That does not mean the Peppol project failed. It did exactly what it was meant to do. A second step is planned for 2028: near-real-time reporting of invoice data to the Belgian tax authority (FPS Finance).
This page sets out where e-invoicing ends and AP automation begins: which step Peppol removes, which four remain, what processing an invoice costs in total, and how to measure where you stand yourself. See also what we automate in accounts payable and process automation at JUVO.
What e-invoicing actually fixes
Start at the channel, as that is where the real profit lies. On the Peppol network, an invoice is processed through recognised access points, and the network is so secure that the origin and content of the invoice are guaranteed along the way. This immediately provides you with an initial check on who is sending the invoice. Fraud is not ruled out: the network does not verify whether the invoice matches what you ordered.
The format works for you too. What comes in via Peppol follows the European standard EN 16931. The fields of a Peppol invoice are received as data, in a fixed format. What is contained in those fields does not need to be read or retyped by anyone, and you do not need a template for each supplier layout as is required with text recognition on pdfs.
The channel and the fields are thus arranged, and that counts. Where is your team’s time going to?
Where your invoice must go next
For the fields in the structured invoice, Peppol eliminates the need for manual input. Following this, there are four more steps, and for each of them, a role in your team is responsible today.
Matching against purchase orders and receipts
The AP staff member places the invoice beside the order form and the receipt: do the price, quantity and item match? What comparing per line changes, you’ll read in matching on line level instead of on the total. As long as the match isn’t settled, the invoice remains.
Coding
Your accountant chooses the general ledger account, the cost centre and the VAT code. In the AP projects we see, an invoice without a purchase order takes more manual work than one with a purchase order. Until it is coded, it sits in the accountant’s queue.
Approval
The budget holder confirms that the cost is theirs and justified. They own a budget, not an AP process, so the invoice waits in their inbox, unpaid, until they say yes.
Resolving exceptions
When price, quantity or order number do not match, the AP clerk, the buyer and the supplier have to settle it. A corrected invoice or a credit note may follow. The real weight of such a mismatch is set out in what an invoice exception really costs. Until they agree, the invoice stays open and AP does not pay it.
If you run this process day to day, you will probably recognise the fourth step. Feel free to pass the rest of this page to whoever decides on the budget.
So why do these four steps not get lighter now that the data is structured?
Why structured invoice data moves the problem instead of solving it
Structured data makes the fields certain, not their content, and that makes the remaining errors visible rather than smaller. This is how we build it: a field that comes in via Peppol is considered certain and is not overwritten. The field is therefore read correctly. If something is still not right, then the error shifts from reading to meaning: the price, the quantity, or the order number deviates from what you ordered. That error becomes visible, not smaller. An invoice that is formally correct is not yet an invoice that you can book without looking.
Peppol is not your only channel. Not every supplier needs to invoice in a structured manner. Invoices to individuals fall outside the obligation, and also companies that only perform transactions exempted under Article 44 of the VAT-Code, and VAT-liable persons not established in Belgium, do not have to send structured invoices.
The obligation to receive is broader than the obligation to send: even those who only invoice individuals must be able to receive the structured invoices from their Belgian suppliers. In the processes that we observe, there remain suppliers who invoice outside of Peppol. Moreover, your history remains: invoices issued before 2026 did not need to be structured.
Your inbox therefore remains mixed. What does processing an invoice cost in total, according to international research?
What processing an invoice costs, on average and for the best-performing group
Ardent Partners surveyed 212 AP and finance professionals for AP Metrics that Matter in 2025 (issue sponsored by Pagero): on average, the cost of processing an invoice is approximately €8.37 (approximately £7.73), compared to about €2.48 (approximately £2.30) for the best-performing group. Indicatively, converted at the ECB reference rate of 2 October 2026 (1 euro = 1.1225 dollars).
Ardent Partners classifies the top-performing group as the 20% of companies with the lowest average cost per invoice and the shortest average turnaround time. The sample is international: 59% of respondents are based in North America, and 53% work for a company with more than 1 billion dollars in revenue (approximately 891 million euros based on the ECB rate of 2 October 2026), so the amounts are an indication and not a Belgian norm.
| Metric | Average | Best-performing group |
|---|---|---|
| Cost per invoice | approximately €8.37 ($9.40) | approximately €2.48 ($2.78) |
| Processing time per invoice | 9.2 days | 3.1 days |
| Touchless, with no one handling them | 32,6% | 49,2% |
| Invoices that become an exception | 14% | 9% |
The study also mentions the fourth step. According to Ardent Partners, exceptions on invoices are for the first time in the nineteen years of this annual study at the top of the list of challenges; 53% of the same 212 respondents consider them to be their greatest challenges.
What else is planned?
Planned for 2028: e-reporting of invoice data
The current obligation governs how invoices travel between businesses. A second step is planned for 2028: near-real-time reporting of invoice data to the Belgian tax authority (FPS Finance).
How the reporting will work technically, and which data it will require, has not been settled yet. If you get your invoice processing in order now, you will not have to do it while those new rules come in.
That is a reason to know your own process, not a reason to rush. Does that make this the right moment for every business to start?
When you should not automate your invoice processing yet
No. In three situations, we would tell you to wait.
The first is volume. In our projects, we see that the business case does not add up below a few hundred invoices a month. Below that line, a clear manual process is the more sensible choice.
The second is purchase orders. If you do not register purchase orders at all, there is nothing to match an invoice against. Then the first step sits with purchasing, not with AP.
The third option is an ERP migration that will go live within three months, or a new ERP that resolves the problem itself. In that case, you are better off waiting. In other instances, you need not wait: the agents function on top of your ERP, and at go-live, you switch the source, not the agent.
How do you tell which side of those lines you are on?
First Steps Without Us
Four numbers tell you, and you don’t need us for any of them. Ask your AP lead, or whoever runs the process day to day, to take one ordinary month of invoices and count:
1. How many invoices came in.
2. How many had a purchase order, and how many did not.
3. How many were booked without anyone opening them. Compare it with the touchless row above.
4. How many became an exception, by type: price, quantity, missing order, other. Compare it with the exception row.
Those four numbers are your baseline. In our projects, we see that this baseline takes about a day’s work for someone who knows the process. If you don’t know those four numbers, that is your first assignment, not your first project. For a broader comparison, use an AP benchmark.
Once you have them, three questions remain.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to replace my Peppol provider?
No. That is how we build it: the processing sits behind the Peppol connection you already have, and your Peppol provider stays. The connection itself does take work.
Do I lose control if an AI agent resolves exceptions?
No, given these safeguards. That is how we build it: the agent proposes, a person decides on anything that falls outside the rules, and every decision can be traced afterwards. An AI agent is a tool with a cost and an error margin, not a solution in itself.
Does this apply if I rarely use purchase orders?
Yes, even more so. In the AP projects we see, an invoice without a purchase order takes more manual work than one with a purchase order. With few purchase orders, that work sits in coding and approval rather than in matching. If you register none at all, begin with purchasing. To see where you stand, start with a conversation about your own AP numbers.
Where is manual work still hiding in your processes?
Invoices are one process. See how we work out with you which steps to automate and which to keep manual.