e-Fatura vs e-Arşiv invoices: a transition guide for small businesses

An e-Fatura is an invoice issued and delivered electronically between two taxpayers who are both registered in GİB's e-Fatura system; an e-Arşiv invoice is the electronic invoice you issue when the buyer is not registered, such as a final consumer or an unregistered business. In short, which document you issue is decided by your buyer's registration status, not by you. Whether you must switch depends on criteria such as turnover and sector, and because those criteria change, always check the current thresholds and dates on GİB's official sources.

What is an e-Fatura?

An e-Fatura has the same legal standing as a paper invoice but is created, signed and delivered in a standard electronic format defined by GİB. The invoice travels from the seller's system to the buyer's through GİB's infrastructure, with no paper, courier or manual data entry in between. As a result it reaches the buyer within minutes and can flow straight into the buyer's records.

An e-Fatura requires both parties to be registered. That is why, beyond being a document type, it works like a network: registered businesses invoice one another only through e-Fatura. As a rule, a registered business cannot issue a paper invoice to another registered business.

There are two main scenarios in e-Fatura. Under the basic invoice scenario, the buyer cannot reject the invoice in the system; objections are raised outside it. Under the commercial invoice scenario, the buyer can accept or reject the invoice in the system within the period set by regulation. Which scenario to use depends on the nature of the commercial relationship between the parties.

What is an e-Arşiv invoice?

An e-Arşiv invoice is the electronic invoice issued to buyers who are not registered in the e-Fatura system. It is created, signed and stored electronically, and delivered to the buyer by electronic means such as email or, where needed, printed on paper. Information about the invoices issued is reported to GİB at set intervals.

The most common use of e-Arşiv invoices is sales to final consumers. The invoice a service business issues to an individual customer, or the invoice for an online sale, is usually an e-Arşiv invoice. Even when the buyer is a business, if it is not registered for e-Fatura it receives an e-Arşiv invoice.

In practice, a business that switches to e-Fatura ends up using e-Arşiv as well, because some of its customers will always be unregistered. That is why most businesses should think of the two document types as one system with two parts that work together.

• Collect the identity and contact details an individual buyer's invoice needs, in full, at the point of sale.
• Decide in advance which channel will be used to deliver the invoice to the buyer.
• For online sales, check the current guide for any extra details the invoice must carry.
• Monitor regularly that reporting to GİB happens on time and in full.
• Keep a record of cancelled e-Arşiv invoices and the reason for each cancellation.

What are the key differences between e-Fatura and e-Arşiv?

Both documents are created electronically and replace the paper invoice; the differences lie in the buyer, the delivery route and the life cycle. The list below sums up the differences you meet most often in day-to-day work.

• An e-Fatura is issued only between two registered taxpayers, while an e-Arşiv invoice goes to unregistered buyers.
• An e-Fatura reaches the buyer through GİB's infrastructure, while an e-Arşiv invoice is delivered by email or similar means, or as a printout.
• With the commercial scenario, an e-Fatura buyer can accept or reject the invoice in the system.
• Information on e-Arşiv invoices is reported to GİB periodically.
• Cancellation, return and correction procedures work differently for the two document types.
• Both documents must be stored electronically for the period set by regulation.

Which invoice you issue is decided not by the seller but by the buyer's registration status.

These differences show up in day-to-day work as well. Whoever issues invoices needs to know each buyer's registration status, separate numbering series are kept for the two document types, and incoming e-Faturas have to be picked up and recorded regularly. When software handles these steps the margin for error shrinks; done by hand, they become some of the most time-consuming tasks.

Which businesses must switch to e-Fatura?

The obligation generally rests on two criteria: exceeding a certain gross sales revenue and operating in certain sectors. In addition, separate rules may apply to businesses holding particular licences or permits. Because thresholds, covered sectors and switch-over dates are updated from time to time, this article gives no figures or dates; check the current position on GİB's official website and with your accountant.

Businesses outside the mandatory scope can also join voluntarily. This makes particular sense for businesses with many e-Fatura-registered customers: the cost of printing, posting and filing paper invoices disappears, and disputes about whether an invoice arrived come to an end.

Once the obligation arises, the time allowed to switch is limited, and a transition left to the last day usually goes badly. If your revenue is approaching the threshold or your sector may be brought into scope, starting preparations early is the safest course.

The soundest way to keep track of the obligation is to compare your revenue and line of business with the current rules at every year-end close. Putting this check on the calendar with your accountant stops an obligation from starting unnoticed and leaves you the time you need to switch.

What methods are available for the switch?

There are three basic routes to e-Fatura and e-Arşiv. The first is issuing invoices through the portal GİB provides; it is an economical start for businesses with low invoice volumes, but connecting it to your bookkeeping software takes manual work. The second is working through private integrators authorised by GİB; invoices are created directly in the software you use and sent via the integrator. The third, for high-volume businesses, is integrating their own IT systems directly with GİB after obtaining permission.

For most small businesses the realistic choice is between the portal and a private integrator. When deciding, look beyond price at how invoices will reach your bookkeeping records, how incoming invoices will be handled and who will hold the archive, and for how long.

• Estimate how many invoices you issue each month and how that number is likely to change.
• Check whether your bookkeeping software works directly with the method you choose.
• Clarify in advance how incoming e-Faturas will reach your records.
• Make sure the contract states who keeps the electronic archive and on what terms.
• Ask how you would retrieve your archive if you change provider.

The incoming side is often overlooked. Once a business is on e-Fatura, its suppliers' invoices also arrive electronically, and they need to be seen in time, answered before the response window closes under the commercial scenario and posted correctly to purchase records. Try out how your chosen method announces incoming invoices and turns them into entries before you commit.

What should you do, step by step, during the switch?

The switch is less a technical installation than a matter of data hygiene. Issuing invoices correctly depends on accurate customer records; a wrong tax number or an incomplete address is an error that goes unnoticed on paper but gets an invoice rejected in the electronic world.

• Obtain a financial seal if you are a legal entity, or an electronic signature if you are an individual.
• Complete the GİB application or the integrator contract, depending on the method you chose.
• Clean up tax or ID numbers, company names and addresses in your customer and supplier records.
• Redefine your invoice numbering series and templates for the new set-up.
• Issue the first invoices with careful checks and ask buyers for feedback.
• Give a short briefing to the team that issues invoices and handles incoming ones.

Validating tax and ID numbers with a checksum is the most productive clean-up you can do at this stage. When records with invalid numbers are fixed before the switch, the stream of rejected and reissued invoices in the first weeks drops noticeably.

During the first weeks, having a second person check each invoice before it is sent stops small mistakes from becoming habits. Collecting the problems you meet in this period in a short list gives the team a ready reference.

Frequently asked questions

How can you tell whether a buyer is registered for e-Fatura?

GİB publishes the list of users registered in the e-Fatura system, and integrators and software can query it. Running that check with the buyer's tax number before invoicing tells you which document to issue.

Can an e-Arşiv invoice be printed on paper?

Yes. If electronic delivery to the buyer is not possible, an e-Arşiv invoice can be printed and handed over. The printout is a copy; the original is the invoice created and stored electronically.

How is an incorrectly issued e-Fatura corrected?

The correction route depends on the invoice scenario, the buyer's response and the type of error; options may include cancellation, rejection or a return invoice. Confirm the current procedure with GİB's guides and your accountant.

Do you have to change your bookkeeping software when you switch?

Not necessarily, but software that works directly with your chosen method makes life much easier. Creating an invoice in one program and carrying it by hand to another wastes time and creates differences between records.

Does a business on e-Fatura also need e-İrsaliye and e-Defter?

e-İrsaliye (electronic dispatch notes) and e-Defter (electronic ledgers) are separate applications with their own scope and transition rules. Joining one does not always make the others mandatory; check your business's position in GİB's current announcements and with your accountant.

Treating the switch as a chance to get organised

This article is a general road map and does not replace tax or legal advice. As thresholds, dates and procedures change, the most accurate information is always in GİB's current announcements and guides.

Moving to e-Fatura and e-Arşiv is not only a legal obligation but also a good opportunity to put customer records, numbering series and the invoice flow in order. A business that picks the right document by the buyer's registration status, works with clean account data and keeps its archive safely turns invoicing into routine work. In Bir Finans, which we use in our own operations at Bir Web Ajans, sales and purchase invoices post to a double-entry ledger with numbering series, a separate VAT account and account records whose tax numbers pass a checksum.