SAP B1 blog

The essence of Peppol

At the heart of Peppol lies the idea that a single connection with all registered partners in the network can be used to create electronic procurement documents such as bills and orders can be exchanged. Thanks to the integration of the PEPPOL standard, SAP Business One offers an efficient way of processing electronic documents.

From Europe to the world

Although Peppol was originally designed to simplify procurement processes between companies and European government agencies, its application has now reached a global dimension. In addition to the 32 European countries, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Japan, Canada and organisations in the USA are also part of the network. The expansion to the B2B sector in many of these countries emphasises the versatility and enormous potential of Peppol.

The 4-corner model

The 4-corner model is a simple way of explaining how invoices are sent via the Peppol network. Think of it as a relay race where the invoice is passed from one point to another.

1. Corner 1 is the one who sends the invoice.
2. Corner 4 is the recipient of the invoice.
3. In order for the invoice to be delivered correctly, recipients must be registered in a special register, the SMP server. This register refers to a central server, the SML server, which is responsible for the entire network and is effectively the address book.
4. When an invoice is sent, the sender uses an access point (Access Point 2), which finds out the recipient's address by using their unique ID.
5. The invoice is then sent to another access point (Access Point 3), which is responsible for receiving it from the addressee after checking whether the invoice is in the correct format and is accepted.
6. All communication follows a strict standard that ensures that all documents can be exchanged in the same way, which simplifies and standardises the sending and receiving of invoices.

In short, the Peppol 4 Corner model is an organised way to ensure that invoices get from A to B electronically by passing through different stations, each with their specific role in the process.

Advantages of Peppol

Using Peppol offers a range of benefits, from better cash flow and higher turnover to more security and transparency, lower costs and faster ROI. The simple integration of Delivery and customers, global interoperability and the future-oriented expansion of the network are just some of the aspects that make Peppol an attractive solution for companies looking to optimise their e-procurement processes.

How medium-sized companies can use Peppol

You have three options for using the Peppol network to send invoices:

Use of the federal administration's access point:

If you send invoices to public clients, you can use the federal government's free Access Point. This makes it possible to send invoices to various authorities of the federal administration and some federal states. External support may be required to connect to this service, which may be subject to a charge.

Connection to a Peppol service provider

If you do not want to or cannot set up your own access point and do not want to use the Federal Administration's service, you can contact a certified Peppol service provider. These providers offer you access to the Peppol network. Please note that costs may be incurred depending on the provider.

Setting up and operating your own access point

Another option is to set up your own access point. This allows you to send invoices directly via Peppol and even offer services to other companies. In addition to the development costs, there are also membership fees for Open Peppol. You should also check whether your IT infrastructure is suitable for such a project and how costly the implementation would be.

To summarise, there are three ways to use the Peppol network: through the free service of the federal administration, through the services of a service provider or by setting up your own access point.

A look into the future

Peppol is constantly evolving to meet the requirements of a digitalised market. For example, work is being done on an international standard PINT, which unites Peppol in Europe and Asia, as well as on the integration of tax authorities for Continuous Transaction Controls (CTCs) in an expanded Peppol 5-Corner model.

PEPPOL integration in SAP Business One

The integration of PEPPOL in SAP Business One builds on the standard infrastructure of the ERP software and enables companies to efficiently process various types of electronic documents. These include

• Incoming and outgoing invoices
• Input and output credits
• Incoming and outgoing direct debits
• Incoming and outgoing orders

It is important to note that although orders and deliveries can be part of the PEPPOL protocol, these documents are not supported by the SAP access point.

Processing of outgoing invoices via PEPPOL

To create an outgoing invoice via PEPPOL, simply open an outgoing invoice in SAP Business One, enter the required information and add the document to the system. The system automatically recognises the document as an electronic document and displays the processing status. These documents can be managed efficiently via the electronic document monitor.

Import of electronic invoices from PEPPOL

Electronic invoices are imported into SAP Business One via the SAP PEPPOL access point and the electronic document import wizard. This wizard manages the import of all available documents for further processing and synchronisation.

Import PEPPOL-relevant data

For the import of PEPPOL-relevant data, SAP Business One enables data to be imported from Excel. This facilitates mass data processing in particular and supports companies in the efficient handling of PEPPOL documents.

Steps for importing from Excel:

1. Prepare an Excel file with the required values, where the numeric code in the first column identifies the type of PEPPOL code.
2. Open the import from Excel in SAP Business One and select PEPPOL BIS codes as the data type for the import.
3. Select the prepared Excel file and follow the instructions for the import process.

By selecting specific fields and import methods, companies can ensure that the relevant data is transferred correctly to SAP Business One.