Get ZUGFeRD
ZUGFeRD PDF/A-3b EN 16931

Free ZUGFeRD Validator Online

Check the PDF container and the embedded XML of your ZUGFeRD invoices in seconds.

Drag and drop your invoices here, or click to browse.

Meets the standards EN 16931 ZUGFeRD / Factur-X XRechnung KoSIT GoBD Archive PDF/A-3

How It Works

Upload, check, fix: a full compliance report in seconds.

Step 1

Drop In Your File

Upload one ZUGFeRD PDF at a time, or sign in to check up to 100 in one batch. Files are checked in memory and discarded, nothing is stored.

Step 2

Every Rule Layer Checked

PDF/A-3b conformance, the embedded XML attachment, the schema, and all EN 16931 business rules are verified in a single pass.

Step 3

Read the Plain-Language Report

Each violation lists the affected field (BT reference), what went wrong, and how to fix it, so corrections take minutes, not hours.

Why Validate Your ZUGFeRD Invoices Here?

A rejected e-invoice delays payment. Find schema and business-rule errors before DATEV or your customer does.

Complete EN 16931 Rule Check

Every syntax and business rule of the European norm runs against the embedded CII XML, at exactly the strictness the declared ZUGFeRD profile requires.

Checks the PDF Container Too

ZUGFeRD files fail imports for container reasons as often as XML ones: we verify PDF/A-3b conformance and the embedded attachment, not just the data.

Ready for DATEV, Lexware & SAP

Confirm the file will import cleanly into DATEV, Lexware, and SAP before your customer's accounting department ever sees it.

A Report You Can Work From

Every violated rule is listed with the field it concerns and a plain-language explanation of the fix, in the order you should tackle them.

What the ZUGFeRD Validator Checks

Generating a file is not the same as generating a valid file. The validator runs three independent checks on every upload: all three must pass for your invoice to be accepted by accounting systems and public portals.

Validation Layer 1: XML Schema

The embedded XML must conform to the Cross Industry Invoice (CII) D16B schema. Schema errors are structural: a missing element, a wrong data type, or an attribute in the wrong namespace. These are caught before any business rules are applied and usually indicate a code generation or serialisation bug.

Validation Layer 2: EN 16931 Schematron Rules

The Schematron layer enforces over 200 semantic business rules defined in the European e-invoicing standard. Rules are identified by codes such as BR-01, BR-CO-15, or DE-R-001. Common failures:

  • BR-08 - Invoice currency code is missing (BT-5)
  • BR-CO-15 - VAT category tax amount does not match the calculated value
  • BR-S-08 - Tax rate (BT-119) is mandatory when VAT category is Standard
  • DE-R-003 - Seller tax ID (BT-31 or BT-32) is required for German domestic invoices

Each error in the report includes the rule code, the XPath of the failing element, and a plain-language description, no need to read the spec to understand what to fix.

Validation Layer 3: PDF/A-3b Conformance

ZUGFeRD requires the PDF container to be a PDF/A-3b archive. A regular PDF will fail even if the embedded XML is perfectly valid. Common causes: missing embedded fonts, no ICC output intent, incorrect XMP metadata, or the XML attachment not declared with the AFRelationship key set to Alternative.

Profile-Specific Checks

The validator applies additional rules depending on which ZUGFeRD profile the file declares. Higher profiles require more data fields: submitting a MINIMUM-profile file where EN 16931 is expected will produce dozens of missing-field errors.

Profile Line items required Allowances & charges Full EN 16931 rules
MINIMUM No No No
BASIC WL No Yes No
BASIC Yes No No
EN 16931 Yes Yes Yes
EXTENDED Yes Yes Yes + extensions

Validating an XRechnung instead?

XRechnung is pure XML with its own German rule set (CIUS) on top of EN 16931, including the mandatory Leitweg-ID. It has a dedicated tool:

Related reading

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions from German businesses validating ZUGFeRD files.

EN 16931 at the strictness of the declared ZUGFeRD 2.x profile, from Minimum to Extended, plus PDF/A-3b container checks on the hybrid file itself.
Yes. The typical upload is a ZUGFeRD PDF/A-3b with embedded CII XML; standalone XML is accepted as well and validated against the rules it declares.
A report that names each violated rule, the field it concerns, and a plain-language explanation of the fix, in the order you should tackle them.
Nothing for one invoice at a time. A premium account adds batch upload of up to 100 invoices and stricter XRechnung rule levels.
Yes. XRechnung business rules and Leitweg-ID checks are included, so a passing file is ready for federal, state, and municipal recipients.
All ZUGFeRD 2.x profiles from Minimum to Extended. The declared specification identifier tells the validator which profile rules to apply, so no manual selection is needed.
ZUGFeRD validation covers two layers: the PDF/A-3b container and the embedded CII XML. XRechnung is pure XML but applies the stricter German CIUS rules on top of EN 16931. For standalone XRechnung files, use the dedicated XRechnung validator.
A readable PDF says nothing about the data layer. Import failures are usually caused by a missing or misnamed XML attachment, a broken AFRelationship entry, or business-rule violations inside the XML. The validator checks all three layers and names the one that fails.
Validation confirms the file conforms to EN 16931, which is what German law requires of a domestic B2B e-invoice format. Legal compliance also depends on the content itself: correct parties, correct tax treatment, and GoBD-compliant retention, which no automated tool can fully judge.
Yes, and you should: German businesses have had to accept incoming e-invoices since January 2025, and checking received files before booking them protects your input VAT deduction from formally defective invoices.
GoBD Archive

Receiving e-invoices? You must archive them properly.

Since 2015, the GoBD, the tax office's rules for digital records, have applied to every business, freelancers included: digital invoices must be kept as the original file, unchanged, exportable and readable for the whole 8-year retention period. With the e-invoicing mandate a print no longer counts. Our archive takes care of it for you.

  • Every invoice stored exactly as it arrived: XML, PDF or photo
  • Locked against changes, so nothing can be altered afterwards
  • A second copy in another German data centre
  • Find any invoice by date and export it with an index for your tax advisor
  • Team access: several team members can work in the same archive
  • No ERP, no installation: right next to your e-invoicing tools
Discover the GoBD archive See plans
Built for the German mandate

One toolkit for ZUGFeRD and XRechnung

Every German business has had to accept e-invoices since January 2025. Both formats are covered here.

ZUGFeRD or XRechnung? Let the assistant pick the tool Tell the chat what you need: it converts, checks, builds, and reads out German e-invoices. Open assistant

Create

Fill one form, get a ZUGFeRD PDF or an XRechnung with Leitweg-ID
Create ZUGFeRD PDF ZUGFeRD PDF The guided form turns your details into a ZUGFeRD or XRechnung invoice. Create XRechnung XRechnung Generate a valid XRechnung with Leitweg-ID, ready for public-sector buyers. Create Order-X Order-X PDF Create an Order-X order file: the ZUGFeRD hybrid principle applied to purchase orders. ZUGFeRD Credit Note ZUGFeRD PDF Cancel or correct an e-invoice you already sent with a ZUGFeRD credit note. XRechnung Credit Note XRechnung Create an XRechnung credit note with Leitweg-ID for public-sector buyers.

Check & repair

Test against EN 16931 and the XRechnung CIUS, then fix what a buyer rejected
Validate ZUGFeRD ZUGFeRD PDF Run EN 16931 checks on your ZUGFeRD invoices before DATEV or your customer does. Validate XRechnung XRechnung Check XRechnung XML against EN 16931 and the German CIUS rules. Validate Order-X Order-X Run incoming and outgoing Order-X orders through the official Order-X 1.0 checks. Edit ZUGFeRD Invoice ZUGFeRD PDF Repair a refused or broken invoice: upload it, correct the fields, and get a valid file back. Edit XRechnung XRechnung Open an XRechnung as a form, fix the Leitweg-ID or any rejected field, and download a valid file.

Convert

Move an invoice between PDF, CII, UBL and XRechnung
PDF to ZUGFeRD PDF ZUGFeRD Any PDF, Word, or Excel invoice goes in; a ZUGFeRD or XRechnung file comes out. PDF to XRechnung PDF XRechnung Convert a PDF invoice to a valid XRechnung with Leitweg-ID for public-sector buyers. CII to ZUGFeRD CII ZUGFeRD Package existing CII XML as a ZUGFeRD PDF/A-3 hybrid invoice. Embed XML to PDF CII PDF ZUGFeRD Marry a PDF and its CII XML into one ZUGFeRD-compliant hybrid invoice. CII to UBL CII UBL Transform a CII invoice into UBL XML, the syntax most Peppol networks expect. UBL to CII UBL CII Map a UBL invoice to UN/CEFACT CII XML, ready to embed in ZUGFeRD or Factur-X. XRechnung to PDF XRechnung PDF See any CII, UBL, or XRechnung XML as a tidy, printable PDF.

Open & extract

Open a file, see what is inside it, and take the data with you
Extract XML PDF CII Pull structured XML straight out of any PDF invoice with AI-driven OCR. Extract Attachments ZUGFeRD XRechnung Pull every embedded file out of a ZUGFeRD or XRechnung invoice as a ZIP. XRechnung Viewer XRechnung CII UBL Open e-invoice XML in your browser and read it like a paper invoice. ZUGFeRD Viewer ZUGFeRD PDF Open a ZUGFeRD PDF and read the embedded invoice data your software books.

Look up & automate

Check who you are invoicing, or move the whole flow to an API
Check VAT Number Check any EU VAT number against VIES and get the customer's Peppol address. Developer API, MCP and automation Automate invoice generation and validation end to end.
Ready for mandatory e-invoicing?

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