IT and Finance Teams
How do businesses connect to the Peppol network for e-invoicing?
Businesses connect to the Peppol network through a certified Peppol Access Point (AP). The AP handles the technical transmission of invoices via the AS4 messaging protocol, maintains the Peppol identifier in the Service Metadata Publisher (SMP), and ensures that invoices conform to Peppol BIS (Business Interoperability Specification) formats. Businesses can either use an AP service provider or operate their own certified AP.
How do organizations select a Peppol Access Point provider?
Selecting a Peppol Access Point provider involves evaluating several criteria:
- Certification: Must be OpenPeppol-certified and listed in the Peppol directory
- Geographic coverage: Access to all required Peppol domains (PEPPOL, PEPPOL AU, PEPPOL SG, etc.)
- ERP integration: Pre-built connectors for SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, or the business's ERP
- SLA: Uptime guarantees and transmission latency appropriate for business invoice volumes
- Support: Local-language support and coverage in business operating hours
- Cost model: Per-transaction pricing vs monthly subscription vs volume tiers
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is a Peppol participant ID?
- A Peppol participant ID (PID) is the electronic address used on the Peppol network to identify a business as a sender and receiver of documents. In most countries, the PID is constructed from the country code + identifier type + identifier value (e.g., company registration number or VAT number). The PID must be registered in an SMP and published in the Peppol Directory to be discoverable by senders.
- Can a business have multiple Peppol participant IDs?
- Yes, a business can have multiple Peppol PIDs for different purposes: separate IDs for different legal entities, different document types (invoices vs purchase orders), or different departments. Each PID must be registered with an SMP. For businesses with many subsidiaries, centralized AP management with individual PIDs per entity is a common architecture.