A copy of the paper invoice as an e-invoice
In the case of a VAT payer, the transaction provided to another company must be confirmed by an invoice. The original document goes to the buyer, and the taxpayer must keep a copy in his documentation. And here a doubt arises - can a copy of a paper invoice be stored as an e-invoice?
E-invoice - how to store it?
Currently, the key legal act in this area is the Value Added Tax Act. According to its Art. 2 point 33 - an electronic invoice is an invoice in electronic form, issued and received in any electronic format.This means that the condition for recognizing a document as an e-invoice is the content of the information described in the regulations.
Pursuant to Art. 112a paragraph. 1 of the aforementioned Act, entrepreneurs are required to store:
- invoices issued by yourself or on your behalf,
- received invoices
- broken down into accounting periods, in a way that ensures their easy retrieval and the authenticity of origin, integrity of the content and legibility of these invoices until they are issued or received until the tax liability expires.
This means that if the invoice meets the above-mentioned conditions, it can also be stored in electronic form.
A copy of an invoice as an e-invoice - tax interpretation
Confirmation of the position that a copy of the invoice can be stored as an e-invoice can be found in the individual interpretation of the Director of the Tax Chamber in Poznań of June 29, 2012 (ILPP2 / 443-100 / 10/12-S / EN). The director stated that a copy of the issued paper invoice may be stored in the electronic accounting system, i.e. as an e-invoice. The condition is that if the tax authority requests that the said copy be printed, the entrepreneur will be able to do so without delay. Another objection on the part of the Director is the need to guarantee the integrity of the content of the e-invoice in the aforementioned electronic system - the copy must always faithfully reflect the original received by the contractor.
A copy of an invoice as an e-invoice - court decisions
Administrative courts have a similar opinion. The Provincial Administrative Court in Wrocław in the judgment of 28 January 2011 (I SA / Wr 1342/10) confirmed that storing a copy of an invoice in the electronic system is correct and legally permitted, when the invoice was drawn up in this system and then, after printing, handed over to service buyer. The WSA defined this as a permitted mixed system of sending and storing invoices.
Doing so can lower your company's costs, reduce the paperwork and have a positive impact on the environment. A copy of the invoice stored as an e-invoice saves a lot of money, as does the transfer of originals via e-mail. Therefore, one should be glad that the present interpretation of the law in this area is beneficial for entrepreneurs.
