What it means
When the seller and the buyer are both in Germany and the invoice has a seller contact (BG-6), that contact must include a contact point (BT-41). This is the name of a person or a department. A blank or spaces-only value counts as missing. If the whole contact group is missing, DE-R-002 fails instead.
Why it matters
The buyer needs to know who to ask about the invoice. An empty contact name fails the check and the invoice is rejected.
How to fix it
In your invoicing software, open your sender or company details and find the contact person field. Enter the name of a person or a department, such as Accounts. The phone number and the email address are separate fields with their own rules, DE-R-006 and DE-R-007.
The rule as published
Read the rule on the publisher's site
Business terms: BT-41
Where this rule applies
| Rule set | Version |
|---|---|
| Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 (invoice) | 2026.5 |
| Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 (credit note) | 2026.5 |
Check your file
Drop your e-invoice to see whether DE-R-005 still fails, and which other rules do.
Related rules
- BR-DE-5 Seller contact name is required
- BR-RO-L1004 Seller contact point must be 100 characters or fewer
- CII-SR-465 Give the seller contact as a name or a department, not both
- DE-R-006 A seller phone number is required between German parties
- DE-R-007 A seller email address is required between German parties
- DE-R-008 The buyer city is required between German parties