Since January 1, 2026, all Belgian VAT-registered companies are required to send and receive their B2B invoices electronically via the Peppol network. While the regulation is now in effect, the government allows a three-month grace period during which no sanctions are applied, provided companies can demonstrate that they have prepared on time.
The figures show a clear acceleration, but also structural differences in adoption depending on region and company size.
At the end of 2025, the Peppol network experienced unprecedented growth. Today, 1.6 million Peppol IDs have been registered for 946,000 unique companies, of which 880,000 are VAT-registered. Notably, 750,000 IDs were created in December 2025, just before the legal deadline.
This final sprint shows that many companies delayed the transition, but also that the threshold for joining — particularly via external platforms — has become relatively low.
From 2026 onwards, a PDF invoice sent by email or via a standalone platform is no longer sufficient. Invoices must be exchanged in a structured and automated way directly between the sender’s and recipient’s software systems via Peppol.
Looking at the distribution of registered companies by region:
This distribution reflects not only the economic weight of the regions but also a historical gap in digital maturity. Flemish companies are clearly ahead, partly due to previous e-invoicing obligations for public contracts and a broader focus on digital integration.
Examining the share of registered companies within each region provides a more nuanced picture:
The gap is real, but smaller than often assumed.
The extent to which companies are connected to Peppol is strongly linked to their size. The larger the organization, the further along the registration process — a pattern clearly reflected in the data.
Among companies with no employees, only 57% have a Peppol ID. Once companies have a few employees, the adoption rate rises quickly: 79% for micro-companies (1–4 employees) and nearly 90% for companies with five or more employees. For medium and large companies, the registration rate exceeds 95%.
While e-invoicing is often viewed as a compliance exercise, its real value lies elsewhere:
For finance, credit, and sales teams, this translates into greater transparency and improved risk management. Companies that are lagging behind risk not only sanctions but also operational inefficiencies and commercial delays.
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