UBL-CR-681: Do not add an instruction note to the payment instructions

What it means

The payment instructions (BG-16) say how the invoice is to be paid. In UBL they are cac:PaymentMeans. UBL allows a free text note there, but EN 16931 does not use it. Text about payment belongs in the payment terms (BT-20), the payment means text (BT-82) or an invoice note (BT-22). This rule checks that cac:PaymentMeans has no cbc:InstructionNote.

Why it matters

This is a warning. Fix it when the note matters to the buyer, for example a request to quote a reference with the payment.

How to fix it

In your invoicing software, find the free text field in the payment section and move the text to the payment terms or the notes of the invoice. If the text is about the payment method itself, use the payment means text. If you build the XML yourself, delete cbc:InstructionNote from cac:PaymentMeans and put the text in cac:PaymentTerms/cbc:Note, or in the name attribute of cbc:PaymentMeansCode.

The rule as published

A UBL invoice should not include the PaymentMeans InstructionNote

Where this rule applies