CII-SR-349: Leave out the credit reason text

What it means

The invoice-level settlement section (ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement) holds a CreditReason element, a short text explaining why a credit is given. EN 16931 has no field for it, so the rule expects the element to be absent.

Why it matters

The file is still accepted, because this is a warning. The text is not part of what an EN 16931 receiver reads, so the buyer's software normally drops it and the explanation never reaches their records. It is worth fixing when the wording matters, for example when it explains a price correction the buyer is likely to query.

How to fix it

Delete the CreditReason element. Copy its wording into an invoice note (BT-22), which EN 16931 does define. On a credit note, check as well that the original invoice is named in the preceding invoice reference (BG-3), so the buyer can match the two documents.

The rule as published

CreditReason should not be present

Where this rule applies