Businesses in Germany have a legal obligation to retain invoices. The regulations are intended to ensure financial accounts are kept properly and to guarantee business transactions are traceable and auditable. Those regulations allow financial authorities to review tax documentation when conducting audits. One of the most important regulations for businesses relates to invoice retention periods.

In this article, you’ll learn what the requirements are for retaining invoices in Germany, what the retention periods are, and what formats are permitted. We’ll also explain what the storage options are, why editable file formats pose an audit risk, and how mistakes in document storage can lead to issues during tax audits.

Key takeaways

• In Germany, invoices must, in principle, be retained for eight years.
  
• Businesses must ensure invoices remain unaltered, readable, comprehensible, and accessible throughout the retention period.
  
• E-invoices must be stored in their original electronic format.
  
• Word and Excel invoices can pose an audit risk.
  
• Digital archiving tools provide businesses with a structured solution for managing invoices securely.
  

What are the requirements for retaining invoices in Germany?

In Germany, businesses are required to retain invoices so they remain complete, readable, and accessible throughout the statutory retention period. This obligation applies to incoming and outgoing invoices and to electronic and paper invoices.

Complete, auditable, and unalterable documentation

The original content of invoices must not be modified. It must not be possible to make retroactive amendments without leaving a trace or compiling transparent documentation. Electronic archiving systems must ensure that invoices are stored without being altered and that all operations relating to an invoice can be traced. One of the key regulatory policies governing retention requirements are the principles for the proper keeping and retention of books, records, and documents in electronic form (GoBD).

Accessibility and readability of documentation

It is required that invoices can be accessed throughout the retention period and can be made readable within a reasonable time frame. This also applies to electronic invoices, the contents of which must be made machine-readable upon demand. Businesses in Germany should take appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure archived documents are accessible at all times.

Compliant archiving

Invoices must be archived in accordance with the statutory requirements for proper bookkeeping. That includes a systematic storage process that enables documents to be located quickly. Businesses also must ensure invoices are protected against loss, damage, or unauthorised alteration. Electronic archiving systems provide features such as access rights, change logs, versioning, and data backups that can help businesses fulfil these requirements.

How long must invoices be retained and in what format?

In Germany, invoices are subject to legally defined retention periods. The relevant provisions are Section 147 of the German Fiscal Code (AO), Section 14b of the German Value-Added Tax (VAT) Act (UStG), and Section 257 of the German Commercial Code (HGB). These regulations require businesses to retain invoices for a set time. The retention period always begins at the end of the calendar year in which the corresponding invoice was issued or received.

Invoice retention periods

Businesses in Germany must retain invoices for eight years. Account books, inventories, opening balance sheets, and annual financial statements are subject to a retention period of 10 years. Commercial papers and business mail must be retained for six years.

Rules for private individuals

The rules for private individuals are not the same as those for businesses. In general, private customers are not legally required to retain invoices. However, it is still a good idea to keep invoices safe because they can be used to make warranty claims under Section 437 et seqq. of the German Civil Code (BGB), for example.

The rules do not apply to contractor services rendered for private individuals. According to Section 14b of the UStG, private customers are required to retain these invoices for two years. This retention period begins at the end of the calendar year in which the invoice was issued. Contractors must explicitly indicate this requirement on the invoices they issue to customers. This regulation applies to service providers such as contractors, architects, scaffolding businesses, and gardening and landscaping businesses.

Storage formats for invoices

Paper invoices must, in principle, be stored in their original format. However, they can be digitised and electronically archived if the digitisation process fulfils the requirements of the GoBD. The electronic copy must be visually identical to the original, and all contents of the original must be retained. The scanning process must be documented so the archiving system can be shown to be compliant at any time.

Storing electronic invoices

As of 1 January 2025, e-invoicing is mandatory for transactions between businesses in Germany (B2B). Businesses must, in principle, be capable of issuing and processing electronic invoices. Although transitional regulations are in place regarding the requirement to issue electronic invoices, e-invoicing will become the standard in B2B in the long term.

In principle, electronic invoices must be retained in the format in which they were received or generated. Printing an electronic invoice does not satisfy the requirement to archive the original file. In the case of structured electronic invoice formats, such as XRechnung, the machine-readable dataset is considered the original file that must be retained. A simple PDF does not count as an e-invoice under VAT law.

Why do Word and Excel invoices pose an audit risk?

The GoBD requires tax documentation to be retained in a full, unalterable, and traceable format. Often, saving a Word or Excel file does not satisfy this requirement because this process does not provide for tamper-proof archiving and changelog capabilities. In theory, these files could be amended retroactively without corresponding documentation.

However, it is still possible to create invoices using Word or Excel – as long as these invoices are protected after they have been created and are archived in accordance with the statutory regulations. Businesses should use appropriate processes or systems to prevent tampering, log changes, and ensure traceability.

Storage options: Paper or digital archiving?

With the exception of e-invoices, businesses can, in principle, store invoices in paper form and digitally. Operational requirements and technical capabilities determine which type of archiving is suitable for a particular business.

Paper archiving

With paper archiving, invoices are physically archived and retained for the duration of the statutory retention period. This type of archiving requires appropriate premises, a structured repository, and measures that protect documents against loss or damage. Searching for individual documents can be time-consuming if a business has extensive paper archives.

Digital archiving

Digital archiving refers to the electronic storage, management, and long-term retention of documents in a suitable IT system. Invoices are archived in paper form and recorded digitally, stored according to a defined structure, and made accessible on demand.

Digital archiving lets businesses manage invoices quickly while reducing the need for physical space. Electronic archiving systems help businesses systematically store and locate documents and protect them against unauthorised alterations. However, businesses must make sure any system they use complies with the requirements of the GoBD.

Archiving methods: Head-to-head

Although paper archives are easy to implement, digital archiving solutions offer enhanced capabilities for invoice search, document processing, and long-term file management. As e-invoices become increasingly common, businesses will continue to further digitise invoicing processes. Because electronic invoices must be retained in their original digital formats, paper archives alone are not a long-term solution for storing invoices.

How can mistakes in document storage lead to issues during tax audits?

Tax auditors frequently investigate whether businesses are compliant with the statutory requirements for retaining invoices. A common error businesses make is not archiving invoices in full for the duration of the statutory retention period – for example, invoices are deleted, destroyed, or rendered illegible before the end of the mandatory retention period.

Businesses in Germany should make sure they keep all invoices – incoming and outgoing – for the entire retention period. They might face consequences with financial authorities if they are unable to present invoices during the retention period.

A particular risk associated with electronic invoices is retaining only a printout or converted file. Businesses must retain the full invoice to satisfy the requirements for tamper-proof and auditable documentation.

Insufficient traceability and data architecture

If invoices can be modified retroactively without the alterations being documented, that can call into question the compliance of the bookkeeping system. Businesses should ensure their archiving processes can spot and transparently log changes.

Confusing or unstructured data architecture can prove problematic during an audit. Invoices must be findable and readable throughout the retention period. Structured archiving can help businesses comply with the statutory requirements throughout the retention period and reduce audit risks. Process documentation should capture the workflow in full.

How Stripe Invoicing helps businesses with invoice retention

Proper invoice retention begins with a structured process for creating and managing invoices. Stripe Invoicing helps businesses unify and create transparent documentation of their invoice processes. Thanks to consistent invoice generation, sequential numbering, and a clear audit trail, businesses can create a foundation for storing invoices correctly throughout the statutory retention period.

Stripe Invoicing also helps businesses manage their debtor accounting – from sending invoices to tracking payments. Payment statuses are automatically monitored, and users can set up automatic payment reminders, reducing manual processes and making invoicing workflows more efficient.

Stripe Invoicing can integrate into existing accounting and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, allowing businesses to synchronise data across systems. Compliant invoice storage is achieved using appropriate archiving systems that must fulfil the requirements of the GoBD. However, Stripe Invoicing helps businesses establish structured, transparent invoicing processes that make compliant archiving simpler.

FAQs about invoice retention periods