Since February 2024 XRechnung 3.0 is the binding standard for invoices to German federal authorities. Key changes at a glance.
Open XRechnung 3.0 file →UN/CEFACT code lists for unit of measure and currency codes have been updated to the latest version. Some obsolete codes were removed, new ones added.
Several Schematron rules were clarified or corrected to remove ambiguities from 2.x. Invoices that were valid in 2.x may be rejected in 3.0 – and vice versa.
The European standard EN 16931 was updated via official corrigenda (Errata). XRechnung 3.0 implements these corrections.
The fundamental structure remains the same: UBL and CII syntax. Mandatory fields like invoice number, issue date, tax amount and bank details are unchanged.
XRechnung 3.0 was published in August 2023 by the Coordination Office for IT Standards (KoSIT) and has been mandatory for invoices to federal authorities since February 2024.
New in 3.0: updated UN/CEFACT code lists for units of measure (some codes removed, new ones added), revised Schematron rules to eliminate ambiguities from 2.x, adjustments to EN 16931 errata. The fundamental structure – UBL and CII syntax, mandatory fields – remains unchanged.
XRechnung 3.0 – Official specification (KoSIT) · XRechnung – Changelog (xeinkauf.de)
Not necessarily. Invoices that were valid under 2.x may fail in 3.0 due to changed Schematron rules. Existing templates or ERP exports can be checked for 3.0.x compliance using the KoSIT Validator or the Ecosio Validator.
For B2B invoices between companies, current law does not mandate a specific version – as long as the format complies with EN 16931. For federal authorities, 3.0.x has been mandatory since February 2024.
KoSIT Validator (GitHub, open source) · Ecosio Validator (online, free)
Following the main release 3.0 (August 2023), versions 3.0.1 and 3.0.2 followed with minor corrections. The currently applicable version for federal authorities is 3.0.2 (as of 2025). KoSIT publishes all versions with changelogs on GitHub.
digital-rechnung.de processes XRechnung files of all versions – 2.x and 3.0.x – and displays all fields. For formal conformance validation against 3.0.x, please use a dedicated validator.
All fields displayed clearly – free, no upload to any server.
Open XRechnung →For invoices to federal authorities: yes – 3.0 has been mandatory since February 2024. For B2B invoices there is currently no obligation, but software vendors recommend the update.
Yes. digital-rechnung.de opens both XRechnung 2.x and 3.0 – UBL and CII.
On the KoSIT website: xoev.de/die_standards/xrechnung