Electronic invoicing: Timetable for its implementation.

Through Resolution 000020 issued on March 26, 2019, the Dian indicated new parties obliged to issue electronic sales invoices with prior validation and, at the same time, established the calendar with the phases and dates in which its implementation will begin.

As mentioned in a previous editorial, on February 19, 2019, the Dian released a draft resolution through which it sought to establish new obligated parties to issue electronic invoices with prior validation, as well as a possible timetable for its implementation. Now, on March 26, 2019, the Dian issued Resolution 000020 of 2019, by means of which it indicated the new obligors to issue electronic invoices and the deadlines for its implementation, according to the economic activities registered in the RUT, within a period between 2019 and 2020. The above, in order to comply with the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 616-1 of the Tax Statute -ET-, as amended by Article 16 of Law 1943 of 2018.

Additionally, Article 615 of the ET establishes that all persons and entities that have the status of traders, exercise liberal professions or provide services inherent to the same, or dispose of goods resulting from agricultural or livestock activity, in addition to issuing the corresponding electronic invoice, must keep a copy of the same for each of the operations carried out, regardless of whether they are taxpayers or not of the taxes administered by Dian, as is the case of VAT.

“as from January 1, 2020, electronic invoices will be required for the origin of deductible taxes, as well as for deductible costs and expenses”.

Let us recall that, according to the new transitory paragraph 1 of article 616-1 of the ET, as from January 1, 2020, electronic invoice will be required for the origin of deductible taxes, as well as for deductible costs and expenses, which will have a maximum percentage that can be supported without electronic invoice (2020: 30%, 2021: 20% and 2022: 10%).

In this order of ideas, we will now address the most important aspects of the resolution, necessary for those who are obliged to implement the electronic invoice process.

Who are the new parties obliged to issue electronic invoices with prior validation?

The new subjects obliged to invoice electronically through the prior validation system as of 2019 will be:

– VATliable parties(former common regime).

–Persons liablefor consumption tax -INC-.

–Individualsor entities -excluding those not obliged to issue electronic invoices- who are traders, exercise liberal professions or provide services inherent to these, and sell goods resulting from agricultural or livestock activity, whether they are taxpayers or not of the taxes administered by the Dian.

–Subjectsthat opted to issue electronic invoices voluntarily, enabled by means of Resolution 001122 of February 15, 2019.

–Taxpayersregistered in the unified tax under the simple taxation regime.

Deadlines for its implementation

Those obliged to issue electronic sales invoices referred to above must complete the implementation process, taking into account the classification code of economic activities -CIIU- corresponding to the main activity registered in the RUT, according to the dates presented below:

It should be highlighted that if the invoicing party is not obliged to invoice electronically in relation to the economic activity registered in the RUT, but develops additional activities that oblige it to issue electronic sales invoices, the invoicing party in question must comply with the implementation of this system within the aforementioned deadlines, according to the order corresponding to the economic activity that generates the highest income to the maximum date of registration in the computer service.

Likewise, those who start operations of sale of goods or services after the dates established to start the electronic invoicing process must issue such invoices from the day they start operations, once the Dian makes available the electronic computer services necessary for this process.

The other parties obliged to invoice electronically, regardless of the economic activity registered in the RUT, must comply with the following deadlines to implement such invoicing process:

“those obliged to invoice may not continue issuing electronic invoices without prior validation, since this will not be recognized as a valid invoicing system”.

Once the deadlines for initiating the issuance of the electronic invoice have been met, those obliged to invoice may not continue issuing electronic invoices without prior validation, since this will not be recognized as a valid invoicing system, in accordance with the provisions of article 616-1 of the ET.

Source: Actualícese