both addresses complete, your tax number or VAT ID present
• New, unused invoice number and today's date
• Specific description, quantity and date or period of supply
• Net amounts per tax rate, the rate and the VAT amount, or the reason why there is none
• Payment terms, bank details and, if useful, a GiroCode for quick payment

Advance payments and final invoices

If you ask for a payment before the work is done, for example a deposit on a larger project, you can issue an advance payment invoice. It needs the same mandatory details as any invoice, with the difference that it states the expected date or period of the service and the amount paid in advance, together with the VAT on it.

The final invoice must then show the full price of the whole service and deduct the advance payments already received, together with the VAT that was charged on them (§ 14 (5) UStG). Otherwise the VAT on the advance would appear twice: once on the advance invoice and once on the final invoice, and you would owe it twice as well. Name each advance invoice by its number and date in the final invoice, so that the customer's accountant can match them.

Frequently asked questions