Spain E-Invoicing and Verifactu: 2027 Dates

Quick answer: Verifactu is Spain's set of rules for billing software: every invoice record must be hashed, chained and, in Verifactu mode, sent to the tax agency (AEAT). After a one-year delay it applies from 1 January 2027 for corporate taxpayers and 1 July 2027 for the self-employed. Separately, B2B e-invoicing under the Crea y Crece law is expected from October 2027 for companies above €8 million.

Spain has two reforms running in parallel, and they are easy to confuse. Verifactu controls how your invoicing software records invoices. Spain e-invoicing (factura electrónica B2B) controls what format you exchange with business customers. This guide covers both, with the latest dates as we understand them on 24 October 2026, and explains where a PDF from our free invoice generator stops being enough.

Important: This is general information, not tax or legal advice. Several Spanish dates have moved in the last two years, and the latest ones come from recent publications in the BOE. Check the Agencia Tributaria (AEAT) website or ask a gestor or asesor fiscal before relying on any date here.

What is Verifactu?

Verifactu (written VERI*FACTU by the AEAT) comes from the anti-fraud law, Law 11/2021, and its implementing regulation, Royal Decree 1007/2023, with the technical details in Ministerial Order HAC/1177/2024. The rules target "double-use" software that lets a business delete or alter sales after the fact. Under Verifactu, billing software must:

• Create a billing record (registro de facturación) for every invoice and every cancellation
• Link each record to the previous one with a hash, so gaps or edits are detectable
• Print a QR code on each invoice that lets the customer check it with the AEAT
• Prevent records from being altered or deleted without a trace
• Come with a declaration of responsibility from the software producer confirming compliance

Verifactu mode vs non-Verifactu mode

	Verifactu mode	Non-Verifactu mode
Records sent to AEAT	Automatically, as invoices are issued	No, kept in your system
Electronic signature on each record	Not required	Required
Event log	Not required	Required
Invoice wording	QR code plus the Verifactu legend (verifiable invoice)	QR code without the Verifactu legend
Suits	Most small businesses and autónomos	Businesses that do not want real-time submission and can handle the extra controls

Verifactu dates: when does it apply?

The original deadlines of 1 January 2026 and 1 July 2026 were pushed back by Royal Decree-law 15/2025 of 2 December 2025, which Congress validated later that month.

Who	Original date	Current date
Corporate income tax payers (sociedades)	1 January 2026	1 January 2027
Everyone else in scope: self-employed (autónomos) under IRPF, non-resident income tax payers, entities under income attribution	1 July 2026	1 July 2027

Software producers are expected to have compliant products on the market ahead of these dates, so most of the work for a small business is checking and updating the tool it already uses.

Who is outside Verifactu?

• Businesses on the Immediate Supply of Information system (SII), which already report invoice data to the AEAT within days
• Businesses under the regional tax systems of the Basque Country and Navarre (TicketBAI and Batuz)
• Businesses that do not use a computerised billing system

Spain e-invoicing: the Crea y Crece B2B mandate

Law 18/2022, known as the Crea y Crece law, requires businesses and professionals to issue and exchange electronic invoices in their B2B relationships, partly to track late payment. The implementing Royal Decree was approved on 24 March 2026 and is reported as Royal Decree 238/2026. The clock starts from a Ministerial Order on the AEAT's public e-invoicing solution.

Specialist sources report that this order (Order HAC/1028/2026) was published in the BOE on 5 October 2026 and took effect the next day. If that is confirmed, the dates are:

Who	Must issue B2B e-invoices from
Businesses and professionals with annual turnover above €8 million	6 October 2027 (reported)
All other businesses and autónomos	6 October 2028 (reported)

Many older articles show 1 October 2027 and 1 October 2028, which came from the draft order. Check the final text in the BOE before you plan around either date.

How Spanish B2B e-invoicing will work

Invoices are expected to be exchanged in structured formats (such as UBL, CII, Facturae or EDIFACT) through private platforms that interoperate, or through the AEAT's public solution, which also receives a copy. Recipients will report the status of invoices, including when they are paid, so the government can monitor payment periods. Our e-invoice vs PDF invoice explainer covers what "structured" means.

Spain e-invoicing to public administrations (FACe)

B2G e-invoicing is not new in Spain. Under Law 25/2013, suppliers to Spanish public administrations have had to send electronic invoices in the Facturae XML format, usually through the central FACe portal or regional equivalents, since 2015 (with an exception for small invoices that some administrations apply). If you already invoice the public sector this way, you have software and processes that can be extended to B2B.

Do Verifactu and Spanish e-invoicing apply to foreign businesses?

Verifactu is tied to Spanish income tax: it covers taxpayers subject to Spanish corporate income tax, personal income tax (IRPF) or non-resident income tax with a permanent establishment in Spain. A freelancer or company abroad with no Spanish establishment, billing a Spanish client, is generally outside it and can keep sending a PDF. The B2B e-invoicing mandate targets businesses and professionals established in Spain. Spanish clients may still ask foreign suppliers for structured invoices once their own systems switch over, so agree the format in your contract if it matters. For cross-border invoice basics, see invoicing international clients.

Verifactu vs Spain e-invoicing: the difference in one table

	Verifactu	B2B e-invoicing (Crea y Crece)
Legal basis	Law 11/2021, RD 1007/2023	Law 18/2022, RD 238/2026 (reported)
What it controls	Your billing software and records	The format and exchange of invoices with business customers
Applies to	B2B and B2C invoices	B2B invoices
Key dates	1 Jan 2027 companies, 1 Jul 2027 autónomos	Oct 2027 (over €8m), Oct 2028 (others)
Visible change	QR code and Verifactu legend on invoices	Invoices sent as structured files

Worked example: an autónomo's invoice under Verifactu

A freelance designer in Valencia invoices a Spanish agency in September 2027 for a branding project.

Line	Amount (€)
Base (net fee)	2,000.00
IVA at 21% (2,000 × 0.21)	420.00
IRPF withholding at 15% (2,000 × 0.15)	-300.00
Total to pay (2,000 + 420 - 300)	2,120.00

Because the date is after 1 July 2027, the designer's billing software must create a chained billing record for this invoice and print the QR code. In Verifactu mode the record goes to the AEAT automatically. The agency pays €2,120 and pays the €300 withheld to the tax agency on the designer's behalf. Until October 2028 (on the reported dates) the designer can still send this invoice as a PDF, as long as it comes from compliant software. After that it will also need to be a structured B2B e-invoice.

What a Spanish invoice must contain

The general invoicing regulation (Royal Decree 1619/2012) still sets the content: invoice number and series, issue date, supplier and customer names, NIF (tax ID) of both, addresses, description of the goods or services, tax base, IVA rate and amount, total, and the date of the operation if different. Verifactu adds the QR code and, in Verifactu mode, the legend. For a cross-country view of tax IDs, see tax ID on an invoice, and for the VAT basics, our VAT invoice guide.

Common Verifactu mistakes to avoid

• Thinking Verifactu is only for large companies. It covers autónomos too, from 1 July 2027.
• Confusing Verifactu with SII. SII users are excluded from Verifactu, not doubly covered.
• Editing an issued invoice. Under Verifactu you cancel or correct with a rectifying invoice (factura rectificativa), and the software records both.
• Relying on the draft October dates. Check the final Ministerial Order.
• Keeping old software "just for some invoices". Using non-compliant software can be penalised in itself.

Spain readiness checklist

• Confirm whether you pay corporate tax (1 January 2027) or IRPF (1 July 2027)
• Ask your software provider for its Verifactu declaration of responsibility
• Decide between Verifactu and non-Verifactu mode
• Check that your invoices print the QR code correctly; see our guide to the QR code on an invoice
• Note your B2B e-invoicing date: above or below €8 million turnover
• Plan your rectifying invoice process

Can I use a free online invoice generator in Spain?

Be careful. Our generator creates PDFs in your browser and does not create Verifactu billing records, QR codes linked to the AEAT or structured e-invoices. Once Verifactu applies to you, invoices you issue to customers should come from compliant billing software. A browser PDF tool remains useful for quotes (presupuestos), proformas and drafts, and for businesses outside the Spanish rules, such as a foreign freelancer billing a Spanish client. Compare the options in invoice generator vs accounting software.

Next step

Ask your billing software provider now whether its product is Verifactu-ready and which mode it uses. Then put your two dates in the calendar: Verifactu (January or July 2027) and B2B e-invoicing (October 2027 or 2028). For how Spain compares with its neighbours, see our country-by-country e-invoicing mandates list.