What it means
The payee (BG-10) is the party that receives the payment when that is not the seller. This rule checks that cac:PayeeParty has no cac:AgentParty, a party block for someone who acts as an agent for the payee. The standard has no place for it.
Why it matters
EN 16931 calls for the agent block to be left out of the payee details. This warning does not establish acceptance or whether the recipient sees the agent information.
How to fix it
Delete cac:AgentParty from cac:PayeeParty in the exported XML. If you cannot control the export, ask your software supplier to omit this block. Export the file again and recheck it.
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 PayeeParty AgentParty 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-290 still fails, and which other rules do.
Related rules
- UBL-CR-291 The payee's service provider should be left out
- UBL-CR-292 The payee's power of attorney should be left out
- UBL-CR-293 A bank account should not be inside the payee block
- UBL-CR-294 A separate buyer customer block should be left out
- UBL-CR-295 A separate seller supplier block should be left out
- UBL-CR-296 The tax representative's care-of flag should be left out