Error Guide

🇩🇪 DE-R-004: The element "Seller post code" (BT-38) shall be provided. in Germany

ErrorMandatoryNeeds Input

Seller postal code is missing. German invoices must include the seller's postal code (BT-38).

Quick Facts

Severity

Error (rejection)

Ruleset

EN 16931

Fix Confidence

85%

Mandate

B2B Mandatory

Fix Type

Needs input

Why This Matters in Germany

Germany requires e-invoicing using XRechnung (UBL), XRechnung (CII), ZUGFeRD 2.x. Invoices with this error will be rejected. They cannot be processed for Germany compliance.

Invoice Navigator covers 147 XRechnung 3.0.2 rules for Germany. Auto-remediates 89% of top rejection errors.

How to Fix DE-R-004

This requires user input to resolve. Provide the correct value for `cbc:PostalZone` (BT-38).

Example: Before & After

Before (invalid)

<cac:PostalAddress>
  <cbc:PostalZone>INVALID_CODE</cbc:PostalZone>
</cac:PostalAddress>

After (fixed)

<cac:PostalAddress>
  <cbc:PostalZone>VALID_CODE</cbc:PostalZone>
</cac:PostalAddress>

Germany E-Invoicing Requirements

Phase

Status

Scope

B2G

Live (Nov 2020)

All federal suppliers

B2B receiving

Live (Jan 2025)

All German businesses

B2B sending

Jan 2027

>€800K annual revenue

B2B sending

Jan 2028

All businesses

Common Causes

•German invoice missing seller post code
•BT-38 Seller post code element empty or absent
•cbc:PostalZone in seller address not provided
•Seller postal address incomplete for XRechnung
•German validation requires seller postal code

Fix DE-R-004 automatically

Upload your invoice and let Invoice Navigator auto-remediate this error.

Try the Validator Germany Guide →