What it means
The rule checks the seller's contact (cac:AccountingSupplierParty/cac:Party/cac:Contact) and fails when it holds a cbc:Telefax. EN 16931 has the contact telephone number (BT-42, cbc:Telephone) and the contact email address (BT-43, cbc:ElectronicMail), but no fax number.
Why it matters
This is only a warning, so the invoice is still accepted. The recipient reads the telephone number and email address of the contact. A fax number is not part of the standard and is ignored, so nobody will see it.
How to fix it
Remove cbc:Telefax from cac:Contact under the seller party. Keep your telephone number in cbc:Telephone and your email address in cbc:ElectronicMail. Do not move the fax number into the telephone field, because the recipient would take it for a number to call. In your invoicing software, clear the fax field in your company or user contact details. It is worth fixing when you want a clean file; the invoice itself is not affected.
The rule as published
A UBL invoice should not include the AccountingSupplierParty Party Contact Telefax 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 |
Check your file
Drop your e-invoice to see whether UBL-CR-190 still fails, and which other rules do.