Regulatory updates - Japan

The Digital Agency (Japan Peppol Authority) has recently published updated specifications for standard invoices and self-billing invoices.

According to the announcement,  JP PINT Specifications have been updated for

• Peppol BIS Standard Invoice JP PINT  (Ver. 1.0.3 to Ver. 1.1.0)
• JP BIS Self Billing Invoice (Ver. 1.0.1 to Ver. 1.1.0)
• JP BIS Invoice for Non-tax Registered Businesses (Ver. 1.0.1 to Ver. 1.1.0)
  
  

Furthermore, in July, OpenPeppol released eDEC Code Lists version 8.9. This update deprecated all Document Type Identifiers containing 'busdox' for JP PINT.  Starting in October, all Peppol Certified Service Providers in Japan will use 'peppol-doctype-wildcard' as the Peppol Document Type Identifier Scheme.

This update aims to streamline invoicing processes, enhance compliance, and improve interoperability across various platforms.

The Japanese government amended the Electronic Record Retention Law (ERRL) in 2021 and has implemented it since 2022. There is a two-year grace period for businesses to adopt changes, including storing their e-documents electronically by January 2024.

How archiving in Japan currently works

Archiving hard copies is common in Japan; however, from January 2024, it is no more allowed for certain documents, such as contracts, orders, invoices, receipts, and other similar documents sent or received electronically. According to the ERRL, taxpayers, including SMEs and sole proprietors, must store their electronic trading documents in an electronic format.

In other words, once businesses receive an e-document, including downloading from the cloud or receiving via e-mail, they must archive it electronically instead of printing it and storing it in paper form.

How to comply with the e-archiving requirements

According to the provisions, businesses can apply timestamps on the sending and receiving documents, have a proper system or create an internal process to ensure documents cannot be edited or deleted. It is also possible to use a system that can keep logs of editing and deleting traceable.

Furthermore, documents archived electronically must provide human readability, and the archiving systems must enable search function by transaction data, such as transaction date, amount, and counterparties.

Pagero’s solutions can help businesses fulfil their business requirements and comply with the ERRL regulations.

These standards listed below were based on the Peppol International (PINT) model:

• Peppol BIS Standard Invoice JP PINT Version 1.01 that is compliant with the Peppol International (PINT) model for Billing;
• JP BIS Self Billing Invoice Version 1.0 is mainly identical to Peppol BIS Standard Invoice JP PINT Version 1.01, which is compliant with the Peppol International (PINT) model for Billing;
• JP BIS Invoice for Non-tax Registered Businesses Version 1.0 compliant with the Peppol International (PINT) model for Billing.

More information is provided by the Japanese E-invoice Promotion Association (EIPA) and Pan-European Public Procurement Online (Peppol)