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Warning

UBL-CR-033: Do not send a description in the earlier invoice reference

In short

Warning: worth checking.

UBL-CR-033 warns that your UBL invoice or credit note contains a description (cbc:DocumentDescription) in its reference to an earlier invoice. Remove that element from cac:BillingReference/cac:InvoiceDocumentReference. If you need to keep the text, put it in the invoice note (BT-22).

On this page

What it means

When an invoice or credit note refers to an earlier invoice, EN 16931 carries only that invoice's number (BT-25) and date (BT-26), in cac:BillingReference/cac:InvoiceDocumentReference. This rule checks that the reference does not also contain cbc:DocumentDescription, free text describing the earlier document.

Why it matters

EN 16931 has no field for a description within the reference to an earlier invoice.

How to fix it

Remove cbc:DocumentDescription from cac:BillingReference/cac:InvoiceDocumentReference. Keep the earlier invoice number (BT-25) and any existing invoice date (BT-26). If you need to retain the text, add it to the invoice note (BT-22), cbc:Note directly under the Invoice or CreditNote root. Check the corrected file again.

Once the file is corrected, check it again for free: Validate an invoice against EN 16931

Or fix the invoice in a form and download the corrected file, for 1 credit: Fix a rejected e-invoice

The rule as published

A UBL invoice should not include the BillingReference DocumenDescription

Where this rule applies

Rule set Version
EN 16931 (UBL) 1.3.17
EN 16931 (UBL credit note) 1.3.17
XRechnung 3.0 (UBL) 3.0.2
XRechnung 3.0 (UBL credit note) 3.0.2
Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 (invoice) 2026.5
Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 (credit note) 2026.5
SI-UBL 2.0 / NLCIUS (invoice) 2.0.3.13
SI-UBL 2.0 / NLCIUS (credit note) 2.0.3.13
France CTC (UBL invoice) 1.4.0-04
France CTC (UBL credit note) 1.4.0-04
CIUS-RO UBL Invoice 1.0.9 1.0.9
CIUS-RO UBL Credit Note 1.0.9 1.0.9
Rule text from phive-rules 4.6.4.

Check your file

Drop your e-invoice to see whether UBL-CR-033 still fails, and which other rules do.

Updated 6 November 2026