KSeF rejects invoices. Companies may have trouble settling VAT

System National e-Invoice System (KSeF) was supposed to simplify settlements, but in practice it creates new challenges for companies. It happens that the seller issues a structured invoice, posts it in his system, considers it correct, and then receives information about its rejection. In such a situation, the Ministry of Finance recommends resending the document in the KSeF 2.0 Manual.

Error in KSeF

The problem is that before IT specialists determine the cause of the error, the invoice has already been posted and associated with subsequent stages of settlement and reporting. As Tomasz Groszyk, senior manager in the Business & Digital Services team at Cridothis disorganizes the work of IT and accounting departments. Although the cases are not mass, they can effectively disrupt the circulation of documents.

Why does KSeF reject invoices? One of the causes may be incorrect encoding of the XML files. Even bytes invisible in the editor can block the process in which documents worth hundreds of thousands of zlotys per month are circulated. The Ministry of Finance also indicates other reasons, such as entering a future issue date or missing required fields. As a result, the document does not receive a KSeF number and is considered non-existent.

The Ministry recommends implementing mechanisms in invoicing systems that verify compliance of XML files with their logical structure before they are sent. This is to reduce the number of rejections. Experts emphasize, however, that the problems may intensify in March, when entrepreneurs send JPK_VAT files for the first month of the KSeF validity. If an invoice appears in the ERP system but is not in KSeF, a discrepancy arises which may be treated by analytical systems of the tax administration as a risk signal.

Further challenges may appear in April, when a larger group of companies joins the system. Additionally, there is still the so-called “ghost invoices”. The document may not be rejected, but the buyer will not see it. An example is a situation when an invoice is issued to a VAT-EU number and the entrepreneur logs in to the national NIP system. Then the document is located in KSeF, but remains invisible to the recipient.