What is BT-34 (Seller Electronic Address)?
BT-34 is a field in the EN 16931 European e-invoicing standard that carries the seller's electronic address. This address identifies the seller within an electronic messaging network — most commonly the Peppol network — and enables the buyer's system to send application-level responses back to the seller.
In the EN 16931 semantic model, BT-34 sits inside BG-5 (Seller postal address group) at the party level and is defined as:
> Identifies the Seller's electronic address to which the application level response to the invoice may be delivered.
BT-34 is mandatory in EN 16931 (cardinality 1..1). Every compliant European e-invoice must include the seller's electronic address.
How BT-34 Works
BT-34 is not a free-text field. It consists of two parts:
1. The address value — the actual identifier (e.g., a GLN number, VAT number, or Peppol participant ID)
2. The scheme identifier (BT-34-1) — a code from the Electronic Address Scheme (EAS) code list that tells the receiving system what type of identifier is being used
The scheme identifier is critical. Without it, the receiving system cannot interpret the address value. Validation rule BR-62 enforces that the scheme identifier must always be present.
Common EAS Scheme Identifiers
The EAS code list is maintained by the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and includes dozens of identifier schemes. The most commonly used ones for BT-34:
The choice of EAS code depends on the seller's country and the network they're registered with.
BT-34 in Peppol
In the Peppol network, BT-34 serves a dual purpose:
1. Invoice metadata — it identifies the seller on the invoice document itself
2. Response routing — it enables the buyer's Access Point to route Invoice Response messages (e.g., acceptance, rejection, payment status) back to the seller's Access Point
The value in BT-34 should match (or be resolvable to) the seller's Peppol Participant ID registered in the SMP/SML infrastructure. If BT-34 doesn't match the seller's registered endpoint, response messages may fail to route.
Peppol Validation
Peppol BIS 3.0 enforces additional rules beyond EN 16931:
XML Mapping
UBL Syntax
5790000435968
The schemeID attribute carries the EAS code (BT-34-1), and the element value carries the address (BT-34).
CII Syntax
5790000435968
Common Validation Errors
BR-62 is one of the most common validation failures. It triggers when the schemeID attribute is missing from the EndpointID element — a frequent mistake in CII-to-UBL conversions or when generating invoices from systems that don't natively support EN 16931.
BT-34 vs. BT-29 (Seller Identifier)
Don't confuse these:
BT-34 is specifically about where to send electronic messages. BT-29 is about who the seller is. They may contain similar values (e.g., both could carry a VAT number), but they serve different semantic purposes.
What ERP Developers Need to Know
1. Always include BT-34 with a scheme identifier. This is mandatory in EN 16931. Missing schemeID is the #1 cause of BR-62 failures.
2. Use the correct EAS code for your country. Don't default to 'EM' (email) unless no better option exists. Use the national identifier scheme — 0106 for Netherlands, 0204 for Germany, 9906 for Italy, etc.
3. Match the Peppol registration. If your seller is registered in Peppol, the BT-34 value should match their Peppol Participant ID. Mismatches cause response routing failures.
4. Validate the scheme-value combination. A valid EAS code with an incorrectly formatted value (e.g., schemeID="0088" with a non-GLN value) will pass basic schema validation but may fail at the Access Point level.
5. Store this per-entity. The seller electronic address is a property of the legal entity, not the invoice. Store it in your company/entity master data and populate it automatically on every invoice.