Helping companies and supporting them in their digital transformation. That is the mission of easyap, both through the content we share and the digital solutions we develop for all kinds of companies. But we are not the only ones doing this. Governments and organizations of all kinds have also been involved in this process for years. This involvement has given rise to some very useful concepts, regulations, and associations, one of which is EESPA. What is it? What advantages does it offer brands? How influential is it in Europe? How does it affect electronic invoicing? We will address these questions below.
What is EESPA?
As you may guess from reading this word, EESPA is an acronym. Specifically, these initials stands for European E-Invoicing Service Providers Association. In other words, its literal translation into Spanish would be Asociación de Proveedores de Servicios de Facturación Electrónica (Association of Electronic Invoicing Service Providers).
But beyond the linguistic aspect, what is EESPA and what is the purpose of this organization? Likewise, we could say that it is a European trade association around which a very large community of electronic invoicing service providers has been created.
These suppliers that make up EESPA offer digital solutions for different sectors: technology, commercial outsourcing, finance, EDI, etc. It is also an international non-profit association and, since its inception in 2011, has gained considerable influence in the field of electronic invoicing:
–– EESPA currently has more than 90 members.
– EESPA members process more than 2 billion digital invoices each year.
In turn, EESPA organizes all kinds of events to promote the use of e-invoices, whether B2B, B2G, or B2C. In this regard, they have the backing of some of the world's most powerful brands (KPMG, SAP, Amazon, IBM, Mastercard, and PwC).
Of course, we at easyap are also among the members of EESPA. This is yet another example of our commitment to promoting the digitization of the business fabric at all levels.
Mission and main advantages offered by EESPA
Presentations and webinars on technological matters, digital provision of tax information such as VAT, conferences in different European cities, interventions at shareholder meetings of large companies... These are some of the activities organized by EESPA in cities across Europe. All of this, as we say, in favor of digital transformation. To achieve this, it relies on the three pillars on which it was founded. These are:
- Support and promote business efficiency and innovation through digital transformation.
- Inform members and society in general about everything related to electronic invoicing: news, white papers, statistics, etc.
- Create a framework for business cooperation in which there is operational fluidity among its members.
Likewise, over the more than ten years it has been operating, EESPA has become a very important entity for electronic invoicing in Europe. The reason is that it generates benefits for numerous companies and also for governments. These are the main advantages of EESPA:
– It helps achieve very important objectives on the EU's public agenda in terms of fiscal and environmental efficiency and social responsibility.
–– It plays a role in creating a solid regulatory framework at the continental level and serves as a reference for the internal policies of European governments.
–– It offers educational opportunities for industry participants that it promotes very effectively.
– It is a very interesting source of information for keeping up to date with regulations and new legal changes.
–– It is a very useful space for its members when it comes to building coalitions and establish alliances.
In short, the greatest benefit of EESPA is that it cooperates with public bodies, governments, and brands from all kinds of sectors in this very important process we are currently undergoing: digitalization.
The status of electronic invoicing in Europe
As we have been discussing throughout this article, e-invoices on our continent and in many other countries around the world are now a reality. In fact, it is a process that has been going on for years and is only growing. Developments in electronic invoicing in Europe (and other parts of the world) is becoming increasingly frequent and profound.
In this regard, it should be remembered that the EU itself has been promoting the implementation of electronic invoicing for years. For this reason, it requires all its member states to use it since April 18, 2019, which is when Directive 2014/55/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council came into force. This law established a common and mandatory format for the use of electronic invoicing in any commercial relationship with European public administrations. In other words, for B2G.
As a result of this law, many countries have been updating their electronic invoicing systems through their respective tax authorities. The first was Denmark in 2005, followed by the rest of the Nordic countries (Sweden in 2008, Finland in 2010, and Norway in 2011).
Subsequently, they would adopt B2G electronic invoicing nations such as Austria, Moldova, and Italy, which was a pioneer in making electronic invoicing mandatory in B2B relationships as well. In 2015, Spain, among others, and then in 2018, would establish mandatory electronic invoicing for all suppliers to the Public Administration with invoices exceeding €5,000. Currently, the vast majority of the EU has its own regulations for electronic invoicing.
Benefits of electronic invoicing
The fact is that all these efforts by EESPA and the various national and EU bodies are aimed at helping both themselves and the entire business community. What is also becoming clear is that these initiatives and movements are already yielding positive results. In fact, there are benefits of electronic invoicing at all levels.
Benefits for governments
On the one hand, in the world of B2G, the governments of the EU and its member states are the first to benefit. With electronic invoicing, they have the possibility of much better control of all companies' accounting processes. This is what we call traceability. In other words, they can combat tax evasion much more efficiently.
In this regard, although online invoicing is generally only mandatory for B2G transactions, everything points to progress being made in this area. In other words, sooner rather than later, any B2B (between private companies) and B2C sales will be recorded digitally.
Benefits for businesses
In turn, companies also reap significant benefits from electronic invoicing. Based on our experience, these are the ones we have seen:
– A significant savings in direct costs by eliminating the use of paper, printing equipment, and the shipping and storage of invoices.
– It reduces the impact on the environment by eliminating the aforementioned paper and reducing CO2 emissions from shipping.
– The invoice reception is automated, integrating them directly into the system.
– All all invoices are better accounted for in the system, where they arrive and are conveniently recorded.
– Thanks to advantages such as the above, the company's overall productivity increases.
– Time optimization, since certain departments such as human resources or accounting can devote hours to other matters, as everything is automated.
–– Many human errors are eliminated (or, at least, they are significantly reduced), as there is less intervention.
–– Communication (and the relationship) with suppliers who want to know the status of their outstanding invoices and can access that information without so much red tape.
– Delivery and collection times are shortened delivery and collection times are shortened, since with an automated the invoice approval workflow is much faster and more agile.
– The security and protection of data and information is much greater due to the specific protocols used and the digital signature. At the same time, software such as easyap stores documents and data in accordance with the relevant legislation and with all the necessary guarantees.
– Consulting consulting information is much easier than it used to be, as everything is recorded and stored in one of these cloud-based systems.
If you choose the solution we developed at easyap, you will also enjoy other advantages. For example, with our software, you can also account for employee expenses. In turn, you will be able to provide your tax information to the relevant agencies (we adapt to the systems of the AEAT, SII, TicketBAI, SILICIE, etc.).
Another of our added values is that we adapt to you. We have developed customized software for companies in Europe, North Africa, and America, as well as in a wide variety of sectors. And with us you pay for each invoice issued. That's why we can say that we are a solution that suits companies of any size and turnover. Want to know more?
