Requirements and solutions in the invoice receipt process
Immutability and timely archiving:
The archiving principles require require that digital documents be archived in an unalterable and timely manner. In practice, however, business transactions are often not archived promptly due to inadequate processes and media discontinuities, and changes are not sufficiently documented.
Traceability and completeness:
All tax-relevant information - including metadata, processing steps and approvals - must be fully documented and retrievable at any time. In practice, not all tax-relevant data is often archived. Such gaps jeopardize traceability and can lead to objections during a tax audit.
Availability and readability throughout the entire retention period:
It must be ensured that archived invoices remain accessible and interpretable even in the event of technical changes. In many cases, however, the customization of archiving systems is not sufficiently aligned with these requirements.
Process documentation:
This must describe all systems, processes, responsibilities, and technical measures used for archiving. In practice, such documentation is often missing or outdated, which significantly complicates the burden of proof towards the tax authorities.
In order to support companies in complying with the archiving requirements for digital incoming invoices, we offer a specialized advisory service for audit-proof archiving. The aim of this service is to systematically analyze the existing processes and systems within the company. We distinguish the following steps in this process:
Situation analysis of the archiving process and software:
As part of a structured situation analysis, we examine all relevant aspects of archiving digital invoices with regard to the archiving process implemented and the archiving software used.
Archiving requirements:
We examine the archiving requirements from the immutability of archived invoices to complete and audit-ready process documentation.
Assessment:
Evaluation of identified weaknesses and alignment with the requirements of the tax authorities and the expectations of external auditors.
Documentation of the results:
This includes a structured assessment of the identified risks and concrete recommendations on how the archiving processes can be optimized.
If required, we also support companies in selecting suitable software solutions for audit-proof archiving. For this purpose, we use a standardized approach to capture the customer’s functional and technical requirements in detail. Based on this, we accompany the selection process and help identify the most appropriate provider or solution – always with a focus on legal compliance, future viability and integration into existing system landscapes.
Legal certainty through targeted compliance checks
Transparency regarding the current state of your archiving processes
Audit readiness for internal and external audits
Increased efficiency through targeted optimization potential
