What it means
This rule checks for cac:Address within cac:PaymentMeans/cac:PayeeFinancialAccount/cac:FinancialInstitutionBranch in a UBL invoice or credit note. EN 16931 carries the bank identifier (BT-86), usually a BIC, in the branch details, but not the branch address. The address of the financial institution inside the branch is covered by UBL-CR-431.
Why it matters
EN 16931 does not use the bank branch address in the payment account details. This rule does not check the seller's or buyer's address.
How to fix it
Delete cac:Address from cac:PaymentMeans/cac:PayeeFinancialAccount/cac:FinancialInstitutionBranch. Leave any bank identifier (BT-86) in cbc:ID in the same branch. If your invoicing software adds the branch address, adjust the XML export to omit it. Export again and recheck the file.
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 PaymentMeans PayeeFinancialAccount FinancialInstitutionBranch Address 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-432 still fails, and which other rules do.
Related rules
- UBL-CR-433 The country of the payee bank account is not used
- UBL-CR-434 A credit account block is not used in EN 16931
- UBL-CR-435 A direct debit mandate type is not used
- UBL-CR-436 A maximum number of direct debit instructions is not used
- UBL-CR-437 A maximum direct debit amount is not used
- UBL-CR-438 A direct debit mandate signature ID is not used