Section 14(4) UStG lists nine mandatory details, yet nobody in the business ticks them off.
Invoices arrive by email, as a photo of the delivery note or on paper with the goods. Whoever receives them, whether a fitter, a driver or the owner, checks what catches the eye: amount, service, date. The details on which the input VAT deduction actually depends are in small print and only surface at the tax adviser's office, once the month is already closed.
9mandatory detailsSection 14(4) UStG requires them on every invoice over 250 euros.
140incoming invoices a monthThat is how many a business with twelve employees receives.
11invoices with a defectA detail is missing or the description of the service is too vague.
5weeks to correctionThe defect surfaces at the tax adviser's office; a letter goes back to the supplier, and then the wait for the corrected invoice begins.
The defect becomes visible on the day of receipt instead of five weeks later, and catching it that early cuts review effort by 60% for the eleven defective invoices out of 140 a month.
The 60% reduction in review effort is this agent's headline figure. Invoice count, number of defects and the five weeks to a corrected invoice reflect a typical month in a small business; they are not measured values.