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BR-DE-1: Payment instructions (BG-16) are missing

Official message

[BR-DE-1] Eine Rechnung (INVOICE) muss Angaben zu "PAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS" (BG-16) enthalten.

XRechnung (CII) · Error · Message language: German · Version: xrechnung-3.0.2-validator-configuration-2026-08-31

[BR-DE-1] Eine Rechnung (INVOICE) muss Angaben zu "PAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS" (BG-16) enthalten.

XRechnung (UBL) · Error · Message language: German · Version: xrechnung-3.0.2-validator-configuration-2026-08-31
Severity
Error The invoice is invalid and may be rejected by the recipient.
Applies to
XRechnung (CII), XRechnung (UBL)
Affected fields
BG-16

What does this mean?

An XRechnung invoice must contain the group "Payment instructions" (BG-16), i.e. at least one payment means with a payment means type code (BT-81). The invoice does not contain this group.

Typical causes

No payment means was provided, e.g. because the bank details only appear in free text or on the PDF.
The invoice was created according to EN 16931, where BG-16 is optional, and then validated against the XRechnung rules.

How to fix the error

Provide at least one payment means with a payment means type code (BT-81), e.g. 58 for SEPA credit transfer or 59 for SEPA direct debit.
Add the details required for that payment type (e.g. the IBAN in BT-84 for a credit transfer).
CII: ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement/ram:SpecifiedTradeSettlementPaymentMeans, UBL: cac:PaymentMeans.
Generate and validate the invoice again.

In E-Rechnungsfreund

In the invoice form ("Experte" view), section "Zahlungsmittel (BG-16)" (payment means), add a payment means via "+ Zahlungsmittel hinzufügen", select the "Zahlungscode (BT-81)" and fill in the matching fields (e.g. "IBAN (BT-84)").

Example

Wrong

<ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement>
  <ram:InvoiceCurrencyCode>EUR</ram:InvoiceCurrencyCode>
  <!-- no ram:SpecifiedTradeSettlementPaymentMeans -->
  ...
</ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement>

Correct

<ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement>
  <ram:InvoiceCurrencyCode>EUR</ram:InvoiceCurrencyCode>
  <ram:SpecifiedTradeSettlementPaymentMeans>
    <ram:TypeCode>58</ram:TypeCode>
    <ram:PayeePartyCreditorFinancialAccount>
      <ram:IBANID>DE02120300000000202051</ram:IBANID>
    </ram:PayeePartyCreditorFinancialAccount>
  </ram:SpecifiedTradeSettlementPaymentMeans>
  ...
</ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement>
For developers: test expression per syntax

XRechnung (CII) (CII)

Context: /rsm:CrossIndustryInvoice

rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction/ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement/ram:SpecifiedTradeSettlementPaymentMeans

XRechnung (UBL) (UBL)

Context: /ubl:Invoice | /cn:CreditNote

cac:PaymentMeans

Related validation rules

  • BR-DE-10: Deliver to city (BT-77) is missing
  • BR-DE-11: Deliver to post code (BT-78) is missing
  • BR-DE-14: VAT category rate (BT-119) is missing in the VAT breakdown
  • BR-DE-15: Buyer reference (BT-10) is missing
  • BR-DE-16: Seller VAT ID, tax number or tax representative is missing
  • BR-DE-17: Invoice type code (BT-3) is not intended for XRechnung

Last updated:
Explanation of the validation rule, not legal or tax advice.